As employees, Seattle University’s Human Resources’ policies for non-exempt and “other” employees, as well as city, state, and federal labor laws, are applicable to student employees.
As students, student employees are expected to comply with all policies outlined in the Student Code of Conduct.
Student Employment policies and key policies related to employees and students are outlined below. Please email studentemployment@seattleu.edu with any questions.
It is the shared responsibility of the student and on-campus employer to ensure that students meet student employment eligibility requirements upon hire and through employment.
Students who are enrolled at least half-time in a program of study at Seattle University are eligible to work on campus.
International students must be enrolled full-time to be eligible to work on campus.
Students who are in their final term at SU and have fewer than six (undergraduate students) or three (graduate students) credits remaining to complete their degrees are still eligible to work on campus.
Students do not need to have a work-study award to work on campus. Students who have a work-study award are able to work beyond their maximum award amount.
Select jobs with the Center for Community Engagement are limited to only work-study-eligible students. When their wages reach their award amount, they may be eligible for an award increase in order to continue working and earning, dependent upon their remaining financial need and funding availability.
International students who are enrolled full-time with F-1 and J-1 Visas are authorized to work up to 20 hours per week (40 hours per week during scheduled academic breaks) in on-campus jobs through their program end date. Students on other VISA types should consult with their advisor in the International Student Center (ISC) regarding employment authorization.
Students that are on summer break can work in the summer as long as they are registered or intend to register for fall quarter. Students who are enrolled in summer session at half-time or greater are eligible to work on campus, but are limited to working only 20 hours per week while school is in session.
Incoming first-year students are eligible to pursue on-campus employment during the summer prior to their program start as long as they have graduated from high school, been accepted to the university, deposited, and registered at least half-time for the fall quarter.
Incoming international students cannot begin work until the start of their program. Additionally, international students who do not have a Social Security Number (SSN) should plan for an employment start date of no sooner than September 30. This ensures that their SEVIS record will be active for 15 days which is required to apply for the SSN.
Incoming students who begin work prior to the start of fall quarter and need housing or to request an early move-in should contact Housing and Residence Life at housing@seattleu.edu.
Student employees who are graduating are no longer eligible to work on campus as student employees after the final day of their last quarter.
On-campus employers may choose to hire/re-hire students who are not eligible for student employment as temporary employees through SU’s Human Resources. Those circumstance may include:
Note the following distinctions between temporary and student employees:
To initiate a temporary employee hire, please email HRstaffrecruiting@seattleu.edu
Student employees may work no more than 20 hours per week while school is in session. During scheduled academic breaks (winter, spring, summer), student employees may work up to 40 hours per week. During Summer Break, students are limited to 20 hours per week for any period they are enrolled half-time or more (6 or more credits as undergraduate students; 3 or more credits as graduate students) in summer session classes.
Students in approved Graduate Assistantships may work up to 25 hours per week.
Student employees are not permitted to work during scheduled academic classes at any time.
Students may be employed in more than one position on campus. When this is the case, coordination between the supervisors and students is required to ensure that the student does not work a combined total of more than 20 hours per week.
Students may NOT be hired simultaneously as both student employees and part-time or full-time, benefited members of the SU staff or faculty. Due to classification restrictions students may be hired as one or the other, not both. If you would like to pay a staff member who is also a student for an internship, this may be done through Supplemental Pay through Human Resources.
All student employees are considered non-exempt employees and should be paid an hourly wage and are under the purview of SU Student Employment.
In rare approved circumstances, students are compensated for work through stipend, scholarship, or housing and meal assistance. These positions include student government and leadership positions in the Center for Student Involvement and Resident Assistant positions in Housing and Residence Life. The contracts for these positions are managed by the employing departments, not Student Employment.
The student employee pay rate for all on-campus positions is $19.97/hr, as of January 1, 2024.
The Graduate Assistant pay rate for approved graduate student positions is $22.67/hr.
As non-exempt employees, student employees who work over 40 hours per week (only permitted during scheduled academic breaks, i.e. summer, winter, fall) are eligible for overtime and required to be paid at 1.5 times the regular hourly rate.
The supervisor must authorize overtime and/or changes to an employee's regular schedule in advance and in writing. Questions about overtime for student employees should be directed to Student Employment.
On-campus employers are prohibited from hiring volunteers or unpaid workers for any on-campus job descriptions that employ and pay students.
Supervisors are also prohibited from accepting volunteer hours from a paid employee. Volunteer hours are permitted only under very limited circumstances and cannot be requested, suggested, or otherwise solicited by anyone.
Volunteer hours cannot be treated as a pre-requisite to anything. Any training for work should be compensated and the student employee’s start date on the SEAF and Payroll record should be the first day of training.
The University's paid sick/safe time benefit protects the income of employees during incidental or
occasional periods of:
Student employees will be awarded one hour of sick leave for every 30 hours worked.
