Work Study

Undergraduate Students

What is work study?

Work study is a program that helps students get part-time jobs, primarily on Duke's campus. When a work-study student finds a job, financial aid pays a portion of his/her wages. For this reason, many on-campus employers will require a student to participate in the work-study program in order to apply for a job.

How do I apply?

To apply for work study, students must complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). Once Duke receives your FAFSA results, you'll be notified of your work-study eligibility and you can accept it on DukeHub.

(Note: students seeking need-based institutional aid must also file the CSS Profile and complete the full aid application process).

Where can I look for a job? Am I guaranteed to find one?

Once you have accepted your work-study eligibility on DukeHub, you can begin applying for jobs. Available openings for both on- and off-campus jobs are posted to DukeList year round. There are undergraduate research jobs posted on Muser as well. You will need to apply for open positions and be hired by the supervisor in order to begin earning your work-study. While you are not guaranteed to find a job, you will want to begin applying early in the semester and check DukeList as well as Muser often for open positions.

In addition to jobs on campus, some off-campus positions may be available as well. Learn more at the Duke Student Engagement site here.

When can I start looking for a job?

You may begin looking for a job once you have been able to accept your work study online through your DukeHub account. Jobs are posted on the DukeList website, and you may apply as early as the summer before you arrive on campus if you have already been offered and have accepted your work study.

When and how will I get my work study verification form?

Once you have accepted your work study and have submitted all requested financial aid forms, work study papers will be emailed to students beginning the second week in August. Keep in mind that you must have completed all the items on your financial aid to-do list in order for your papers to be sent to you.

After the initial emails containing work study forms are sent the second week of August, students who accept their work study or complete their financial aid to-do lists after that time will receive their work study paperwork via email within two business days.

How do I get paid? Will it help with my tuition?

Once you have been hired, your wages will be paid to you via direct deposit to your personal bank account. Since your earnings will be paid directly to you, work-study does not directly impact your bill at Duke. It will be up to you to determine how to spend your earnings.

How much will I get paid? Is there any limit on what I can earn?

Enrolled students can work up to 19.9 hours per week. The amount that you earn is dependent upon the number of hours worked and your hourly wage. Your total earnings should not exceed your annual work study award amount. If you find that you are reaching your annual award limit, email us to find out if you have additional work study eligibility, and contact your employer to find out if you can continue working without work study funding.

The current work-study maximum during the academic year is:

2019-2020
Domestic Students	$2,200

Please note: these allocations reflect total wage earnings.

Current hourly rates for student employees:

Position Type	Min Wage	Max Wage
Student Assistant - General	$10.25/hr	$16.25/hr
Student Assistant - Specialized	$11.25/hr	$19.25/hr

What's the difference between Duke work study and Federal work study?

Depending on your financial need, you will be offered either Federal work study or Duke work study. As a student, you may not notice a significant difference; your hourly wage and maximum earnings are the same in both programs. The difference between the programs is the amount of the subsidy paid by financial aid to your employer. Employers hiring Federal work-study students receive a 75% subsidy, and employers hiring Duke work-study students receive a 50% subsidy. Because of this, you will need to be sure to let your employer know which type of work study you have when applying for the position.

Can I work off campus?

In addition to jobs on campus, some off-campus positions may be available as well. Learn more at the Duke Student Engagement site here.

Can I work in the summer?

If you are enrolled in classes on Duke's campus during a summer term and are eligible for need-based aid, you will receive a Summer work study award. Work study for summer works the same way as it does for the academic year, except the award amount is smaller because the summer term earning period is shorter. Also, please note that non-enrolled students earning work study during the summer are subject to FICA tax withholding.

If you are not enrolled in coursework over the summer, you may still be eligible to participate in Work study. All summer non-enrolled work study students must have a completed aid application for the following year on file. To find out what needs to be completed or to see if you qualify, contact your financial aid counselor.

Graduate Students

As a graduate student, you'll need to contact your program's financial aid office to determine if you are eligible for work study. If you've already been offered work study, the links below provide helpful information about the program.

Where can I work?

A comprehensive listing of all on- and off-campus jobs -- including both work study and non-work study positions -- is available through DukeList. Students with federal work study eligibility may also apply for employment through the Duke Community Service Center for placement with America Reads, America Counts, and other non-profit organizations. If you work multiple jobs, the student and employers are responsible for monitoring the student's total earnings.

How do I get paid?

You will receive a regular paycheck paid to you directly via direct deposit for 100% of the wages you’ve earned.

How much can I earn?

