On-Campus Employers

Recruit and Hire Students on Handshake

All on-campus student positions must be posted on Handshake. To get started, create a Handshake Employer account with your wesleyan.edu email address and follow the prompts to join the employer, Wesleyan University Student Employment. Once your account is verified you can create and post opportunities.

Follow our step-by-step guide to posting job and internship opportunities. Postings are reviewed by the Gordon Career Center before they are made public for student view. We make every effort to review and approve new postings within 2 business days.

See Handshake how-to resources and contact campusemployment@wesleyan.edu if you have questions or need assistance.

Handshake How-To Resources

Google Chrome is the recommended browser for navigating Handshake. 

• Create an On-Campus Employer Handshake Account (5-minute video)
• Adjust default notification preferences
• Set-up/edit automatic applicant status messaging feature
• Post a Job – Step-by-step Guide
• Edit your job posting
• Share your job posting via email or social media
• Get notified when students apply to your posting
• Add or change a contact to receive applicant packages
• Access and view applications
• View student Handshake profiles
• Message applicants
• Change/manage applicant status
• Add or change a contact to receive application packages
• Expire (close) your job posting to prevent new applications *postings expire automatically on the date listed in the “apply end date” field
• How to extend the expiration date on a job posting
• How to renew an expired job posting (re-open position for applications within the same hiring cycle)

Additional Resources: 

• How to write a clear and effective position description 
• Inclusive language principles for writing position descriptions
• 10 tips for writing SEO-friendly job descriptions
• What happens when I decline applicants? 
• Search Handshake student profile directory

Track Hours Worked & Process Payroll in Workforce Time

BEFORE THE STUDENT EMPLOYEE’S FIRST DAY OF WORK, campus employers must verify students are eligible for work and onboard new and returning student employees to Workforce Time. 

• Report hires, set and update pay-rate, select position code/smart key for hourly wages, and indicate supervisors in the “student employment system” via WesPortal.
  • Employers must report new and returning hires for all positions in the student employment system at the start of every semester and/or new term of employment. 
• Manage, review, and approve timesheets in Workforce Time.

It is the combined responsibility of the student and supervisor to ensure that the student has completed the necessary paperwork with the Payroll Office to become eligible to work, before any hours are worked. 

Please contact the Payroll Office for questions and support on Workforce Time, the Student Employment System, pay schedules, required forms, etc. 

Learn about Federal Work-Study & the 50/50 Wage Split Program

Students who have demonstrated financial need may be eligible for federal or institutional work-study awards. If a student has work-study eligibility, a portion of their wages will be compensated either by Wesleyan or the federal government to assist the campus department in supporting their employment — until their award allotment is exhausted.

All students may apply to all jobs posted on Handshake regardless of their work-study eligibility, however, campus employers may consider an applicants’ work-study status when making hiring decisions. Contact the Financial Aid Office to learn more.

50/50 Wage-Split Program
Campus employers who hire students eligible for federal or institutional work-study may qualify to split the cost of some hourly wages with funds from the federal work-study program. Students eligible for the program are awarded a maximum of $1,375 per semester.

All hours worked during the academic year– defined as the first day of classes of the Fall semester to the last day of classes of the Spring semester — including breaks, draws from the student employee’s work-study allotment. Hours worked during winter break draw from the student employee’s spring allotment. Unearned work-study awards do not roll over from the fall to spring semester.

When a student is employed in more than one position, the hours eligible for the 50/50 wage split are earned on a first-come, first-served basis and are not divided between departments. It is the combined responsibility of the student and employer to keep track of work-study hours and earnings. Once a student’s work-study allotment is exhausted, the employer is responsible for 100% of wages for hours worked through the remainder of the semester.

We encourage supervisors to monitor student employees’ hourly wages and earnings and be aware if a student holds more than one position on-campus. Communicate expectations about the terms of employment once work-study awards are earned in full with the student employee during the application process and discuss upon hire.

For departments to be eligible for the 50/50 wage split, student employee timesheets must be approved by a non-student supervisor (Wesleyan faculty or staff member) in Workforce Time by noon on Tuesday following the week worked. If the timesheet is not approved in Workforce Time before the deadline, 100% of the earnings will be charged to the department regardless of the student’s work-study balance. 

| Questions about the work-study program and eligibility should be directed to finaid@wesleyan.edu.
| Questions about timesheets and earnings should be directed to payrollhelp@wesleyan.edu.