Student Employment
Types of Employment
Work-Study Employment
Work-Study is a need-based award offered by the Financial Aid & Scholarships Office and is based upon the information reported on your FAFSA. Work-Study positions are funded solely by the work-study award through your financial aid package. Undergraduate work-study students must maintain at least 6 credit hours, and Graduate work-study students must maintain at least 3 credit hours throughout each semester to retain and earn a work-study award.
Student Hourly
Student Hourly positions are on-campus positions funded by a university department’s budget. Work-study and/or financial aid is not required for this type of employment. All hourly students must be enrolled in some credit-earning capacity during the semester in which you are employed.
Regular Hourly
Regular Hourly positions are offered by businesses in the surrounding Denver community, and are not affiliated with the university. All students, regardless of enrollment or financial need, may apply for these positions.
Student Employment Policies
Student Hourly Employee Work Policy
The maximum number of hours a student employee at CU Denver|Anschutz may work during a fall or spring semester is 25 hours per week or 50 hours per bi-weekly payroll period, provided no single week in that period exceed 40 work hours.
During the summer the maximum number of hours a student can work is 40 hours per week.
Student Employment Handbook
After gaining employment, it is the sole responsibility of every student employee (work-study & hourly, on or off-campus) to read and understand both the Student Employment Policy and Student Employee Information and Policy sections of the Student Handbook. If a student employee does not understand or has questions regarding any portion of the Handbook, please talk with a department supervisor or contact the Student Employment Office at: StudentEmployment@ucdenver.edu or (303) 315-1842.
All off-campus employers must read, be familiar with, and abide by, the Student Employment Policies and the Off- Campus Employer Responsibilities sections of this handbook, and all on-campus University employers must read, be familiar with, and abide by, the Student Employment Policies and the On-Campus University Employer Responsibilities sections of this handbook. All employers must ensure every student hired has read and understands the Student Employment Policies and Student Employee Information and Policy sections of this handbook.
Background Check Policy
All student employees are subject to the University’s background check policy. Students will receive an email from HireRight, Inc requesting permission to allow the university to complete the background checks. Students will not be hired until the Background Check has been completed and the hiring authority has received results from Human Resources. For further information, view the Background Check Policy statement.
Student Retirement Plan
Federal law requires that students must be enrolled for a minimum of 6 credit hours as an undergraduate and 3 credit hours as a graduate student for the term in which they are employed to be exempt from the Colorado Student Retirement Plan. The only exception to this Federal law is that any student working in the semester/quarter in which they will graduate, are not held to the above minimum credit hour requirement.
Please contact CU Employee Services at (303) 860-4200 with any questions or for more information about the Student Retirement Program.
Student Termination
Students are ‘at will’ employees; this means the hiring department can terminate a student at any time. Student employees may also be terminated for performance related or disciplinary reasons, such as:
- Lack of performance or attendance
- Falsifications of timesheet
- Releasing of restricted information
- Theft
- Unauthorized or fraudulent use of equipment and/or property
- Violation of University policies and procedures
At the time of termination, employers must immediately inform Employee Services of the student termination and request, within 6 hours, a hand drawn check must be processed for the hours worked by the terminated student. Please make sure that the student has completely filled out his/her time sheet, including signature, for the hours worked during the pay period at the time of termination.
We recommend that your department develop a termination policy and communicate it to your employees upon hiring. Some things you might want to consider when writing a policy.
Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP)
Federal and state financial aid rules and regulations require students to maintain Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP), in order to be eligible to earn their work-study awards. This progress is assessed at the end of each semester as soon as grades are finalized. There are three types of violations:
- Grade Point Average
- Completion Rate
- Overall attempted credit hour limit
The Student Employment Office will attempt to notify each employer if a student becomes ineligible to earn their award due to a violation of the SAP standards. Once notified the student will either have to stop working for your department or will need to be set up as an hourly student and your department will be responsible for paying 100% of their hourly wage.
Students may appeal their SAP status, if a student had extenuation circumstances for being in this position. If a student’s financial aid eligibility is reinstated, the Student Employment Office will notify employers as soon as possible, so that students may resume earning their work-study.
Time-Entry Regulation
Supervisors of off-campus work-study students are responsible for facilitating time collection within their departments. The Student Employment Office is responsible for managing the time entry process for all Off-Campus Work-Study Employers. Students must complete bi-weekly time records listing time in & time out for each day worked, with a way in-which supervisor can verify the hours worked.
Find a Job
Using the Handshake Job Board!
The CU Anschutz Career Development Office has set up the Handshake Job Board and provided additional on-campus and off-campus resources to assist you in finding a job inside or outside the university. Please select “University of Colorado, Anschutz Campus (Health Sciences)” as your school. New users will complete your profile first, to help us find your best matches.
Post a Job
Tap into the talented workforce waiting for you here. Our students are eager to learn, and to put the lessons they're learning in the classroom to work in the real world. Post a Job on the Handshake Job Board for our students to find you.
Before registering for a Handshake account, new employers please read the Student Employment Policies, and familiarize yourself with the Student Employment Handbook.