Enrolled students can work up to 19.9 hours per week. The amount that you earn is dependent upon the number of hours worked and your hourly wage. Your total earnings should not exceed your work study award amount. If you find that you are reaching your award limit, contact your school's financial aid office to find out if you have additional work study eligibility, and contact your employer to find out if you can continue working without work study funding.

Current hourly rates for student employees:

Position Type	Min Wage	Max Wage
Student Assistant - General	$10.25/hr	$16.25/hr
Student Assistant - Specialized	$11.25/hr	$19.25/hr

Can I work during the Summer Term?

Your eligibility during Summer Terms will be determined by your program's financial aid office. You can contact your aid office to learn more.

Duke Employers

Duke University departments hire work study students directly. Each pay period, student hours are submitted to payroll.

For Federal Work Study student participants, payroll will deduct 75% of the allocated earnings to be paid to the student from a Work Study WBS Element (which the student will provide); the remaining 25% of the allocated earnings is deducted from the department's cost center. All (100%) of the student's earnings in excess of the allocation will be deducted from the department's cost center.
For Duke Work Study student participants, payroll will deduct 50% of the allocated earnings to be paid to the student from a Duke Work Study cost center (which the student will provide); the remaining 50% of the allocated earnings is deducted from the department's cost center. All (100%) of the student's earnings in excess of the allocation will be deducted from the department's cost center.

Finding Students

List a job opening

Employers can post job openings using DukeList, Duke's #1 source for student employment opportunities.

To ensure that your information is listed on DukeList correctly, it is important that you review your opportunity after posting it. Please do not use abbreviations with which students might not be familiar 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.

Hire a student employee

Financial aid offices do not place students in job positions. Students find information about student employment opportunities via DukeList, and it is up to the students to call upon the jobs that most interest them.

Each department is responsible for hiring the number of students it needs, and for informing each student of job responsibilities, work schedule, and rate of pay. Financial aid offices do not keep student employment information on file. Each department must maintain records for its student employees.

Students may be hired at any time. The department must submit the appropriate paperwork to Payroll before the deadline for the pay period in which the student is to begin work.

When a student is hired, employers should remove their job listing from DukeList in order to prevent the department from receiving additional inquiries about a job vacancy that has already been filled.

Find out your student employee's work study eligibility

Always ask the student for his/her work study papers; never assume a student has work study.

If the student has completed his or her financial aid application, the student's financial aid office will provide a Work Study Verification Form to the student prior to the start of classes. Students must present this form to the employer so the employer will know if the student qualifies for a work study, how much the student's work study allocation is, the dates for which that allocation is valid, and other important information. A financial aid award letter is NOT an acceptable substitute for the Work Study Verification Form.

REMINDER: The work study allocation listed on the Work Study Verification Form is the total combined amount for both the work study code and the department code.

Example:

Work Study Type: Federal
Work Study Allocation: $2,200
Maximum amount for work study code: (75%)($2,000) = $1,650
Amount for departmental code: (25%)($2,000) = $550
- PLUS 100% of all earnings in excess of the allocated $2,200

What to do if the work study allocation amount changes

The Work Study Verification Form will verify how much a student has been allocated. This figure may change during the course of the year. In the event that the allocation changes, the student receives a new Work Study Verification form from his/her financial aid office and he/she is responsible for notifying all employers of any changes in the 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.

Considering 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 allocation, the department must begin paying the student 100% from the department budget.

Paying Students

Dates, hours, and rates

Dates

Work study allocations must fall within given dates. These dates vary between terms and school, and are provided on the Work Study Verification Form. The student's financial aid office provides this Work Study Verification Form to the student and the student provides it to the hiring department. All (100%) of student wages earned outside of the allocation dates will be deducted from the department's cost center.

Hours

It is critical that a student's campus employment be a manageable part of his/her academic career, not an overwhelming experience. Please discuss with your student employees the number of hours they feel comfortable working given all other obligations of their time. We highly recommended that students not be required to work the maximum number of hours each week.

Students	Enrollment Status	Max Weekly Hours
Undergraduates	Enrolled	19.9
Undergraduates	Not enrolled*	39.9
Graduates	Enrolled	19.9
Graduates	Not enrolled*	39.9

*Periods of non-enrollment include holiday vacations, spring break, and summer (if not enrolled in classes)

Rates

The current rates for hourly student employees are as follows:

Position Type	Minimum	Maximum
Student Assistant - General	$10.25/hr	$16.25/hr
Student Assistant - Specialized	$11.25/hr	$19.25/hr

(Specialized examples include research assistantships, advanced computer work, and technical work)

Placing a student on payroll

Student employees are paid on the Duke University bi-weekly payroll system, with the exception of Ph.D. graduate students employed as teaching assistants who are paid on a monthly basis.

