Academic Year Student Employment Guidelines
These guidelines will continue to be updated as needed with the transition to Workday.
FERPA | Authorization & Job Profiles | Hiring & Advertising | Hours Limit | Teaching Assistants | Remote Work | International Students | Compensation & Pay Rates | Other Payroll Documents | Timesheet Management | Work Schedules | Disciplinary Procedures | Contact
FERPA:
There are important limitations on accessing and sharing student information placed on us by federal legislation and college policy. The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974, as amended, often referred to as FERPA or the Buckley Amendment, provides considerable protection to our students and their records, along with legal sanctions against the College if we do not comply. Therefore, it is necessary to understand your responsibilities around protecting student information.
Under FERPA, information is divided into two categories: directory and non-directory. The law covers the educational records of living persons who are attending, or who have attended, the College so the following procedures and policies cover both students and living alumni/ae.
Unless the student or alumnus/a specifies otherwise to the Registrar, the College may, but is not required to, release what it defines as directory information without the prior consent of the individual. Except under specific circumstances stipulated in the legislation, e.g. in response to a lawful subpoena or an emergency, the College may not release non-directory information without the prior consent of the student or alumnus/a.
Williams defines the following as directory information: name; permanent and College addresses; campus electronic mail address; permanent and campus telephone numbers; date and place of birth; country of citizenship; major field, extra-curricular activities; height and weight of members of athletic teams; dates of attendance; degrees, honors and awards; other schools attended. Although this information is defined as directory or “public” under the law, we do not release it indiscriminately. We do not, for instance, provide directories to outside agencies who wish to prepare mailing lists or otherwise solicit our students. We would ask that you also follow this procedure. Please direct inquiries for information from off-campus to the Office of the Registrar.
In general, faculty and staff have access to personally identifiable non-directory information about students as long as they have a legitimate educational interest in the data, or a “need to know.” Legitimate interests might include hiring a student during the academic year; seeking information to assist in writing a letter of recommendation; or gathering information to update department or program records.
Releasing personally identifiable non-directory information to others without prior permission from the student or alumnus/a is illegal. You cannot, for instance, provide information about students, even to parents, unless the student or alumnus/a has given you prior written permission to share the data. This includes the student’s enrollment information, all financial aid information, and work history.
Authorization
No department, program, office, or student organization may employ Williams students without a manager’s budget approved for student employment by the superior and the Provost’s Office.
Student employment is regulated by the same organizations as regular staff (i.e., U.S. Department of Labor, Internal Revenue Service, U.S. Department of Justice, U.S. Department of Homeland Security, as well as state regulators), in addition to the U.S. Department of Education. It is imperative that supervisors understand their roles and legal obligations.
Job Profiles
Student job profiles are available for hire/rehire in Workday. A New Job Profile Request Form must be submitted to the Student Employment Manager, for creation of any job profile. The request form includes an area for the job description. Federal regulations mandate that the college maintain up to date student job descriptions. It is recommended that campus departments hiring students should annually review their active student job profiles.
Each profile is created based on department needs and with approval of the Student Employment Manager. Students are not permitted to work for any campus department, office, or student organization if they have not been hired into a job profile.
Hiring & Advertising: Supervisors are responsible for advertising available student jobs, screening and selecting student applicants, and then hiring them in Workday. Supervisors are not permitted to hire any student who is not actively enrolled, thus ineligible for employment. There may be occasions where an enrolled student is not eligible for employment. If this situation is encountered, contact the Student Employment Manager. Students who are not enrolled in the spring semester (e.g. study abroad), but will be enrolled for the upcoming fall semester may work in the summer before their return. However, the hire process must be coordinated with The Student Emplotment Manager.
Students are required to complete the federal Form I-9 before they begin working. The first part of the I-9 will be completed by the student in Workday during onboarding after being hired into a job. The second part must be completed in person prior to beginning work. Only certain, original, unexpired identification documents are acceptable to complete the I-9 form. No document reproductions of any kind can be accepted. For more information, refer to the Student Employment website.
Advertising Standard labor practice recommends the College post all available student jobs in a central location. Beginning in June 2024, Workday is considered the primary advertising site for student positions and should be used accordingly. Campus employers may also use other means to let students be aware of their available jobs and/or direct them to postings on Workday, such as department websites, Switchboard, Daily Messages, WSO.
