STRATEGIES
There are numerous strategies that can be used to develop an effective student worker program. Not only is this list not all-inclusive list, the various elements and steps of these strategies will most certainly vary. However, history has shown these important elements are frequently overlooked and/or underappreciated in terms of the substantial positive impact on a student worker program…by the supervisor of student workers. These elements form a solid foundation upon which to build an effective student worker program, as well as a positive and rewarding experience for both the supervisor and the student worker.
Hiring Process - One of the most important lessons for any supervisor preparing to hire a student worker is…Do Not procrastinate with getting things ready. This includes getting whatever paperwork is necessary and advertising the student position early and through different media channels. The goal should be to attract the highly qualified student workers who will continue working in their positions throughout their academic career, thus reducing wasted time and effort associated with refilling positions year. The following are important elements to the hiring process:
Job title - There are human resources job titles and there are working job titles. A cool job title can go a long way in boosting confidence, establishing professionalism, and enhancing a newly developed resume. If you have a high-quality student worker…ask them what they think they’re working job title should be and consider using the suggested job title or making changes to current and future student workers job titles.
Job Description – Have a clear and concise job description for job postings and a detailed job description. Supervisor’s need to keep in mind that for many student workers, a student job on campus may in fact be the student’s first “real” job, so it is best to provide a clear job description. Cool and interesting job titles and job descriptions can make job postings stand out in the effort to attract the highest qualified student candidates.
Interviewing – The best approach to take when hiring student workers is simply to follow a similar approach for hiring staff members. For both the student worker and the supervisor, conducting the interviews should be treated as good practice and training for interviewing for future jobs. While the number of students applying will likely exceed the number of positions available, taking the time to go through a “real” interview process will at the minimum give the students who applied practice going through an interview…even if they are not selected for the job. Obviously, this assumes a normal screening process is used to create a short-list of in-person interviews. This is great preparation for future jobs the student applies for. If a team includes multiple student workers, then include the current student workers into the hiring process as well. This will not only give them experience on both sides of the table, but will also encourage the applicant to feel comfortable and receive answers from their peers.
Supervisor Meetings - As previously stated, supervisors should view time spent training and mentoring student workers as an investment of their time as a supervisor. It is incredibly important that a supervisor sets aside regularly scheduled time with student workers as check-in meetings, in addition to specific task or project meetings. This element reinforces the mindset of viewing your student worker as a staff member and an investment of your time, which should result in higher productivity for the whole team.
These types of meetings – for staff and student workers – go a long way in building trust, confidence, and keeping everyone working towards their goals. The importance of these one-to-one meetings between a supervisor and their student worker cannot be overstated.
Expectations Document – Another very important element that should be considered a “must have” is an expectations document or something similar. Having an expectations document facilitates consistency, fairness, and helps to set expectations. An expectations document takes time to prepare, however, it becomes a great management tool and makes supervising student workers…and hiring them...easier over the long-term.
An expectations document can be thought of as a condensed version of an employee human resources manual. This document would include basic information on topics specific to the department where the student worker is employed such as:
Dress code
Work attendance
Time keeping
Task / Projects
Use of department vehicles
Reporting accidents and injuries
Etc.
Such topics are covered in short bullet points and reference any official policies or procedures. I've modified versions over the years’, and asked my own student workers to help me revise these documents. Their feedback is invaluable for future student workers and as part of the overall program.
The expectations document sets the tone and expectations up front for the student worker. Some people may incorrectly think having such a document sets a negative tone, however, this is backwards thinking if the goal is to hire high-quality student workers. Highly productive and high-quality student workers will appreciate seeing an expectations document. That is…if the supervisor actually holds team members accountable to those expectations. Supervisors do need to be flexible with student workers to a point, however, all staff need to be held accountable too. An expectations document that is used for accountability can resolve numerous problems and even bigger potential future problems.
The review and understanding of the expectations document should be included as a task on the new student checklist. This includes having an acknowledgement and signature line as part of the expectations document for the student worker. At the end of the day, the expectations document is meant to convey foundational expectations to avoid potential problems down the road. This document also allows the work environment to be kept fair, focused, flexible, and most importantly…fun! An expectations document helps build strong team members among student workers and is a key element of an effective student worker program.
