Apply for Work-Study

Federal and State work study is funded via grants from the Federal and State governments, and we are only allocated so much funding per aid year.

Because of this, only so many jobs can be posted, and there is no guarantee that all of the jobs that might be posted will be filled. We work to accommodate as many departments and their requests for hires as possible, but we can only work within our funding limits.

Most hiring happens during Summer and Fall quarters. Some hiring might take place after this, but it is generally better to apply earlier if you can.

Work study is structured the same as any normal job, meaning that you must be hired into a position in order to earn any of the funds listed on your offer letter.

You earn these funds as you work and they are paid to you as a regular paycheck, meaning that they are not available to you at the beginning of the quarter to pay your tuition and fees like other types of aid. But should instead be used to supplement current, everyday expenses, such as supplies, transportation, or living expenses.

The amount listed on your offer letter, specifically under ‘Work Study Offer’ is the amount that you may work up to during a quarter. If you do not earn all of this amount in one quarter it does NOT roll over to the next quarter.

Because work study is a type of financial aid, it is subject to being considered, along with any other aid that you might be eligible for, in your Cost of Attendance (COA) calculation.

This calculation and other federal and state guidelines restrict the amount of aid a student can receive per aid year and per quarter.

Because of this, if you are receiving other types of aid (loans, scholarships, grants, BFET assistance, etc.), the amount listed in your ‘Work Study Offer’ is subject to change at any time, even mid-quarter as you are working.

If you have already been hired and are working, please note: If you are intending to take out loans, accept scholarships, apply for additional aid through other departments, please reach out to ws@bellevuecollege.edu to first inquire how this action might impact your ability to continue working.

Submit either a FAFSA or WASFA application NOT BOTH!

• To submit a FAFSA, visit studentaid.gov and complete the FAFSA application that corresponds to the correct aid year in which you are attending classes.
  
• To submit a WASFA, visit wsac.wa.gov and complete the WASFA application that corresponds to the correct aid year in which you are attending classes.

Please note: Aid years always run Summer-Spring, meaning that Summer is the first quarter in a new aid year and Spring is the last quarter.

Not sure which application you should complete? Please check out the eligibility requirements on each website to determine which you should fill out.

We only review files for students who have registered for classes, so please register for your classes as soon as possible. Please see the Academic Calendar for enrollment dates.

Once you are registered, if we do not need additional documents from you, we will put you in line for a file review. These reviews take several weeks, especially at the beginning of the new aid year and at the start of each new quarter.

Please keep a close eye on your email and ctcLink account for updates after you are registered. Promptly respond to any inquiries we make and submit any documents that we ask for.

Any delay in receiving documents/information after it has been requested can result in significant delays in receiving potential aid.

Once your financial aid has been reviewed and packaged, you will receive an offer letter via email letting you know all of the aid you’re eligible for, excluding loans unless you submitted a loan application to our office.

On your offer letter, there is a section that mentions a ‘Work Study Offer’, if you see an amount listed in that section, it means that you are potentially eligible for work study during the quarter(s) indicated.

Further eligibility will need to be determined and is contingent on multiple factors, but at this point, you can begin applying for work study jobs!

All of our work study positions are currently listed in Handshake. To apply for these positions, you will need to log in using your BC email login, set up your profile, and upload a resume.

Need help with your resume?

• Book a meeting with a career specialist, or
  
• Download the Resume Essentials Guide

Each department is in charge of reviewing resumes for students who are eligible for work study and then reaching out to those students to initiate the interview process.

Resumes are generally sent to each department within two weeks of a job opening and then again upon the supervisor’s request if they are unable to find a suitable applicant.

If you were not eligible for work study for any reason (a list of which can be found above), your resume will not be sent to the supervisor. The work study coordinator strives to send a message to each student who is not eligible, so please keep an eye on your email.

• Please note: If you are not eligible and applied for multiple positions, only one email will be sent to let you know why you are not eligible, but it is applicable for each job you applied for.

If you are selected to potentially be hired, you will receive an email communication to complete a permission form for a background check. This is something that all Bellevue College employees complete.

Please keep a close eye on your email for this. Once it is completed, if it clears, your new supervisor will send you a new hire packet with paperwork to complete.

