Student Employment Handbook

The student employment program is designed to:

• provide students with a way to earn money for miscellaneous expenses
• offer students an opportunity to understand the working world, while attending school
• enable students to develop valuable work-related skills and professional behavior, build a stronger resume, and improve job search skills
• influence student success through effective work site experience and supervision

Note: Student employment is intended to be an enriching experience for students – an opportunity to develop new skills and work with supervisors who can provide valuable job references in the future. The program is called “student employment,” not “work study” because it should be viewed as a work experience, rather than a way for students to receive pay for studying/doing their homework.

It is reasonable for student employees to expect:

• pleasant and equitable treatment by supervisors, including a mutual understanding of the expected work schedule and job responsibilities
• ongoing evaluations of work performance through verbal communication and periodic written performance evaluations from supervisors
• a progressive grievance process, including a full explanation if termination occurs
• campus employment jobs that can be used as references for future employers
• payment in a timely manner

It is reasonable for supervisors to expect:

• quality work, appropriate attire and a good attitude from their student workers
• student workers who report to work on time and follow the work schedule mutually agreed upon
• timely notification of any expected absences, along with plans to make up missed time
• particular requirements and/or procedures of supervisor’s office or department will be followed at all times, including abiding by any confidentiality agreements

There are two types of student employment supported through financial aid:

• Federal work study - wages are funded partially by the College and partially by the Federal Government
• College work study - wages are funded by the College

Note: Part-time employment - Some offices hire students as part-time employees. These positions are not funded through the student employment program. All forms and employment issues for these positions are handled through the human resources office. Students should understand that holding more than one part-time job could interfere with completion of academic responsibilities as well as affect their eligibility for financial aid.

All students participating in the student employment program must complete a work agreement. When a position is secured, the student and supervisor complete the agreement and the student returns the original form to the financial aid office. In addition, students are required to complete the following employment forms:

• an I-9 form (Federal Employment Eligibility Verification)
• a W-4 form (Employee’s Withholding Allowance Certificate)
• a MW 507 form (Employee’s Maryland Withholding Exemption Certificate)

To complete the employment forms, you will need to bring the following documents to the financial aid office: a valid driver’s licenses or Hood ID card and your original social security card, or your original birth certificate. If you cannot provide any of these documents, please contact the office of financial aid. Documents sent through email must be password protected with the password sent in a separate email. 

Please note: Students involved with the Community Scholars Service Learning program will be required to complete additional documents prior to employment. Please contact the Community Scholars coordinator at 301-696-3751 for further details.

Students are not permitted to work and will not be paid until they have completed the required employment forms listed above and have a valid work agreement on file with the financial aid office. Supervisors who hire students without a work agreement are operating outside the realm of student employment and student wages will not be paid by the program.

Each year, the Office of Financial Aid compiles the student employment directory of opportunities, a listing of approved student employment positions, with job descriptions and required qualifications. Eligible students are encouraged to refer to this directory to find positions for which they would like to apply. The directory is available in the financial aid office. At the beginning of the fall semester, student employment supervisors with vacant positions are invited to participate in the student employment job fair. Students seeking employment can meet supervisors, submit applications/resumes and interview for available positions.

Note: It is the student’s responsibility to secure a job on campus. We suggest that students identify what they are looking for in a position. For example, a student may want to work as a lab assistant because he/she plans to major in biology and wants to gain practical experience, or a student with interpersonal skills may choose to work in the admissions office dealing with prospective students and parents. The office of financial aid does not place students in positions; however, students having difficulty locating a job can talk with the financial aid office for assistance.

Returning students must complete a new work agreement form each year. Students are directed to pick up the work agreement at the financial aid office once they are back on campus. Students may keep the same job from the previous year (at the discretion of the supervisor) or change jobs. We encourage students wishing to change jobs to attend the student employment job fair. 

Note: Students participating in the work program must return a completed work agreement to the office of financial Aid by the following dates:

Returning student employees: Sept. 15
New students employees: Sept. 30

Failure to return the work agreement and complete all employment forms by the above deadlines may result in the loss of opportunity to participate in the student employment program.

Students may work on campus from the first day of classes each semester to the last day of classes. Note: Students wishing to work during exam week must obtain approval from the financial aid office. 

Students wishing to work during vacation periods when the College is not in session (Thanksgiving, Christmas, and Spring Break) must obtain approval from the financial aid office.

Supervisors will submit openings with job descriptions to the Career Center, The positions will be listed in Handshake. It is the students responsibility to apply for the position using the the directions provided on Handshake. 

Student wages are subject to federal and state income tax and are exempt from FICA/Medicare tax. All students who receive earnings for working on campus must complete the IRS Form W-4, Employee’s Withholding Allowance Certificate, and the corresponding state form (MW 507).

