MENU
Employer's Handbook
Hiring Procedures
- Setting up an Account
- Interviewing Process
- Hiring and Authorization Forms
- Scheduling
- Summer Employment
- Taxes
- Benefits
Before hiring a work-study student, an employer must first establish a University CUFS account from which the employer's share of the student's wage is drawn.
On-campus employers should contact the Budget Office to open object codes 0122 (Federal Work-Study) and 0120 (Temporary Student Wages) on their CUFS account. This account must be replenished every year.
Off-campus employers are billed on a quarterly basis. When they pay their agency match, the Federal Work-Study Office will deposit the check into a University CUFS account. Each organization will have its own CUFS account number with the University. To ensure credit to the proper account, all checks should clearly state the organization's name and CUFS number.
Individual employers determine the manner in which they make their employment decisions; most employers conduct several interviews and select from a pool of applicants. Students should bring their Authorization Form (downloaded from this Website) with them to the interview. It is very important that you do not hire a student until you have obtained this form. The Authorization Form is your only proof that a student has federal work-study funds available to earn during the academic year.
HIRING AND AUTHORIZATION FORMS
The Authorization Form must be completed whenever a student begins a new job or returns to a job from one year to the next. Since financial aid packages are revised annually, employers should remember that a student may not have the same award from year to year. Also, some students may be confused regarding work-study and may claim to be eligible when, in fact, they are not. Please contact the Work-Study Office if you have questions about a student's eligibility.
When a student is hired, the Authorization Form must be completed in ink-- including the job title, job code number, wage rate, department/organization, department code number, CUFS account and supervisor name, email address, and phone number. The forms must bear signatures from both the student and the employer. Completed Authorization Forms must be returned to the Federal Work-Study Office before the student can be paid from the work-study account. If a work-study student begins working before the Authorization Form is received, and hours are submitted to Payroll, his or her paycheck can be held by the Payroll Office.
In addition, first-time hires (students who have never been paid through the NU Payroll system before) are required to fill out a Personal Data Form and three standard hiring forms: both a Federal and Illinois State W-4 form, and an I-9 (Employment Eligibility Form). These forms may be obtained at the Payroll Office or downloaded from our website under Payroll Forms and should be completed by both student and employer in the department of hire.
Once a student is hired, the employer and employee should determine a mutually convenient work schedule. Work-study students may generally work from the Monday of the first week of classes through the last day of final examinations in June, including breaks. Employers will be notified of specific dates before each academic year begins.
In setting a schedule, employers and students should take careful consideration of not only the student's academic schedule, but also his or her earnings limit. Ideally, the student should work the number of hours necessary to reach, but not exceed, the earnings limit by the end of the year. As an example, if a student is awarded $2,000 for the academic year and is paid $7.50 an hour, the student may work approximately 8.8 hours a week and not exceed his/her earnings limit for the academic year. See the Scheduling Guide or the Hours Calculator for more information. Once a student reaches his/her earnings limit, the student may no longer be employed through the Federal Work Study Program for the remainder of the academic year. Any continued employment would be contingent upon the availability of department funding, 100% out of the departmental budget.
Employers are asked to set a weekly limit of students 10-15 hours of work per week to ensure that students reach their earnings limit by June. Students scheduled during class breaks may work full time; however, pay for overtime hours (any time over forty hours per week) is not permitted on work-study funds. Employers must pay these hours from their own account. The Federal Work-Study Program cannot pay for any work in excess of 15 hours a week, or eight hours a day for students working at all-day or overnight programs. Please remember that money earned during vacation periods counts towards a student's earnings limit. The Federal Work Study Program is intended to help students offset the cost of their educational program, not to replace employees in the work place.
SUMMER EMPLOYMENT IN COMMUNITY SERVICE
Refer to Summer Work-Study in the Information section of this website for information about hiring students for the summer.
Work-Study income is taxable, and students are required to fill out Federal and State W-4 forms the first year that they are hired; thereafter they do not have to re-submit new W-4 forms every year that they do Work-Study. Students who are residents of Wisconsin have the option to complete an IL-W-5 NR form instead of the IL-W-4. Due to a reciprocal agreement between these states, an IL-W-5 NR form allows the student to report all income to his home state; therefore, he will only be required to file state taxes (i.e. a 1040 form) in his home state. Residents of other states must pay taxes to both Illinois and their home state. Federal taxes are not affected by this option. Please note that students will pay higher taxes by turning in hours accumulated over several pay periods. To avoid paying unnecessarily high income tax, students should turn in their time records at the end of each pay period. Student employees will receive a W-2 form from the University at the end of January, and they can file a federal tax return for their Work-Study earnings of the previous year, whether they can be claimed as a dependent by their parents or not. Students should contact the Payroll Office at 847-491-7362 or payroll@northwestern.edu if no W-2 is received by February 15th. For all other questions about Payroll Forms please contact the Payroll Office.
Work-study students do not receive benefits such as sick or vacation leave. Employers should offer student employees a minimum thirty-minute lunch/dinner break if scheduled for six or more hours.