If a hiring manager/supervisor cannot access the job requisition and hire tasks in Workday, and feel they should be able to do so, be in touch with the Student Employment Manager.
Remote Work: Remote and/or hybrid work schedules are not an option for students. Students who are not physically on campus during the academic year due to a Leave of Absence (personal or medical), Study Away, or other voluntary or involuntary reason(s) cannot hold student employment positions. Those students who are enrolled for a semester with Williams-Mystic may hold student positions on the Williams-Mystic campus while they are attending the program.
International Students: International students (non-resident aliens) attending Williams with an F-1 visa are eligible to hold campus jobs and may begin working after they have completed the I-9 form through onboarding in Workday after being hired into a job. They may be eligible for certain positions that take place off campus, but that are paid through the college (these typically occur through the Center for Learning in Action [CLiA]).
International students may work for up to 90 days before providing the Student Employment office with their Social Security Number (SSN). They will be made in eligible to continue working in a job or be hired into a job after 90 days.
Please visit International Student Services for more information.
Teaching Assistants: A Teaching Assistant (TA) is a student who assists a faculty member with instructional responsibilities; this program is managed by the Office of Dean of Faculty. At Williams, both undergraduate and graduate students are eligible to be TAs. First year students are eligible to work as TAs in their second semester, with approval from the Dean of the College. More information regarding the TA program is available on the Dean of Faculty’s website.
As outlined by the Dean of Faculty’s Office, TAs may work no more than ten (10) hours per week in a TA capacity. However, students may hold additional jobs that, when combined with TA hours, total no more than twenty (20) hours per week.
Student employees may work no more than twenty (20) hours per week, per pay period during the academic year. The academic year includes reading and exam periods, spring break, winter study, and any partial weeks at the beginning and end of vacation periods.
The College established an hours limit to safeguard study time and encourage active involvement in extracurricular activities. Students may hold more than one job, but may not exceed a total of twenty hours between all jobs (see example below). ALL hours that a student works, regardless of the job(s) held, contribute to their total hours worked.
Example A student may work 5 hours per week as a TA with an academic department, 6 hours per week as an Access Services Assistant with the library, 5 hours per week as a Sports Information Assistant, and an additional 4 hours per week with CLiA for a total of twenty (20). That student may not also work as a Peer Tutor without exceeding the 20 hours per week limit. (Note that students may not work more than ten hours per week in a TA capacity).
Compensation & Pay Rates: All student jobs must be paid through the college’s Payroll office.
Students are paid every two weeks as outlined on the academic year pay calendar. No wage advances or special checks will be issued.
A student job refers to any role filled by a student, utilized by a Williams office, department, program, or student organization, and compensated by Williams College. A job’s duration may last one academic year, one semester, one month, or one hour. Regardless of the type or duration of the job(s) students are hired to fill, they must be paid through the Payroll office.
Student pay rates are designed to foster pay equity between departments and to encourage job retention. The Student Employment Manager, along with Human Resources and the Provost’s Office, reviews student pay rates on a regular basis. Hiring departments, programs, offices, and student organizations are not authorized to determine pay rates or offer amounts outside the established structure and must abide by the Williams College Pay Rate Schedule. Pay rates apply to all student jobs affiliated with Williams.
Other Payroll Related Documents:
Tax Forms
Student Employment Earnings are considered taxable income. There are two tax forms that a student will complete in Workday as part of onboarding after being hired into a job. One is the W4, used for federal income tax withholding from each paycheck. The other is the M4, used for Massachusetts state income tax withholding from each paycheck (or the C4 for those students working on the Williams-Mystic campus).
**International students will receive separate communication about Sprintax from the Payroll department. Students attending Williams with a F-1 visa must complete a Substantial Presence Test in Sprintax to ensure correct taxation. This should be done regardless of whether they are working or wish to work on campus since there may be other taxable income sources. Sprintax will also be used to complete the W4 for federal income tax withholding. The M4 or C4 will be completed in Workday as part of onboarding.
Direct Deposit
The college requires that all employees, including students, be enrolled in direct deposit. This is a free service that deposits earnings from student employment directly into any U.S. bank account(s). Direct deposit enrollment is completed in Workday as part of onboarding after a student is hired.