After this paperwork is complete, you should have your start date and can begin working on that date.

Bellevue College employees submit bi-weekly timesheets. These are due on the 15th and 30th/31st of each month (unless the last working day of the month falls on an earlier day). Email reminders are generally sent out a few days before each timesheet is due.

If you need assistance submitting your timesheet, please review the step-by-step process.

Bellevue College offers entry-level roles across campus departments, including administrative support, academic support, HR administrative support, student services, event support, and other department support roles. Students should review current postings and apply to roles that match their interests, schedule, skills, and eligibility. 

Review current work-study postings on Handshake (before September 30, 2026) or the Bellevue College Careers page (after September 30, 2026). Follow the posting instructions, submit the required application materials, and make sure your resume and cover letter reflect the minimum and/or preferred qualifications and duties listed in the job description. 

• Confirm that you are eligible for work-study before applying 

• Submit materials by the deadline listed in the posting 

• Use the contact listed in the posting if you have questions about a specific role 

The hiring process generally includes: 

1. Applications are reviewed by the hiring manager 

2. Applicants who meet the qualifications may be invited for an interview 

3. A conditional offer is made to the selected student 

4. The selected student must complete a pre-employment background check  

5. The selected student must complete all required hiring paperwork, including Form I-9 to verify identity and eligibility to work in the US 

Note: A student may not begin working until HR has confirmed that the student is cleared for employment. 

Your application will be reviewed by the hiring manager. The hiring manager will evaluate applications based on the job requirements. Human Resources (HR) may assist with the review process. Application materials are handled confidentially throughout the hiring process. 

No, Bellevue College does not require professional references for student roles unless a specific posting or later HR instruction says otherwise. 

Yes, a satisfactory pre-employment background check is required after a conditional offer is extended. Students should look for an email from a third-party company who conducts pre-employment checks on behalf of BC. Students must complete the background check promptly to avoid delaying the start date. 

Timelines vary by department and by applicant volume. You will be contacted if you are selected for an interview. If you are not selected, you may receive an automated notification. HR may not be able to provide a detailed explanation for every application outcome because of applicant volume. 

Prepare by reviewing the job description carefully, especially the minimum and preferred qualifications, essential functions, position description, schedule expectations, and application instructions. Think through examples from school, work, volunteering, clubs, projects, or life experience that show how you meet the role requirements. 

• Customize your resume and cover letter for the specific role 

• Contact the Center for Career Connections for resume or interview support. 

• Practice behavior-based interview questions 

• After the interview, consider sending a brief thank-you email to the interviewers 

• Use resume or AI tools only as support; verify that the final materials are accurate and sound like you.

For questions about a specific application, contact jobs@bellevuecollege.edu.

For work-study eligibility or award questions, contact the Work Study Coordinator at ws@bellevuecollege.edu.

Current employees and supervisors may also contact HR at hr@bellevuecollege.edu for employment paperwork or onboarding questions. 

No, work study employment depends on student status, work study eligibility, award availability, enrollment, department need, and satisfactory completion of employment requirements.  

If you are no longer eligible for work study funding, your department may need to stop the work study or convert the role to a different employment type using department funds, if appropriate. 

If you graduate or are no longer eligible to remain in student employee status, you cannot simply continue in the same student position.  

A manager who wants to keep you may need to open a part-time role under a different status. Depending on the specific part-time role, it may require a new hiring process for that role. Ask your manager to contact jobs@bellevuecollege.edu or the assigned recruiter for the appropriate process. 

Some advantages to Work-Study employment include: 

• Flexible work shifts that consider your class schedule 

• On campus employment for minimal transportation, gaining practical experience, and more.  

• Work study employees also get to accrue paid sick leave from the start of employment. However, this type of employment is not eligible for medical, dental, vision, or retirement benefits.

No, you may only work in one position. Work study students may work up to 19 hours per week while classes are in session.

Work study students are limited by the amount of their work study award, and cannot exceed 19 hours per week while classes are in session.

Students may work in between quarters up to 40 hours per week, until their funding is exhausted, and only if they have full supervision during all hours worked. Students may not work without supervision or when a department, or the college, is closed.