Up to 72 hours of unused sick leave may be carried over from one year to the next unless the student employee incurs a separation from university employment. Student employees are not eligible to be paid for unused, accrued sick leave upon separation from university employment. When there is a separation from university employment and the student employee is rehired to any university position within 12 months, previously accrued unused paid sick leave shall be reinstated.
Student employees are not eligible for paid vacation time accrual or paid holidays. Student employees are not eligible for premium holiday pay. Working on holidays should be avoided with the exception of essential services.
If a student employee is injured while on the job, the student must report the injury to his/her supervisor and complete an incident report with the Office of Public Safety.
If medical treatment is necessary, a Worker’s Compensation Form must be completed at the point of medical treatment. The SU Student Health Center is unable to complete Worker’s Compensation Claims so students will need to seek treatment at an off-campus facility.
Visit the Seattle University Human Resources website for more information.
SEAFs are required to be submitted at least 10 days prior to the student's start date. This ensures time for processing, for students to complete new hire paperwork if necessary (see below), and for Payroll to set up time entry so students are paid on time for their first pay period. Additionally, student employees are employees and as such should have scheduled start dates.
Before beginning work, student employees who have not yet worked on-campus, or who have not worked at the university for more than three years from their last termination date, are required to complete new hire paperwork, which includes the I-9, W-4, and Direct Deposit form.
Per federal law, section one of the I-9 must be completed on the start date or sooner. Section two, which includes document verification, must be completed within three days of the start date. Students must schedule an appointment to complete their document verification and bring original (no copies or photos), unexpired, acceptable documents with them. Learn more about Form I-9 here.
Supervisors/departments may choose to allow their students to work remote or hybrid schedules.
Student employees must work remotely within the state of WA, EXCEPT for during scheduled academic breaks (summer, winter, spring) and holidays. International students who return to their home countries in the Summer and wish to work remotely should check with the ISC to ensure work authorization.
Supervisors who choose to allow student employees to work remotely should have a structure and clear expectations in place to ensure student employee productivity.
Student employees ar required to complete two trainings. Student employees do not have access to EngageSU, which is where faculty/staff trainings live, so students will need to use the links provided below.
1. ALL student employees are required to complete Employee Safety Orientation. This is a 10-minute online module and ends with a course completion slide that student employees must save and submit for credit.
2. Students who will work with confidential student records and information are required to complete FERPA training provided by the Office of the Registrar.
Per the university's HR policy on meals and rest, no employee shall be required to work more than five consecutive hours without a meal period. Student employees must be completely off duty during this lunch period. Student employees can waive a meal period and work through if the request is initiated by the employee and the supervisor agrees.
The University affords a 15-minute paid break for every four continuous hours of work. Rest periods may not be waived by employees or supervisors; however, intermittent rest periods equal to 15 minutes may be allowed instead of a scheduled break when the nature of the work allows.
The University’s HR Policy for workplace attire applies to student employees:
Employees are expected to dress in a manner appropriate to their working environment and tasks. The University reserves the right to establish and identify guidelines for dress and appearance. Individual departments or units also reserve the right to have their own guidelines on clothing in the workplace appropriate to the nature of their tasks. Employees should consult with their supervisor about attire specific to their department.
It is important to keep in mind that student employees are often working in between classes and other school activities. We also encourage you to reconsider traditional views of “professionalism” and “professional” dress, and to develop anti-racist dress code policies for your office/department. If you would like to learn more, please reach out to Student Employment.
Seattle University and Student Employment comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act, Section 504, of the Rehabilitation Act and applicable state and local laws providing for nondiscrimination in employment against qualified individuals with disabilities. The University also provides reasonable accommodation for such individuals with disabilities.
A student employee or applicant seeking an accommodation in connection with employment should first contact Student Employment. Student Employment will then connect the student to Human Resources or Disability Services. On receipt of an accommodation request, Human Resources or Disability Services will meet with the requesting individual and other relevant University personnel to determine the individual's needs and the availability of reasonable accommodations.
Supervisors must not discriminate against a disabled student applicant or employee who is otherwise qualified to perform the job. The responsibilities listed on an on-campus job description should be expected to be carried out with or without an accommodation.
Student employees at Seattle University are employed “at will,” meaning individuals may decide to end their employment with the University at any time for any reason or no reason, and the University has the right to terminate the employment of individuals at any time for any reason or no reason.
When student employee performance consistently fails to meet expectations, supervisors are advised to follow the process below. To prevent performance issues, supervisors should first and foremost provide clear job descriptions, as well as orientation, training, and guidelines for the job to ensure that each employee knows and understands work performance expectations.
This process is not meant as a pre-requisite to termination, but a guideline for supervisors to manage performance issues. Supervisors may contact Student Employment for support or questions.