All paperwork for FWS students must be initiated by the Student Employment Programs Coordinator. The SEAF will already have limited information such as the student's name, SSN, total expected earnings, effective and termination dates as well as the FWS account number. The account split will already be noted with the FWS account being charged 75% of the student’s earnings, the departmental account charged 25% of the student’s earnings.

If you are given an SEAF and the void date has passed, do not accept it or process it as the student's award will have been cancelled. The student must contact the Office of Financial Assistance to determine their award status.

In addition, you should not hire a student on NWS funds hoping to be reimbursed after a FWS award is made. FWS pay is not retroactive.

The expected earnings amount on the SEAF is always pre-determined by the Office of Financial Assistance. This is the amount of the student's FWS award to be earned. It is the employer's and the student's responsibility to ensure that the student's earnings do not exceed the expected earnings amount.

Once the student has picked up their SEAF, they will need to seek employment and to initiate the placement procedure.

Most students depend on FWS employment to help meet weekly college expenses. Employers are encouraged to carefully coordinate their yearly work schedule with the student to ensure that their award equals the period of employment.

We suggest that the following Earnings Table be used to determine how many hours per week the student can work and not exceed their award. We also suggest that you complete a Student Earnings Record for each of your student employees. This form will enable you to keep a cumulative record of the student's earnings.

When the student has earned the total amount of their FWS award, they may not be paid any further from FWS funds unless the Office of Financial Assistance has approved an increase in their total award. Such action may seriously affect the student's eligibility for financial aid and may result in institutional liability.

Federal regulation states that students earning federal work-study monies are to be paid on an hourly basis only. Therefore, no salary or lump sum payments may be made while a student is earning under FWS funds.

Clearance for FWS employment cannot be given by telephone due to the time element involved in dealing with such requests. For similar reasons, the Career Center cannot honor requests for "walk-through" clearance of FWS employment. However, every effort will be made to process these forms within 3 working days.