Work Schedule – Posting a student worker schedule in a visible location and/or online with team members and giving other departmental staff members viewing rights to the student’s work schedule can facilitate accountability. A visible work schedule facilitates coordination of work and class schedules. Supervisors of student works should identify which student or staff are responsible for specific tasks or project leads on the work schedule as well. Posting a work schedule in a visible location can empower student workers to coordinate work schedules and tasks amongst each other. Supervisors should encourage this type of coordination and problem solving. Additional important information is covered under “Task Assignments”.
New Student Checklist – Another key element to facilitate consistency and efficient completion of administrative tasks is a new student checklist. This is essentially a list of administrative tasks, including external tasks such as completing forms for using vehicles, building access, how to sign out keys, etc. Modifying existing new employee departmental/ organizational checklists not only simplifies the creation of the documents, it also strives to minimize the differences between employees and student workers to those core requirements. This checklist should be kept as a living document and updated with your current student worker’s input.
Training Checklist – A training checklist can be incorporated as part of an expectations document or used as a stand-alone document or online version. A training checklist is another essential element in an effective student worker program to ensure consistency and quality of the onboarding experience. At a minimum, the training checklist should include required and recommended training for student workers such as:
Live and online training.
Review of Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs).
Review of guidance documents and manuals.
These can be listed out separately, or as part of a package as well as specific On-The-Job Training and job shadowing with other staff.
A column for training completion dates.
Supervisors should regularly review the completion status of items on both the new student checklist and the training checklist during regularly scheduled, standing one-to-one meetings with their student workers to reinforce the topics and provide student workers with time to ask questions and provide feedback on the training materials.
Additionally, the training checklist gives student workers an ongoing task list to work from during down time or after they have completed the day’s assigned work. One of the biggest complaints from student workers is their job is boring, they do not feel as though they are learning anything useful, and/or they have nothing to do to stay busy during down times.
Developing a well-thought out training checklist with required and recommended training items can facilitate removing any boredom, while allowing student workers to develop time management and task prioritization skills. The training checklist can be a great opportunity to build in other required and recommended professional development activities (online and live) that result in some sort of certificate or certification that can be used to strengthen the student workers knowledge and helping to build up their resumes. This is a key point for supervisors to keep in mind.
When making these types of suggestions to supervisors, common justifications for not allowing their student workers to participate in such professional development activities include:
The supervisor doesn’t have time to give to the student worker, which would also take away from the student’s assigned work tasks.
The supervisor doesn’t have the funds to spend on the student worker to attend other professional development activities, including the free online courses the students could attend during their work hours.
Etc.
I have a very simple response to these types of justifications from those types of supervisors….
“It’s not that you don’t have the time or money to give to your student worker…you just don’t have a vested interest in maximizing the effectiveness of your student worker.”
Many colleges and universities offer a variety of free training and certificate programs including softer skills like improving customer service, communications, leadership, various software programs, etc. Supervisors should encourage their staff and student workers to take advantage of these training opportunities…as part of their jobs and paid work time. Ultimately the overall growth of a supervisor’s programs will be enhanced over the long-term because of those wise investments of their student worker’s time.
Task Assignment – Another key element in an effective student worker program is task assignment and completion. This is also one of the biggest complaints heard when student workers are asked about their jobs…specifically the type of tasks assigned. Words that come to mind include boring, pointless, repetitive, waste of time, etc.
This as opposed to student workers who express compliments the most describe their tasks and projects as interesting, keeps them busy, being productive, makes them feel like they're contributing to something bigger, something that taps into their creativity, energy, and passions. It is important to present them with challenging tasks and let their ideas and creativity flow. It is truly amazing what they can come up with when they're engaged and supported to be creative.
Supervisors should work hard to vary the tasks assigned to student workers as well. There will always be the “making the donuts” task, those daily or weekly rituals that must be done, or mind-numbing administrative work, or endless photocopying and scanning. It must also be acknowledged and respected that in many cases, it is because of those types of tasks why student worker positions are usually created.
