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Low-Cost Work-Study Revamps

By  Kelly Field
October 29, 2017

Changing the way a college approaches student employment doesn’t have to cost as much as Ryerson and Clemson Universities’ overhauls. Here are three inexpensive ways in which colleges are making student jobs more meaningful.

6410 idea lab workstudy online icon
Professionalizing Students’ Campus Jobs
Colleges are gearing work experiences to better teach the skills employers value most.
  • Making Students’ Jobs More Meaningful
  • What I Learned From My Campus Job

Willamette University, a liberal-arts institution in Oregon, has created a series of online professional-development modules that supervisors can use to train student employees at no cost. Each module in the Passport to Professionalism series focuses on a different soft skill, such as communication, teamwork, and taking initiative. Supervisors help students pick the sessions that are most relevant to their jobs, and meet with them after to discuss what they’ve learned.

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Changing the way a college approaches student employment doesn’t have to cost as much as Ryerson and Clemson Universities’ overhauls. Here are three inexpensive ways in which colleges are making student jobs more meaningful.

6410 idea lab workstudy online icon
Professionalizing Students’ Campus Jobs
Colleges are gearing work experiences to better teach the skills employers value most.

Willamette University, a liberal-arts institution in Oregon, has created a series of online professional-development modules that supervisors can use to train student employees at no cost. Each module in the Passport to Professionalism series focuses on a different soft skill, such as communication, teamwork, and taking initiative. Supervisors help students pick the sessions that are most relevant to their jobs, and meet with them after to discuss what they’ve learned.

At Northern Illinois University, staff members in the division of academic affairs have persuaded 20 campus employers — and a couple of off-campus employers — to let their employees attend the university’s professional-development workshops during paid working hours. Now working students “no longer have to make the choice between getting paid and coming to a session,” says Chad Glover, director of the Jobs PLUS program. Attendance at the workshops is up, and supervisors say student turnover in campus jobs is down.

The University of Texas at El Paso, which has more than 2,000 student workers, has taken employee orientation beyond discussions of payroll and sexual-harassment policy. During the half-day sessions, students hear from alumni, local employers, and college staff members about workplace etiquette, professionalism, and employer expectations. Christian Corrales, director of on-campus student employment, says the orientation gives students the “foundational skills” they’ll need to be effective employees — “not just at UTEP, but in the work force.”

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A version of this article appeared in the November 3, 2017, issue.
Read other items in this Professionalizing Students’ Campus Jobs package.
We welcome your thoughts and questions about this article. Please email the editors or submit a letter for publication.
Kelly Field
Kelly Field joined The Chronicle of Higher Education in 2004 and covered federal higher-education policy. She continues to write for The Chronicle on a freelance basis.
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