Student employment allocations for both the campus employment program and the federal work study program are awarded each year based on available funds. We encourage students to earn approximately half the allocation each semester, and to work the same number of hours during each week of the 15 week semesters in order to provide consistency for the supervisor. 

Students are paid bi-weekly based on the actual number of hours worked. Student employment funds are not credited to your student account. It is a family decision how these earnings are to be used. Students can take their paychecks to the Accounting Office and request the funds be posted to their account.

Note: Students may not earn more than their student employment allocation and should plan accordingly. In conjunction with your supervisor, it is your responsibility to monitor your earnings. The student employment coordinator and the accounting office make every effort to notify supervisors and students when students are approaching their maximum allotment. Wages above the student’s student employment allocation must be paid out of the supervisors’ budget. 

Pay rates:

• $12.50 per hour - campus-based positions
• $13.00 per hour - Community Scholar positions

Note: students must qualify for federal work-study funds to participate in the Community Scholars program.

The hours that a student works per week depend upon the student’s academic schedule, student employment allotment, and your needs as the supervisor. When arranging the work schedule, the student and supervisor should keep in mind that the student’s academic responsibilities take precedence over any other priorities. 

Formula: Semester allocation - divided by the number of work weeks in a semester - divided by the rate of pay equals the approximate number of hours per week to work. 

Example: $1000 (semester allocation) ÷ 15 (weeks in a semester)= 67 ÷ 8.00(pay rate)= 8.25 (approximate hours per week to earn full allocation)

Students will complete timesheets online through UltiPro using the assigned username. Timesheets are the joint responsibility of the supervisor and the student. The student should record his or her hours on the timesheet on a daily basis. Both the student and the supervisor are required to review the timesheet to verify that the information is correct and submit the timesheets through UltiPro. 

Please note: Students involved with the Community Scholars program may be required to complete additional information with the career center. Please contact the Community Scholars coordinator, x3751, for dates.

Supervisors are required to keep track of all timesheet submissions. Students are required to be paid for all work completed. Final time sheets of the year must be submitted to the payroll office on or before the last day of the spring semester. Supervisors must monitor timesheets carefully as any timesheets submitted after the deadline must be paid from the supervisor’s budget.

Note: Students must accurately report hours worked on the timesheet. It is a Judicial Board offense to falsify information on the time sheet. Please refer to the grievance procedure section of the handbook for more information.

Students participating in the student employment program are employees of the College. Hood College uses UltiPro to house employee payroll and human resources information. The employee portal provides students with a very convenient and streamlined process for accessing and updating their personal and payroll information. More information concerning the employee portal and the services available to students is on the website under campus services, human resources, employee portal.

Students are paid on an hourly basis for work performed. Checks are issued by the accounting office bi-weekly and distributed in students’ campus mailboxes unless arrangements have been made for direct deposit. Direct deposit forms are available online through the human resource office, employee portal. Arrangements for forwarding the final paycheck of each semester must be made in advance with the accounting office.

Students are free to change jobs, but those wishing to change during the academic year are encouraged to discuss the situation with their current supervisor or the financial aid office. The student should give the current supervisor two weeks notice before leaving the position. Open positions are posted online. Once hired, a new work agreement must be obtained from the office of financial aid, signed by the new supervisor and returned to the financial aid office prior to working in the new position.

Students who leave, or are terminated from, a student employment job may apply to available positions as listed on HandShake.

Students may lose the opportunity to work on campus for a variety of reasons. For example: students opting to work in the fall semester only; students taking a leave of absence; students studying abroad; students placed on financial aid probation.

If a student cancels his or her student employment for the fall semester, the award will be cancelled for the entire year. If you are interested in working in the spring semester, you must submit a request to be added to the wait list for student employment. Being placed on the wait list in no way assures you that you will be re-awarded student employment.

If a student studies abroad or takes a leave of absence, the award will be cancelled for the entire year. If you are interested in working upon your return to Hood College, you must submit a request to be added to the wait list for student employment. Being placed on the wait list in no way assures you that you will be re-awarded student employment.

Students who have been placed on financial aid probation may be in jeopardy of not being allowed to continue in the student employment program. Student employment is an opportunity for students to earn money while attending college, however, the student employment program should never interfere with a student’s academic performance.

With the exception of students in community service positions, students are not permitted to travel off campus for student employment. (Additional exceptions to this policy may be made for students who will be traveling off campus with their supervisor during the performance of their Hood-related duties).