The cost center and GL account are located on the students Work Study Verification Form. Please use the same GL account for both cost centers.
Complete the necessary forms to place the student on payroll.
Direct deposit is required for all student employees.

Duke departments needing assistance in placing students on payroll should contact Duke's Corporate Payroll Services for help.

Students with multiple jobs

If a student wishes to hold multiple work study jobs, the two (or more) employers must first agree on how much of the student's allocation will be earned at each of their departments. This is accomplished by completing the Multiple Work Study Job Form and returning it to the Student Loan Office before placing the student on payroll.

Students under age 18

A student employee under age 18 must obtain a Youth Employment Certificate. This certificate must be completed and submitted with the other payroll documents before the student can be placed on payroll.

Exceeding the work study allocation

The hiring department is responsible for any earnings that exceed the student's work study allocation.

If your student employee has not yet exceeded but is about to exceed his/her work study allocation, you must take the following steps immediately:

Either remove the student from payroll or transfer the student to 100% earnings from your department
Notify the student of the change

If your student employee exceeded his/her work study allocation, you must take the following steps immediately:

Review your pay records and determine the date the student exceeded the work study allocation.
Remember that payroll operates on a prior week basis; determine any outstanding paychecks for the student.
Either remove the student from payroll or transfer the student to 100% earnings from your department, and
1. Notify the student of the change
2. Submit a Manual Salary Cost Transfer iForm with an effective date reflecting the time immediately preceding the exceeding of the student's work study allocation, using either
  - a 6077 GL account when transferring the student to 100% from your department, or
  - a non-work study GL account specific to your department

Want more information?

Download the complete work study guide

Non-Profit Employers

Non-profit agencies participate in work study programs administered by Duke University through collaboration with the Duke Community Service Center. Non-profits must qualify to participate in the program (see contract). Students can search for opportunities at off-campus locations here.

A participating non-profit hires Duke students directly and pays the students through the non-profit's normal pay routine. The student will receive paychecks through the non-profit, not through Duke.

Both Federal Work Study and Duke Work Study student participants are eligible to work for a participating non-profit until the maximum work study allocation amount has been earned.

For Federal Work Study student participants, the non-profit will be reimbursed for 90% of the student's earnings. The remaining 10% of the student's total earnings is the responsibility of the non-profit agency. Reimbursement requests for total earnings in excess of the student's work study allocation will not be processed.

For Duke Work Study student participants, the non-profit will be reimbursed for 50% of the student's earnings. The remaining 50% of the student's total earnings is the responsibility of the non-profit agency. Reimbursement requests for total earnings in excess of the student's work study allocation will not be processed.

Finding Students

List a job opening

Employers should contact the Student Loan Office for information on how to publicize job postings.

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.

Hire a student employee

Each non-profit agency is responsible for hiring the number of students it needs, and for informing each student of job responsibilities, work schedule, and rate of pay. Financial aid offices do not keep student employment information on file. Each employer must maintain records for its student employees.

Students may be hired directly by the non-profit agency at any time.

When a student is hired, please be sure to submit a copy of the Off-Campus (Non-Profit) New Hire Form to the Student Loan Office in order to have the student added onto your organization’s Reimbursement Form.

Find out your student employee's work study eligibility

Always ask the student for his/her work study papers; never assume a student has work study.

REMINDER: The work study allocation listed on the Work Study Verification Form is the total allowable earnings (the combined amount for both work study funding and funding from the employer).

Example:

Work Study Type: Federal
Work Study Allocation: $2,200
Maximum amount to be reimbursed: (90%)($2,000) = $1,980
Amount to be paid from the non-profit agency's budget: (10%)($2,000) = $220
- PLUS 100% of all earnings in excess of the allocated $2,200

What do I do if the work study allocation amount changes?

The Work Study Verification Form will verify how much a student has been allocated. This figure may change during the course of the year. In the event that the allocation changes, the student receives a new Work Study Verification form from his/her financial aid office and he/she is responsible for notifying all employers of any changes in the work study allocation. Employers should advise students to keep them informed of any changes in their allocation, as the hiring agency is responsible for any earnings that exceed the student's work study allocation.

Considering 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 allocation, the agency must begin paying the student 100% from the department budget.

Paying Students

Paying the student and getting reimbursed

Students must be paid at least once a month for work performed.

After payment of students, the non-profit agency submits a reimbursement voucher to the Duke work-study coordinator in the Student Loan Office. The Student Loan Office completes the appropriate paperwork for both undergraduate and graduate students, and Duke's payroll services sends reimbursement to the non-profit agency.

The non-profit agency can only be reimbursed for the percentage of total earnings covered by work study funding.

