Student employment = Student success
Students who work on campus have higher GPAs and are more likely to graduate from the University of Iowa.
When hiring student employees and defining their roles, consider these key skills that employers look for in new graduates:
- Critical thinking and problem-solving
- Teamwork and collaboration
- Professionalism and work ethic
- Oral and written communication
By offering meaningful work opportunities, you help our students develop key skills, achieve academic success, and prepare for their future careers, upholding Iowa's commitment to excellence and student development.
Student Employment Guidelines
Iowa law allows students employed through the Part-Time Hourly Continuous or Work-Study programs to work 20 hours per week. During school breaks, students are allowed to work 40 hours per week.
The university monitors compliance with state law over an academic year - Sept. 1, 2024-May 10, 2025.
For the 2024-25 academic year, students are allowed to work 680 hours, excluding any hours worked during winter break (Dec. 22, 2024-Jan. 18, 2025).
Students are not eligible for the Continuous and Work-Study employment programs once they've reached the 680-hour limit. Once the limit is reached, a Termination Report is automatically created. Students can be reappointed to work once they've registered for summer or fall classes.
For more information about the student employment process, visit the Student Employment webpage.
| DATE | INFORMATION |
|---|---|
| 08/25/24 | Start date for Academic Year Work-Study and Bi-Weekly Continuous (students not previously enrolled at the UI) appointments |
| 09/07/24 | End date for Bi-Weekly Student Summer and Bi-Weekly Continuous appointments (students not enrolled in the fall) |
| 11/24/24-11/30/24 | Thanksgiving Break |
| 12/21/24 | End date for fall-only Work-Study period for students graduating in Dec. 2024 |
| 12/22/24-01/18/25 | Winter Break |
| 01/18/25 | End date for Bi-Weekly Continuous appointments for students graduating in Dec. 2024 |
| 01/19/25 | Start of spring-only Work-Study period |
| 03/16/25-03/22/25 | Spring Break |
| 05/17/25 | End of Work-Study appointments for spring/academic year |
Student Hourly Appointment Options
Once a student is hired, visit this webpage to complete the appointment process. The webpage provides essential information about employment forms, direct deposit, and onboarding.
Bi-Weekly Student Continuous Appointment
Continuous Appointment
- Students who are registered for the fall semester and not previously enrolled at the UI are able to start work on Aug. 25, 2024.
- The employer pays 100% of the student's wages.
- The appointment will continue unless it's terminated by the department or the student is no longer enrolled at the university.
- When you appoint a student, review the message below to see if the student is eligible for Work-Study. If the student is eligible for Work-Study, back out and create a Bi-Weekly Work-Study appointment instead.
Work-Study Appointment
- 2024-25 Academic Year: 08/25/24-05/17/25
- The employer pays 50% of the student's wages (40% if the job is designated as a community service position) up to $12 per hour.
- The Work-Study program pays the remaining 50-60% until the student has earned the amount of the Work-Study award. The portion of the wage above $12 per hour is paid 100% by the employer.
- The appointment is for a specific time frame and must be renewed after each employment period. Students must reapply for Work-Study for each employment period, i.e., academic year.
- A few days after the Work-Study appointment is created, please review payroll information to see if the Bi-Weekly Student Work-Study appointment was approved and is in the payroll system. You should then terminate the Bi-Weekly Student Continuous appointment with a 08/24/2024 date or a termination date that is at the end of a bi-weekly pay period. It's important not to terminate the current appointment when the new appointment is still being routed through workflow.
Work Study Facts and Reminders
- Work-Study awards are approved for the academic year. The end date of the appointment will be 05/17/25. The amount of the student's Work-Study eligibility is for the academic year.
- The Work-Study eligibility represents the student's total pay (department and Work-Study). Once the student has earned the Work-Study award, the Work-Study appointment will be terminated and the department can create a Bi-Weekly Continuous appointment if the department can pay 100% of the student's wages.
- Work-Study earnings will be monitored and emails are sent to the employer and student when they are nearing the Work-Study eligibility.
- To verify the remaining eligibility of your Work-Study employee(s), login to Employee Self-Service. Under "Administration" select "ePersonnel File" (direct reports) and the student employee. You will be provided a recap of College Work-Study earnings and the remaining eligibility as of the last pay period.
A campus data report can be accessed by the following staff roles to determine if current Bi-Weekly Continuous student employees can be appointed as Work-Study.
- Administrative Supervisors can see information about their direct reports.
- HR reps can access information for any position in the HR Dept. ID for which they are an HR rep.
- Senior HR reps can access any position in the Org for which they are a Senior HR rep.
- Login to Campus Data, type the name of the report (Part-Time Employee with Work-Study Award) in the search bar, and select the report. You can choose to make this report a "favorite" for future searches. To view the session for which a current student employee has been awarded Work-Study, select "20243" for fall 2024 or "20248" for spring 2025 and click "View Report."
You are encouraged to create Work-Study appointments as soon as possible, preferably before the school year starts. Once the appointment is approved by Student Financial Aid, it still needs to be recorded with University Human Resources before Time Records are available.