Students will need their bank routing number and account number. Routing numbers are federally assigned to banks and not attached to personal banking information. They can be found through a Google search or a bank’s general website. The account number is not the number on the front of a debit card.
To protect your personal financial security, never send personal bank account information via email.
**If enrolling in direct deposit represents a challenge for you, please be in touch with the Student Employment Manager at [email protected]
Timesheet Management: Students are responsible for submitting their work hours according to the Student Payroll Schedule. Note: in Workday, timesheets are submitted on a weekly basis. Supervisors must approve reported time in Workday by the end of each pay period published on the schedule to ensure that students are paid in a timely manner. Those who have the ability to approve student hours in Workday have access to the current pay period and the one immediately prior.
All student hours must be recorded for each day in a pay period that is worked. Hours worked in one pay period may not be reported in a different pay period. In Workday, students have access to the current pay period and the one immediately prior. If a student makes an error or forgets to report hours, they should be in touch with their supervisor as soon as possible for assistance. Note that falsification of time sheets is grounds for immediate dismissal from a job.
Students must log into Workday and record hours worked for their respective job(s) for the appropriate pay period. It is the responsibility of each student employee to record their hours by the end of each pay period.
NOTE: in Workday, timesheets are submitted on a weekly basis.
Supervisors must review the student timesheets for accuracy, edit as necessary (always notifying a student if changes are made), and approve them in Workday in accordance with the published payroll schedule.
Work Schedules: Supervisors and student employees are expected to work together to establish work schedules. Schedules may be fixed, variable, or a combination of the two. Some jobs may have special projects or peak periods when students are scheduled for concentrated blocks of time. Supervisors and student employees should consider academic and extracurricular workload, schedules of other jobs that are held, as well as department needs, when determining work schedules. Student employees should inform their supervisor of any known conflicts in their schedules that may prevent them from working.
If illness or some other unavoidable circumstance prevents attendance at work, the student employee must notify the supervisor as soon as possible. It is the student employee’s responsibility to find an approved substitute if the supervisor has supplied a list of names for that purpose. Continued absenteeism is cause for disciplinary action or dismissal.
Important Points for Scheduling
- Per federal regulations, students are not permitted to work during times they are scheduled to attend class.
- Students cannot record hours for more than one position simultaneously. There can be no overlapping hours between positions.
- Per Massachusetts labor law, any student shift exceeding six (6) hours, must provide a 30 minute, unpaid break. Student employees must show this break on their timesheet.
Reading and examination periods are considered part of the academic year. While students are expected to work during these periods, supervisors may offer flexibility with student schedules to allow adequate opportunity to prepare for examinations.
Disciplinary Procedures: The college depends on its student employees to be reliable and conscientious. Most job related difficulties or misunderstandings can be worked out between individual students and their supervisor. Students and supervisors are encouraged to speak directly with one another about job related issues as a first course of action.
If conversation results in discovery of a necessary accommodation to support a unique need for a student employee, the Student Employment Manager should be consulted to ensure necessary steps are taken to support the student employee to the extent possible.
If, after a reasonable period of time for correction, the initial conversation proves unsuccessful in modifying the problem, best practice is a second conversation accompanied by a written warning. The Student Employment Manager should be consulted in drafting this notice of correction. Repeated negligence such as absenteeism, tardiness, timesheet abuse, or poor job performance will result in additional warnings or dismissal. If a written warning proves unsuccessful, the supervisor has grounds for dismissing the student. Falsification of time sheets and/or violations of the Student Code of Conduct is grounds for immediate dismissal from a position.
The Student Employment Manager should be made aware of any student employment issue(s) that are likely to result in a student’s dismissal. Supervisors and/or students may consult with the Student Employment Manager at any time for support around disciplinary issues and procedures.
Students dismissed for valid and supportable reasons may jeopardize their ability to work on campus for the remainder of the academic year.
Students who have questions, concerns, or other inquiries related to their position and/or supervisor, including any disciplinary actions, should contact the Student Employment Manager at [email protected]. This is a confidential e-mail and will not be shared with your supervisor without your consent or knowledge.
Questions about these guidelines and best practices can be directed to: [email protected]
HR office: 413-597-2681