Federal Work Study: 90% reimbursement
Duke Work Study: 50% reimbursement

Reimbursement requests for earnings in excess of the total work study earnings allocation will not be processed.

Dates, hours, and rates

Dates

Please note: All requests for reimbursements for work performed between August 13, 2018, and May 4, 2019, must be submitted to the Student Loan Office by June 14, 2019. The Student Loan Office processes these requests for all students, including graduate students.

Hours

Students	Enrollment Status	Max Weekly Hours
Undergraduates	Enrolled	19.9
Undergraduates	Not enrolled*	39.9
Graduates	Enrolled	39.9
Graduates	Not enrolled*	39.9

*Periods of non-enrollment include holiday vacations, spring break, and summer (if not enrolled in classes)

Rates

The current rates for hourly student employees are as follows:

Position Type	Minimum	Maximum
Student Assistant - General	$10.25/hr	$16.25/hr
Student Assistant - Specialized	$11.25/hr	$19.25/hr

(Specialized examples include research assistantships, advanced computer work, and technical work)

Students with multiple jobs

Students under age 18

Exceeding the work study allocation

The hiring agency is responsible for 100% of any earnings that exceed the student's work study allocation. Reimbursement requests for earnings in excess of the total work study earnings allocation will not be processed.

Want more information?

Download the complete work study guide

Summer Non-Enrolled Work-Study

What is summer non-enrolled work study? Am I eligible?

You may be able to use work-study funding to work during the summer even if you’re not enrolled in summer classes! Your earning limits for the summer will be higher than they would be during the school year because you'll be working full-time. Please note that non-enrolled students earning work study during the summer are subject to FICA tax withholding.

There are only 3 requirements you have to keep in mind:

You have to be eligible for federal work-study (so your aid application has to be complete for 2021—check DukeHub!)
You have to be enrolled at Duke for the Fall 2020 semester (you can't be graduating in Spring/Summer 2020, or studying abroad for Fall 2020)
You have to be employed for the summer either on Duke campus or at local non-profits that are partnered with the Community Service Center

If all 3 of these will describe you this summer, using work study will be a huge benefit to you. The work-study program exists to create professional development opportunities for students, and these work experiences can help students build a network of advisors and develop resume-worthy skills.

Where do I find a summer work-study position?

Quick places to find amazing opportunities at Duke and in the surrounding Durham area include:

DukeList for general work study positions
The Undergraduate Research Office – send an email to ursoffice@duke.edu to explore summer research opportunities
The Pratt Research Fellows page
Registered non-profit organizations at the Community Service Center

Would you like to work in a certain professor's lab, or create a professional experience for yourself? You can get creative and design an experience if you don't find positions that match your interests. If you are interested in developing a summer research position for yourself, contact Dean Sarah Russell in Undergraduate Research at ursoffice@duke.edu to learn more.

You can also get in touch with the Career Center to help you find a good fit.

What are the steps I need to take in order to take advantage of this?

Make sure your 20-21 financial aid paperwork is complete. Look on DukeHub to see whether you are missing any financial aid checklist items.
Email finaid@duke.edu to let Financial Aid know you are potentially interested. If your checklist items are complete, and you email our office by the end of the first week of March, you can expect a notification of your summer work-study aid award by the end of March.
Find a summer job. You can look on the sites above, or contact Undergraduate Research or the Career Center about creating your own position. If you are interested in working for a nonprofit, let us know at finaid@duke.edu so that we can assist you.
Once your work-study award has been processed by Financial Aid, you will receive an email with paperwork for your supervisor. Bring this email to your new employer so that they can put you on payroll.

Questions? Email finaid@duke.edu.

Ready to Apply?

Renew Your Aid

Apply for Aid

Apply or Renew Your Aid

Contact Us

Information For:

Undergraduate Students

Forms

Graduate Students

Duke Employers

Dates

Rates

Want more information?

Non-Profit Employers

Dates

Hours

Rates

Want more information?

Summer Non-Enrolled Work-Study

What is summer non-enrolled work study? Am I eligible?

Where do I find a summer work-study position?

What are the steps I need to take in order to take advantage of this?

Search form

Ready to Apply?

Renew Your Aid

Apply for Aid

Apply or Renew Your Aid

Contact Us

You are here

Work Study

Information For:

Undergraduate Students

Forms

Graduate Students

Duke Employers

Dates

Rates

Want more information?

Non-Profit Employers

Dates

Hours

Rates

Want more information?

Summer Non-Enrolled Work-Study

What is summer non-enrolled work study? Am I eligible?

Where do I find a summer work-study position?

What are the steps I need to take in order to take advantage of this?