However, it is important to manage a good balance between getting those types of tasks accomplished, as well as providing more projects that require creative energy. Simple conversations and scheduling tasks at appropriate times can facilitate managing expectations for both the supervisor and student worker. The reality is these types of tasks go with every position to some degree regardless of title. An effective student worker program incorporates a variety of tasks as part of the student worker's daily and weekly schedule. As previously noted, work schedules should be visibly posted or easily accessible online to all team members.
Tasks such as sorting, filing, photocopying, scanning, etc. can be referred to as “filler tasks”. While “filler tasks” are a reality for anyone, especially student workers, these tasks should ideally be assigned towards the end of a student worker's shift or before a break in work. Supervisors should not waste the initial energy, enthusiasm, and creativity that a student worker brings into work when they have interesting projects to work on. Instead, “filler tasks” should be assigned during “creative down times” for the student worker which may vary among different student workers.
The best thing a supervisor can do is simply sit down with their student worker and discuss what times of the day they are most creative and then discuss the best time to do “filler tasks”. Another recommendation, where possible, is setting a weekly goal for specific filler tasks if possible and then as part of a beginning or end of the week regularly scheduled and standing meetings, the status of these weekly goals for filler tasks and other projects can occur. This process may not work all of the time due to scheduling realities, however, having these simple conversations up front can facilitate productivity and job satisfaction for both the student workers and the supervisor.
Another important and beneficial way to vary tasks include sharing student workers’ time with other staff members within the department to work on specific projects or tasks, and not just “filler tasks”. This would also include staff members outside of the student workers’ immediate group. Allowing the student worker to aid other department staff obviously benefits the staff by reducing the workload on some short-term projects and further supports the overall goals for the department or organization. This type of task assignment greatly benefits the student worker as well, especially when the staff member treats the experience as a job shadowing and on-the-job training for the student worker.
However, a big caveat that needs to be highlighted is that both the student worker and other departmental staff members must funnel all tasks and project requests, no matter how small, through the supervisor of the student worker to ensure that core responsibilities are not overlooked. If a particular staff member does not honor this request, then the student worker's time should be utilized for other staff member’s projects instead. Regardless of the method, the end goal should be to keep the student workers engaged and utilizing their creativity and energy by varying the tasks and projects assigned to them. Save “filler tasks” for down time and seek opportunities for the student to work on projects requiring creativity and problem solving. Supervisors will discover enthusiasm, energy, and passion from student workers on resume building tasks and projects, so it is ideal to try to assign projects that can meet the goals for both the student worker and the supervisor.
Resume Building – When student workers (and staff for that matter) start getting bored with their work, that is when they start getting distracted by their phones, games, or random conversations. Hence, all the more reason to vary the tasks and project assignments for student workers in order to keep them interested and engaged in their work.
There are four effective ways to facilitate resume building for student workers and harness their energy while furthering department goals.
Training - Some of the required and recommended training a student worker receives may be resume worthy. However, supervisors should identify, encourage, and support their student workers to take additional training, including both within and outside of their technical field. It is also a great opportunity to encourage them to take training in other software skills areas such as customer service, dealing with difficult people, and enhancing computer skills.
This training can be live online, hosted on campus, or at off-campus locations as part of organized trainings, workshops, and conferences. Any training that continues to build the skill sets and knowledge of the student worker is a worthwhile investment of time and can greatly benefit the supervisor’s overall programs.
Certificates - While an experienced staff member may not see value in certificates or certifications (they really do), certainly a young professional will view these types of certificates positively. Training certificates and a series of training courses leading to certifications are excellent resume builders for student workers. Time and money spent providing advanced training and certifications for student workers is a wise investment, especially having the mindset that your student worker could become a potential future staff member.
Professional Networking - An excellent way supervisors can benefit their student worker's long-term growth, and as a way for the supervisor to demonstrate this commitment, is by encouraging and supporting the student worker's participation in professional networking activities. This can include on-campus networking at higher-level meetings or providing assistance with a campus event. The best professional networking opportunities can occur at professional conferences, workshops, and local professional chapter events.
