Frequently Asked Questions

 

HOW DOES THIS WORK?

Non-Profits participate in Duke work-study through the collaboration of the Community Service Center (Duke Civic Engagement). Non-profits must qualify to participate in the program (see the contract). Participating non-profits hire Duke students and pay each student through the non-profit's normal pay routine. The student will receive paychecks through the non-profit, not through Duke. A student must be paid at least once a month for work performed. After payment of students, the nonprofit submits documentation to the Office of Student Loans & Personal Finance for reimbursement of the student’s work-study earnings. The Office of Student Loans & Personal Finance completes the appropriate paperwork, and Payroll sends a reimbursement to the non-profit. The non-profit can only be reimbursed for the percentage covered by work-study funding (90% of earnings for federal work-study, 50% of earnings for Duke work-study), up to the amount the student is allocated.

Students receive a limited amount of money for work-study. If a student works more hours than the work-study allotment can reimburse, it is up to the Agency to begin funding 100% of the student’s pay. Academic Year work-study allocations can only be used for hours worked during the designated timeframe for fall & spring semesters of an academic year (specific dates change with each year but timeframes usually start around the 2nd week in August and end around the 1st week in May).

Students cannot use the academic year work-study during the summer. If resources exist, students may be awarded summer work-study. In this case, students will receive a new verification paper valid only for the summer. Please note all requests for reimbursements for work performed during the academic year must be submitted to the Office of Student Loans & Personal Finance by mid-June (exact dates for each year will be communicated).

 

HOW DO STUDENTS QUALIFY FOR WORK-STUDY FUNDS?

In order to qualify for work-study allocation, a student must have an established and documented financial need in the Financial Aid Office of the college or school in which the student is enrolled. A work-study allocation is one component of a financial aid package and is not a requirement, but an opportunity.

 

HOW DO YOU SIGN INTO JOBX?

Once your request for access to JobX is approved, you will be provided with log-in credentials.

 

HOW DOES AN EMPLOYER LIST A JOB OPENING?

Employers will post job openings using JobX.   To ensure that your information is listed on JobX correctly, it is important that you review your opportunity before submitting it to be posted. Please do not use abbreviations students might not be familiar with or other information students may not know. The job description can be brief but should be appealing. We recommend using images and providing salary information in the description. Employers who wish to do so may place ads in the CHRONICLE at their own expense, as an additional way of advertising their job vacancies.

 

HOW TO HIRE STUDENTS.

The Office of Student Loans & Personal Finance does not place students. Students will be provided with information about student employment opportunities, and it will be left to the students to call upon the jobs that most interest them.  Employers will post their position on JobX.

Each Agency is responsible for hiring the number of students they need and informing each student of job responsibilities, work schedule, and rate of pay. The Office of Student Loans & Personal Finance does not keep student information on file; therefore each Agency must maintain records for their student employees.

When a student is hired, employers remove their job listing from JobX in order to prevent their department from receiving inquiries about a job vacancy after it has been filled. The agency must also notify our office when they hire a student within JobX so that we can provide the youwith the required reimbursement form that is needed in order to request reimbursement.

 

HOW WILL AN EMPLOYER KNOW WHO IS QUALIFIED FOR WORK-STUDY?

The Financial Aid Office will prepare a Work-Study Verification Form for each student so that employers will know which students qualify for the work-study allocation, the dates for which the allocation is valid, and other important information. Please do not accept a financial aid award letter instead of the Work-Study Verification form.

*Reminder: The total amount on the work study verification form is the total combined amount for both work study code and department code.

Undergraduate Students will be mailed Work-Study Verification papers to their Duke Email Account prior to the start of classes. Students must present the Work-Study Verification to employers when hired. The employer should keep a copy of this form for their records. Please do not assume a student has work-study. Always ask the student for his/her work-study papers.

 

HOW WILL AN EMPLOYER KNOW HOW MUCH AID A STUDENT HAS BEEN ALLOCATED? WHAT IF THE ALLOCATION AMOUNT CHANGES? WHAT HAPPENS WHEN THE ALLOCATION IS DEPLETED?

The Work-Study Verification Form will verify how much a student has been allocated; however, this figure may change during the course of the year. Students are responsible for notifying their employer of any changes in their work-study allocation. Employers should advise students to keep them informed of any changes in their allocation, as the hiring department is responsible for any earnings that exceed the student’s work-study allocation.

Using the hourly rate, the employer and student should plan a work schedule that would permit the student to stay within the earnings authorized on the work-study verification form. When a student employee has earnings that equal his/her work-study allocation, the department/non-profit must begin paying the student 100% from the Agency budget.  Reimbursements that exceed a student’s work-study allocation will not be processed.

 

HOW MANY HOURS CAN A STUDENT WORK?

During the academic year and summer sessions, undergraduate students enrolled in classes are allowed to work no more than 19.9 hours per week. This figure is the maximum amount. Please note that it is not recommended to work students the maximum amount of hours permitted. It is critical that a student’s campus employment be a manageable part of his/her undergraduate career, not an overwhelming experience. Please discuss with your student employees the number of hours that they feel comfortable working given all other obligations of their time.

Graduate students are permitted to work up to 19.9 hours a week during periods of enrollment.

 

DOES A STUDENT HAVE TO WORK ON-SITE?  CAN A STUDENT WORK REMOTELY?

A student can work on-site, remotely, or a hybrid schedule.  Any student doing remote work is required to work within the state of North Carolina.

 

HOW MUCH ARE WORK-STUDY STUDENTS PAID?

Below are the current minimum and maximum rates for hourly student employees effective July 1, 2023:

  • Student Assistant-General $15.75/hr - $20.25/hr
  • Student Assistant-Specialized $16.75/hr - $23.25/hr  (Specialized ex: research assistant, advanced computer, technical work)

Below are the updated minimum and maximum rates for hourly student employees effective July 1, 2024:

  • Student Assistant-General $16.00/hr - $20.50/hr
  • Student Assistant-Specialized $17.00/hr - $23.50/hr  (Specialized ex: research assistant, advanced computer, technical work)

 

HOW ARE STUDENTS PLACED ON PAYROLL? 

The Agency places the student on payroll using their current payroll process.  The agency notifies our office when they hire a student within JobX so that we can provide the agency with the required reimbursement form that is needed in order to request reimbursement.

 

WHAT IS LISTED vs REVIEW vs STORAGE?

Active, Listed (formerly Listed)--job posting has been approved and is available for students to view

Active, Not Listed (formerly Review)--creator has decided that the posting needs further review by him/her or someone in their dept before the position should be submitted for approval

Inactive (formerly storage)--position is closed (all students hired).  Moving here will delete all related applications connected to the posting.  It will allow the posting to be used again in the future.

 

WHAT IF THE STUDENT IS UNDER AGE 18?

A student employee under age 18 must obtain a Youth Employment Certificate by following the process outlined in the link. This certificate must be completed and submitted with the other payroll documents before they can be put on the payroll.

 

CAN A WORK-STUDY STUDENT HOLD MULTIPLE JOBS?

Yes, the two employers must first agree on how much of the student’s allocation will be earned at their department. Having both employers sign off on the Multiple Job Form does this. The Multiple Jobs Form is available on the Financial Aid web page in the Work-Study section. A completed copy of the form should be submitted to the Office of Student Loans & Personal Finance before the student is placed on payroll.

 

WHO DO I CONTACT FOR MORE INFORMATION?

Any additional questions may be directed to the Office of Student Loans & Personal Finance by email at StudentEmployment@duke.edu, or by phone at (919) 660-3630.