Chapter 1: Employment (Student Assistant Series)
Are student employees covered by limited appointment provisions?
Student employees who hold casual-restricted appointments are excluded from the provisions for limited appointments.
Where do I go for questions about getting students on payroll, student benefits, and/or student terminations?
Please refer these types of questions to your Departmental HR Manager, departmental benefits counselor, or departmental HR assistant.
Who is eligible for Student Assistant series jobs?
Student jobs are restricted to UC Berkeley students who are registered for the current academic semester, or in the grace period immediately before or after academic semester registration (grace period defined as a semester or summer, whichever is before or after the period of enrollment).
Can a student work over 20 hours per week during the academic year in these positions?
Graduate students are not allowed to work over half-time per week on average over the period of the term, unless a waiver is granted by the Graduate Division.
Campus Jobs: Undergraduate students are allowed to work over half-time per week on average over the period of the term. However, departments should remember that student's primary obligation is to their studies and the number of working hours should take into consideration the student's academic workload.
Work-Study: There is no restriction per federal or state guidelines. However, employers should be aware that students may accrue eligibility for benefits when working at half-time or better during any given payroll period. These benefits must be paid from employer funds only.
How do I post a job listing? Where do I send the listing?
Campus Jobs: Student campus jobs are listed on the Career Center's website via Handshake, the on- and off-campus jobs resource for all UC Berkeley students. Review the Guidelines for UC Berkeley Campus Employers for Handshake registration and job posting information. For any questions, contact the Career Center at 642-0464 or jld@berkeley.edu.
Work-Study Campus Jobs: Job requests may be posted online. Go to the Work-Study website and follow the instructions to obtain an employer ID and password. Jobs may be listed, modified or purged at your convenience. For questions, contact the Work-Study Office at 642-5625.
How do I find out what comparable rates of pay exist for similar student jobs elsewhere on campus?
The normal hiring salary is within the range for comparable staff work, and normally the entry salary is at the lower end of that range, unless there are unusual skills, knowledge, ability, or experience that supports a higher level. If there are no comparable campus positions, contact your departmental compensation consultant.
How do I get a new position classified into the correct level?
Students should be placed in an appropriate Student Assistant level based upon the nature of the work, level of assignment, and complexity of the work performed. The four Student Assistant levels have been previously mapped to staff titles based on these criteria. Look up the title that most closely fits the nature of the student's work and find the comparable Student Assistant level. If the nature of the student's work does not fit any of the titles that have been mapped, call Human Resources Compensation Unit (642-2799) for assistance.
What do I use for a job title?
Campus Jobs: Please use the appropriate Student Assistant series level title for all official paperwork purposes. (e.g.- use "Assistant I" rather than Clerk, "Assistant II" rather than Senior Clerk/Secretary, "Assistant III" rather than Resident Advisor). You can also use a working title to help advertise for the position opening and to describe the position to applicants if the working title is more descriptive of the work.
Work Study Jobs: In the case of a student continuing employment from a previous period, refer to the former working title. Use the "Assistant I, II, III, or IV" title that is appropriate. In the case of a new student, use the same working position title as was used when hiring students in previous similar employment. Again, find the appropriate "Assistant I, II, III, or IV" title at the above website.
What is the purpose of the Student Assistant series?
The Student Assistant series is intended to provide a simple mechanism for campus departments to employ students, considering the unique working conditions of students and their purpose and intent in relation to employment on the campus. It also allows the campus to more easily distinguish students from career and limited-term support staff, since the titles and title codes for students are not used by other staff employees; conversely, all students should be placed in these three titles and not in any other staff title.
The three-level Student Assistant series has broad salary ranges which are intended to give departments great flexibility in setting their student employees' salaries and minimizes the administrative burdens of student employment. The appointment type is "casual-restricted" which is used only for UC Berkeley students. "Casual-restricted" employees are not represented by a bargaining unit, but are covered by the Personnel Policies for Staff Members.