Consistent with the program’s intent to provide a “real world” work experience for participants, supervisors are strongly encouraged to complete performance evaluations on their students once each year. This is a valuable opportunity for supervisors and students to review job expectations and assess skills. An evaluation form is to be completed and signed by both the supervisor and the student. Copies of the evaluation are maintained in the student’s file in the financial aid office. Supervisors will be provided with evaluation forms and are required to complete the evaluation by the end of the year.

Supervisors should establish work schedules with students at the beginning of each semester. Students who cannot work the regularly scheduled hours on a particular day should provide advance notification. In the case of illness or an emergency, it is the student’s responsibility to notify the supervisor. A “substitute” cannot work in the place of your regular student employee. A student’s student employment allocation can be earned by that student only. Students with repeated absences may not be allowed to continue in the work-study program.

Supervisors are responsible for introducing new student employees to the department/office staff and any specific policies and procedures. Training should address the student’s specific responsibilities, such as answering the phone, sorting and distributing mail, utilizing specialized software, etc. It also is important for supervisors to discuss their expectations regarding attendance, punctuality, and general work performance with student employees when they begin employment. In addition, supervisors should promote the professional development of student employees. 

Many departments/offices have developed policies and procedures for their student employees. The financial aid office strongly encourages all departments/offices to develop a procedures manual for student employees.

Supervisors who experience poor performance or problematic behavior by a student employee should promptly address their concerns with the student. Supervisors can also contact the human resources office or the financial aid office to discuss concerns and approaches for handling a situation. Supervisors are advised to follow the process outlined below when addressing poor performance or problematic behaviors with student employees. Please note that a supervisor may proceed to immediate summary suspension and possible termination when, in the supervisor’s opinion, the student has committed any of the serious offenses listed below (“grounds for immediate action”).

Step One - Verbal Warning

The supervisor has a private conference with the student employee and discusses problem areas. During this meeting, the supervisor states her/his concerns and specifically identifies the problematic behaviors. The supervisor also provides specific examples of how the student’s performance can be improved. The supervisor then allows the student to respond. As a follow-up to this meeting, the supervisor prepares a written summary of the discussion, to be signed by the supervisor and the student. This summary lists the problematic behaviors discussed, as well as the agreed upon resolutions. Copies are given to the student and the Financial Aid Office.

Step Two - Written Warning

If the student fails to correct the problematic behaviors within the determined time period or if additional difficulties emerge, the supervisor sends the student a written warning indicating that failure to comply immediately with the requirements set forth in step one will result in termination. A copy of this warning is also sent to the financial aid office.

Step Three – Termination

If the student employee fails to improve and does not abide by the guidelines established during step one and or step two, the supervisor may terminate the student. The College does not guarantee a subsequent position for a student who is terminated for just cause. In addition, the financial aid office cannot guarantee a replacement employee will be available to fill the vacant position. 

Note: The following are grounds for immediate action:

• Stealing
• Falsifying records (e.g. time sheets)
• Violating confidentiality
• Chronic absenteeism without notification
• Lying
• Violent or threatening behavior
• Drug or alcohol use in the workplace
• Sexual harassment
• Insubordination 

If a student employee has committed any of these egregious acts, the supervisor should immediately place the student employee on leave and promptly refer the case to the judicial board. Please notify the financial aid office and human resources in the event of any incident of this nature. 

Please note: All notifications filed in the office of financial aid remain confidential.

Note to supervisors: If you are unsure about how to handle a particular situation, please contact the student employment coordinator or human resources.

Note to students:

Students are encouraged to speak to their supervisors and/or come to the financial aid office with any questions or concerns relating to their employment. Any serious concerns about supervisor conduct should be reported to the financial aid office and human resources as soon as possible.

Students in the student employment program are expected to meet the Satisfactory Academic Progress requirements (SAP) as outlined on the Hood College website. Students not meeting SAP may be removed from the student employment program.

Hood College does not discriminate on the basis of sex, race, color, national origin, sexual orientation, gender identity or gender expression, marital status, pregnancy, disability, religion, age, or any other protected classification under applicable federal, state, or local law, in recruitment, admission and access to, or treatment, or employment in its programs, services, benefits, or activities as required by Title IX of the Educational Amendments of 1972, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973,Title VI and VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Age Discrimination Act, the Americans with Disabilities Act Amendments Act, and their implementing regulations. Hood College complies with applicable laws regarding reasonable accommodation for disabled students and employees. Applicants requiring reasonable accommodation in order to participate in the application process or to have access to a program, service, or activity of Hood College are requested to contact the Disability Services Coordinator. The following person has been designated to handle inquiries regarding the non-discrimination policies: Meg Timmons, Interim Director for Human Resources, Equal Employment Officer/Title IX and Section 504 Coordinator, Alumnae Hall, 401 Rosemont Avenue, Frederick, MD 21701 (AD 312), (301) 696-3542, timmons@hood.edu.