Student employees may retain student employee status during one off quarter per academic year if they plan to return the following quarter. However, work study award funds may be used only during quarters when the student is enrolled and eligible.  

If a work study student works during an off-quarter when they are not enrolled, the work must be paid from the department’s non-work study budget. 

No, the amounts listed in your Financial Aid offer letter, and in ctcLink are not a guarantee of any funds, but are instead listed to let you know what you might be able to work up to each quarter.

The amounts do not roll over if you do not earn the maximum amount.

No, the amounts listed in your Financial Aid offer letter, and in ctcLink are not a guarantee of any funds, but are instead listed to let you know what you might be able to work up to each quarter.

The amounts do not roll over/stack if you do not get hired into a position during a certain quarter that you might have otherwise been eligible to work.

Submit the department’s job creation request through Gravity Forms’ Student Employment Job Description.

Ideally, this needs to be done by the individual who will be the point of contact for the Work Study Coordinator (WSC) and supervising the student. If that person is not available to fill out the form, their name and contact information must be included in the form by the person filling it out on their behalf.

Please note: For each job you wish to have posted, you must complete a separate form. Multiple jobs listed in the same form will automatically be denied, and you will be asked to resubmit each request separately.

The Work Study Coordinator in the Financial Aid office will review the job creation request to confirm that it meets all requirements for work study.

There are two possible outcomes during this step:

Approval

If your request is approved, the WSC will forward your request to Human Resources for further review. In this case, you can move to step three.

Denial

If your request is denied, the WSC will reach out to the supervisor listed on the form and explain what aspects of the request do not meet work study requirements.

After receiving this feedback, the supervisor can submit a new request form (step one), incorporating the feedback they received.

HR will review the job creation request to confirm that it meets other requirements for employment.

There are three possible outcomes during this step:

Approval

If your request is approved, HR will move forward with posting the job in TAM. In this case, you can move to step four.

Denial

If your request is denied, HR will reach out to the supervisor listed on the form and explain exactly why the request has been denied along with potential solutions or alternatives options the supervisor may consider instead.

Request for More Information/Clarification (Pending Status)

If your request is unclear, HR may reach out to the supervisor listed on the form to ask for additional information/clarification. In this instance, HR will explain what aspects of the request they require clarification/more information regarding.

The supervisor will be in direct contact with HR during this process. Once HR has received further information, they will either approve or deny the request.

Once you have secured approval, HR will post your position in TAM and students can begin applying.

According to their own schedule, the supervisor/hiring manager for the department will log into TAM and review applicants.

Upon finding candidates they are interested in interviewing, the supervisor/hiring manager will need to complete a Request to Interview form that lists the names of the candidates they would like to interview.

Important: This must be completed BEFORE any interviews take place.

The Work Study Coordinator will review the list of potential interviewees to verify that they are eligible for work study as of the day of the review.

Please note: Work study eligibility is dependent on a multitude of factors and can be in flux day to day, if not hour to hour (depending on the student and situation). Because of this, there is a high possibility that the student’s eligibility could change at any time during the process outlined in this document or afterward, if the student is hired.

After receiving the determinations regarding potential interviewees eligibility, the supervisor/hiring manager can conduct interview for students who are eligible for work study.

This process can result in two outcomes:

Interest in Moving Forward

The supervisor/hiring manager will find a candidate they are interested in moving forward with. If this is the case, please move to step five.

No Interest

The supervisor will not find a candidate they are interested in moving forward with.

In this case, please keep an eye on TAM.

Upon finding a candidate they would like to move forward with, the supervisor/hiring manager will make a conditional offer via phone/email.

This process can result in two outcomes:

Student Accepts Offer

The student provides verbal or written acceptance of the conditional offer. In this case, please move to step six.

Student Declines Offer

The student does not accept the verbal or written conditional offer.

In this case, the supervisor/hiring manager can make a conditional offer to another student they are interested in.

If there are no other students the supervisor/hiring manager is interested in the previous batch of applicants, please keep an eye on TAM for new applicants.

Upon verbal or written acceptance of the conditional offer, the supervisor/hiring manager will initiate the Prepare Job Offer process in TAM.

A secondary eligibility check must be completed by the WSC to determine whether the student is still eligible.

