Need a Job? Look No Further Than FWS

Feb 18, 2021 | News | 0 comments

By Chelsea Davis, Contributing Writer

    Full-time students who qualify for federal financial aid by filling out the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) may also qualify for federal work study (FWS), which allows students to get a job on campus while also being able to prioritize classes and coursework. 

    Work study provides part-time jobs for undergraduate students with financial need and allows students to earn money to help pay education expenses. This program encourages community service work and work related to the student’s course of study. “For FWS specifically, the student would have the award as part of their financial aid package since FWS is a need-based financial award contingent on FAFSA information,” said Joseph Toner, Assistant Director of Financial Aid at UMF. “However, having FWS is not a prerequisite to working on campus as students can be hired within the work initiative program or within a department-funded position.” 

    UMF has a wide variety of work study jobs on campus open only to students who qualify for FWS. “We have students working in just about every department on campus, from admissions, to athletics, to the library,” said Toner. “Our student workers literally make our campus go.”

    Troy Johnson, an employee at the Fitness and Recreational Center (FRC), has had a positive experience working as a part of FWS. “I like working in the gym atmosphere,” Johnson said. “I have made new connections working with other students on campus. I would highly recommend federal work study for students in need of a little extra money to help pay off education expenses.”

    The level of commitment that is expected for student employment jobs are just like any job. Supervisors will expect student workers to show up on time, perform quality work, and follow instruction. “As long as you follow what is asked of you and you get everything done on time it is a super easy job and a great experience too,” said Elena Guarino, who works in the library through FWS.

    Because FWS is part of the student’s financial aid package and the job is also on campus, students working FWS positions are able to easily prioritize their classes and coursework while also doing their FWS job. “Some things that I do at my job consist of cleaning equipment, checking students in, and I can also work on homework,” Johnson said. 

    With a full-time courseload, Johnson is able to work up to four hours a day three days a week. “Typically these work study jobs have flexible schedules,” said Johnson. 

Utilizing work study is beneficial because working on campus allows students to gain real-life work experience that can help students learn interpersonal communication skills and time management while also earning money to help pay for some of the costs associated with attending college. “Employers love to see student work on a resume,” said Toner. “It shows that the student gained valuable experience while in college, even if the work now is not directly related to your plans for a post-UMF career.”

    To locate the FWS job list and learn about FWS, work initiative, and on-campus jobs, students can email joseph.toner@maine.edu or log into the MyCampus Portal, go to the Student Services pull-down menu, and select Financial Services. Work study positions will start opening up at the end of the spring. Once students find a job on campus they would like to pursue, it is important to reach out to the supervisor of that certain work position, it is best to reach out through email.

 

Student Workers Keep UMF Thriving

Sep 26, 2019 | News | 0 comments

Kaitlynn Tarbox, Contributing Writer

    UMF’s student employees have proven to be an integral part of campus life and functions as they maintain a variety of positions on campus such as giving tours, delivering mail and secretarial positions. Without them, work loads on staff would increase significantly. 

    Joseph Toner, Assistant Director of Financial Aid said in an email interview, “Student employees make our campus go. In just about any corner of campus you will find student employees whose work is not only vital to campus operations, but who are building their resumes through experiential work and hands on training.” 

    Student success is one of the most important things to Toner. “Not only would the day to day operations suffer greatly without student workers, but more importantly, there would be a noticeable difference in overall student success at UMF,” he said. “Student employment is one of the main success indicators for students here; meaning, those who choose to work on campus persist at a higher rate, do better academically, and are more socially engaged.” 

    Student employees are often the first to greet upcoming students whether it be through a tour or open houses.  By welcoming these new students, employees create a student’s first impression of UMF. During the application and tour process Toner said that “as [new students]  begin to dig deeper and learn more about UMF they will see student employees at every step along the way. Whether our student employees know it or not, they are all equally important to the success of UMF and the Farmington community.”  

       Andrea Butterfield, Mail Services Assistant in the mailroom said that “student workers are very important, our department is very dependent on them for things to run smoothly.”  

    The mail room offers 20 work study positions and usually fills 18 of those. Currently they have 11 employees and without them Butterfield said, “ A lot would not get done, I would be the only employee in the mailroom and mail would no longer be delivered to the residence halls or departments. They would have to come pick up their mail at the mailroom.” 

    The mailroom struggled during the first few weeks of the semester with a system glitch and lack of employees. In difficult situations, like the large amount of packages that needed to be checked in after their computer system glitched, Butterfield said, “I’m grateful for [the student workers] everyday.”    

     Lilly Spencer, a sophomore who receives work-study, said,  “If we didn’t have student workers a lot of people probably would not be able to attend college. College is really expensive and having a way that we can work towards our tuition is really empowering and beneficial.”  

    There are many benefits to working on campus: career readiness, time management skills, networking, creating positive relationships with others and other skills that vary on the employee’s position. 

     Quinlan Boyle, sophomore, worked for the mailroom last year. “I am thankful for student workers every time I get my mail, eat in the dining hall or have a technology problem,” he said. 

    Without student workers filling over 700 employee positions much of campus life would come to a standstill. Boyle said, “It would not be great without student workers, there is a lot going on at UMF all the time, people who give tours, deliver mail, work in food service. There would be a lot that would not get done due to the lack of student workers.”

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