One student life-guards at the Lilly Center pool. Another calls alumni to solicit donations, and a third ushers students into Kresge Auditorium before concerts.
Over 1,000 students hold work-study jobs at DePauw University to cover up to $2,100 of their financial need. Work-study students receive on-campus jobs that pay the minimum wage, $7.25. But the opportunity to participate in work-study is not available to every DePauw student, a fact some students find problematic.
"I think that the work-study program should be offered to everyone," said first-year Mary Grace Morgese, "not just [students] based on financial need."
This is a hard venture for the university to take on. The Federal Work Study Program gave DePauw $181,000 this year, which is not enough to cover employment for each qualifying student. To cover the deficit, DePauw is spending an additional $1 million or more from their operating expenses.
To determine a student's eligibility for work-study, the Office of Financial Aid takes the cost of attending DePauw and subtracts the expected family contribution amount, the scholarships that the student receives and all need-based loans. Any left over money holds the potential for work-study eligibility.
Financial Aid awards a max earnings amount of approximately $2,100 to each qualifying student, but only approximately 8.5 percent of work-study students earn the full work award. On average, students involved in work-study make around $1,000 per year.
"We certainly could reduce that earnings expectation [the $2,100 figure]," Slaughter said. "The reason why we set the earnings limit that way is purely administrative, probably, in that we don't want to have to do overwrites."
If the university sets the limit lower to give students a better idea of how much they would earn per year, some students would exceed that amount. Currently, Financial Aid sets the limit at the max amount any student can earn in their work-study job in one year, $2,100.
The amount students earn through their work-study job is not the only detail that limits students. Many work-study employees believe they can only work 10 hours a week.
Although the university doesn't set a max number of hours a student can work in a week, there are many factors that inhibit students from working such as their class schedule, other commitments and the hours available at a specific work-study office.
"We feel pedagogically that students shouldn't work more than seven to 10 hours a week," Slaughter said. "The focus is that they're here to be a student first, not to work first."
Getting a work-study job is not as easy as it sounds. After students qualify for the work-study program, they must go through the on-campus job application process. This process requires a resume, application, tax forms and an interview process similar to a real-life job.
Some departments on campus that offer work-study jobs include the Registrar's Office, the Office of Student Life, Roy O. West library and the Lilly Athletic Center. Each department makes its own hires, and Financial Aid does not oversee the positions.
"It gives students a chance to get into a more professional setting," said senior Courtney Bowers. "Other students don't get to do that if they don't have work study."
If there are any open jobs on campus that were not filled by work-study students, other students are welcome to apply.
Many students don't take into account how their campus job could help them with their future career.
"I'm [interested in] marketing for my major, so I get to make some of the flyers for the campus activities," said sophomore Brekiesha Weszely. "It works well in helping me down the road."
In the future, the work-study program wants to step toward helping students match their work-study job to their future career path.
"[Work-study] could be part of the student development," Slaughter said. "We could more intentionally try and match students with career interests or academic interests."
"Some areas for improvement that I see certainly are ways to let students know about openings [in work-study jobs]," Slaughter said. "It's just a matter of where you spend the money...everything has a price tag to it."
Many students are pleased with their work-study experience and would encourage other students to get involved if they can.
"I feel that the work study program is an awesome opportunity," said Morgese. "[It lets] people to put a stake in their own college education."