Where possible and when a student worker exhibits interest in learning more about a career field, a supervisor should identify, encourage, and support their student worker's involvement and participation in those types of activities. This also includes encouraging student workers to participate in other paid and volunteer activities. All of these activities can lead to both short-term and long-term benefits to the student worker and the supervisor.
Project Deliverables - Any type of project deliverable that results in a standard operating procedure, checklist, form, user guide, web page, slideshow, etc., that a student worker can claim some ownership in developing, can be a great way for a student worker to build their resume. These types of projects also provide solid examples for future job interviews. Any project deliverable a student worker can use to demonstrate skills they possess will be appreciated. Supervisors should encourage their student workers to get creative with project deliverables.
Upon completion of a project, celebrate the success of the student worker with departmental staff, and other channels for public recognition, such as a newsletter, webpage, or email announcement. The importance of a supervisor taking a vested interest in supporting activities and tasks that enhance the resume, and skill sets of their student workers cannot be overstated.
Department Meet and Greet - Another overlooked, yet important element to welcoming your student worker (or new staff member) is the department meet and greet. This entails going through the department organization chart and giving a high-level explanation of roles and programs. While having this discussion, it is also important to describe how the student position fits into the team and overall within the department. Additionally, this discussion should also include a high-level explanation of how the department fits within the university mission. This information may be readily available online, however, time spent discussing topics such as these with your student worker facilitates team building and welcoming the student worker. The next important step after going through the organizational chart is to introduce the student workers to all department staff members as feasible.
The supervisor should initiate these introductions as soon as the new student worker starts working. The completion of all the introductions should be made a priority. These are just brief introductions such as name, title, main programs, area, and length of the department. It is really meant to be a basic introduction so the new student worker will be recognized in the office and so they can have an idea who their coworkers are in the office. This is another important part of bringing on a new student worker, however, it is not always given the priority that it should be given. The student worker will appreciate their supervisor making an effort early on when they begin working to introduce them to all the other staff members within the department.
During these initial staff meetings with new student workers, the supervisor should let departmental staff know the student worker may be available to assist with short-term tasks. However, it needs to be made clear that all task requests must be made through the supervisor so the tasks can be managed and scheduled, unless prior arrangements have been made. Having a student worker provide assistance with tasks for other staff members furthers the department’s overall goals, shares the student’s time as a resource, provides a variety of tasks for the student worker, and continues to provide training and builds the skills, knowledge, and experience of the student worker.
Finally, the supervisor should not assume the new student worker has experience working in a professional office before. They may have had some part-time jobs previous to their college experience or have work experience primarily in the field. However, supervisors should discuss office expectations and cultural norms for the office and not assume their new student worker is already familiar with working in an office setting. Ideally, this information would be covered in an expectations document in order to maintain consistency within the student worker program.
Team Building - A key element for any student worker (and staff member) is to give them a sense of purpose, as well as an understanding of how their role fits into the department and the organization’s goals and mission.
An informed and integrated student worker combined with energy and enthusiasm can result in a highly productive team member. In many cases, an argument could easily be made that a well-trained and well-managed student worker could in fact turn out to be one of the most productive team members. In following the mindset that a student worker should be treated like a staff member, this also includes accountability. Supervisors need to ensure that staff and student workers are held accountable for their work performance in order for the whole team to truly reach its full potential.
Another important aspect to integrating a student worker into a team is to get them involved up front and participating in team and project meetings. During these meetings, they should also be encouraged to contribute their ideas and be an active participant. This may not always be possible due to work and class schedules; however, supervisors should make conscious efforts to involve their students in team and project meetings whenever possible and reasonable. Student workers have an incredible amount of talent and skills to offer when working on project teams alongside staff members.
The challenge for the supervisor is to figure out how to implement various strategies in order to capitalize on the student worker's strengths, skills, and interests, while at the same time giving the student worker a sense of purpose with their work and the opportunity to gain valuable knowledge and experience while building their resume. However, when these challenges are approached creatively and as a team effort, both the student worker and supervisor will reap the rewards of a positive and productive work experience.