If the student is still eligible, the supervisor will receive notification and can move to step eight.

Please note: Work study eligibility is dependent on a multitude of factors and can be in flux day to day, if not hour to hour (depending on the student and situation). Because of this, there is a high possibility that the student’s eligibility could change at any time during the process outlined in this document or afterward, if the student is hired.

If the student passes the second eligibility check by WSC, HR will initiate the pre-employment background check. This is a criminal background check, and starting employment is contingent upon a satisfactory result.

The supervisor is responsible for communicating with the student to let them know that they will receive an email from the vendor Accurate, and that the background check form needs to be filled out ASAP.

This process can result in two outcomes:

Satisfactory Results

The pre-employment check comes back clear; move to step nine.

Unsatisfactory Results

The pre-employment check does not come back clear.

In this case, HR will contact the supervisor to discuss.

Once the student has successfully completed their background check and filled out their New Hire paperwork, the job will be closed.

If the student’s pre-employment check comes back clear, the supervisor/hiring manager will be made aware that the job offer has been approved, and an official start date can be determined*.

HR will then ‘post’ the job offer in TAM for the student to accept. The student will then formally accept the offer, complete and upload their hiring paperwork into TAM, and meet with the HR Consultant to verify their work authorization.

Once the student has successfully completed their background check and filled out their New Hire paperwork, the job will be closed.

As stated previously in this document, work study eligibility is dependent on a multitude of factors and can be in flux day to day, if not hour to hour (depending on the student and situation). Because of this, there is a high possibility that the student’s eligibility could change at any time.

With this being the case, the WSC will recheck the student’s eligibility throughout their time working as a work study as often as possible. However, it is not feasible to check eligibility every single day.

At minimum, once a student is hired, eligibility is rechecked before each timesheet is due. Appropriate notice will be given to a supervisor when any changes in a student’s eligibility are found.

It is the supervisor’s responsibility to review all of their work study student’s timesheets for accuracy and keep track of their actual earnings versus the offer amount that the student is able to work up to.

As a reminder: a student may only work a maximum of 19 hours per week and earns $19 per hour.

The WSC will also monitor the actual earnings as well, and attempt to give notice to a supervisor as a student is close to reaching their offer limit, but with the nature of when payroll reports can be pulled from the system, the WSC might not have the ability to notify a supervisor in time before a student’s offer is exhausted.

Regardless, once the WSC is aware that the student has reached their potential funding cap for the quarter, a message will be sent to the supervisor. If the student has gone over their offered amount, the department will need to cover the balance.

The New Work Study Job Posting Workflow document and New Work Study Hiring Workflow document, along with the lists above provide all the steps needed for posting jobs and hiring. If you need additional information, you can also visit the Student Hiring Process webpage.

No, student can only start work after: 

1. Accepting the job offer and uploading all completed new hire paperwork on ctcLink (TAM) 

2. Meeting with an HR Consultant to verify identification and employment eligibility for Form I-9 

3. Receiving a welcome email with instructions to activate ctcLink account 

Supervisors must also make sure to provide necessary trainings to work study students to be successful in their position, including the required HR Training.

Supervisors may not schedule a student to work during times that might interfere with a students classes, exams, or other events on campus the student wishes to participate in.

Additionally, students may not work during times when campus is closed (such as holidays or other closures), and must have full supervision during all hours that they are working. Meaning that they may not work outside of their supervisors work hours.

While classes are in session students may work up to 19 hours per week, and, as their funding might allow, they may work up 40 hours per week in between quarters (times when classes are not in session).

The Work Study Coordinator will make attempt to notify supervisors (along with budget, payroll, and HR offices) when an award is exhausted. Supervisors have two options: 

1. Inform students that their position is paused until their award is renewed 

2. Or continue the student position through their own department budget 

Supervisors must inform work study coordinator, budget, payroll and HR offices of their decision.

• Train and mentor the student 

• Set clear expectations 

• Monitor schedule and hour limits 

• Check that the student continues to meet enrollment and eligibility requirements 

• Support the students’ professional development by offering responsibilities that are appropriate for work-study position and relevant to their field of study  

• Communicate early if performance, attendance, eligibility, or funding issues arise