Federal Work-Study Program - Supervisor Resources
Student Employment Opportunities

The Federal Work-Study Program at SUNY ESF can provide access to eligible student employees during the summer and academic year. A complete program description can be found in the Federal Work-Study Handbook. Faculty and staff interested in hiring students should complete the following steps as necessary. It is recommended that you download and install the free Adobe Reader before starting.

How to Request Funding Allocations for Summer or Academic Year Federal Work-Study

In order to be considered for a Summer or Academic Year FWS allocation, supervisors should use the FWS Position Request Packet, which includes the following:

1. Review the FWS Position Request Procedure Memo
2. Review the FWS Policy and Procedures Memo
3. Complete a separate Summer Request Form (self-calculating word version available here) for each position desired
4. Complete a separate Academic Year Request Form (self-calculating word version available here) for each position desired
5. Submit completed forms to Director/Department Chair by the listed deadline
   

The Allocation Process

Individual supervisor allocations are determined by Directors/Department Chairs based on allocations submitted to them by the appropriate division supervisor (President/Vice President).  Supervisors are responsible for tracking the earnings of their FWS employees and limiting overall expenditures to the allocated amount.

Supervisors, as well as student employees, are also responsible for tracking individual employee earnings and limiting expenditures to the allocation assigned to the student by the Office of Financial Aid and Scholarships.  Supervisors will be informed of each student's assigned allocation on their copy of processed FWS Appointment Forms.

Academic Year Federal Work-Study Grants

Eligible students will be awarded FWS grant amounts as part of the overall financial aid package. Once the grant has been accepted, the student is eligible to work in an FWS approved position at SUNY ESF until the full grant amount has been earned. Students are responsible for tracking their own earnings during the year and ensuring that their total earnings do not exceed the grant amount. Students who submit time sheets in excess of their approved amount may not be paid for the extra time worked.

Summer Federal Work-Study Grants

Eligible students will be awarded FWS grant amounts as part of the overall financial aid package. In most cases, the amount will be based on the employment availability dates indicated by the student on the Summer FWS Application. Summer grant amounts can usually be adjusted in cases where the student's employment plans change. Students are responsible for tracking their own earnings during the summer and requesting grant increases before earnings have exceeded the originally approved amount.

How to Find a Federal Work-Study Employee

Prior to each employment period (summer or academic year), the Office of Financial Aid and Scholarships will post position descriptions for all available FWS opportunities. These listings will be available on the FWS bulletin board in Bray Hall and on the Position Listings database page, available from the link on the top of the page. Students are responsible for reviewing these descriptions and contacting the listed supervisors directly to discuss hiring options.  Supervisors are responsible for notifying the Office of Financial Aid if a listed position is no longer available.  The Office of Financial Aid does not assume a position is closed based on hiring decisions made by the supervisor.

Supervisors having difficulty finding student employees may want to try the following, in addition to their own recruitment activities:

• Contact the Office of Financial Aid to confirm that the position is still listed as available for students
• Contact the Office of Financial Aid to request a list and contact information for students still looking for an FWS position
  

Employment Paperwork

All students must complete the necessary paperwork prior to their first day of work for each employment period. In other words, new forms will be required at the start of each summer and/or academic year period. For liability purposes, supervisors are not advised to provide guidance with the completion of tax withholding forms. Students who are not sure how to complete these forms should be referred to parents or professional tax advisors for advice.  Additional information can also be found on the web at http://www.irs.gov/ and http://www.tax.state.ny.us/. Student who wish to claim exemption from New York State tax withholding allowances should contact the Office of Financial Aid and Scholarships or the Payroll Office for Form IT-2104-E. This form can be downloaded here, but it must be printed on yellow paper.

• New Employees
  All first time employees and employees who have not worked through the FWS program for more than one year should use the information in the New Employees Packet, which includes the following forms:
  • I-9 Employment Eligibility Verification
  • Employees Retirement System Waiver
  • W-4 Employee's Federal Withholding Allowance Certificate
  • IT-2104 Employee's State Withholding Allowance Certificate
  • Direct Deposit Enrollment Form
  • Federal Work-Study Appointment Form
  • FWS Time Period Schedule
• Returning Employees
  All employees who have worked through the FWS program during the past year should use the information in the Returning Employees Packet, which includes the following forms:
  • W-4 Employee's Federal Withholding Allowance Certificate
  • IT-2104 Employee's State Withholding Allowance Certificate
  • Direct Deposit Enrollment Form
  • Federal Work-Study Appointment Form
  • FWS Time Period Schedule

Payroll Procedures

Federal Work-Study employees are required to complete bi-weekly time sheets showing hours worked during each period indicated on the FWS Time Period Schedule. Blank time sheets are available outside the Payroll Office, 101 Bray Hall. Completed sheets should be signed by the supervisor and returned to the Payroll Office by the deadline listed for each time period. Pay checks will be available for pickup at the Cashier's Office, 102 Bray Hall, on the date listed for each time period. There is a minimum four week lag between the first submitted time sheet and the first available pay check.

Federal Work-Study employees may work up to 20 hours per week during periods when classes are in session and up to 40 hours per week when classes are not in session. Students under the age of 18 may only work up to 37 1/2 hours per week. Time sheets that are submitted with hours in excess of these limits will be adjusted by the Payroll Office.

Converting Grant Amounts to Hours of Work

Supervisors and Employees will often plan FWS schedules based on an average number of hours to be worked per week. In order to determine how many hours a student can work based on the grant/allocation amount, the following calculation should be used:

Grant Amount ÷ Wage Rate ÷ Number of Weeks in Employment Period
= Average Hours of Work per Week

For example, a student working during the academic year with a grant amount of $2,000 would calculate the following:

$2,000 ÷ $7.15 ÷ 30
= 9.33 Hours Per Week

Please note: the average number of weeks in the summer enrollment period is 15, while the average number for the academic year is 30 (15 per semester). The number of weeks may vary for students who plan to work during semester or other breaks.

Last updated on January 23, 2008