Work Study

• It allows you to earn money to help pay for college.      
• It provides opportunities to serve the community.
• Your work-study supervisor knows that you are a student first. You work in jobs that provide flexibility and work around your class schedule.
• It provides beneficial experience and training, networking and references to build your resume.
• It helps you develop your professional skills, like communication, time management, and interpersonal skills and may lead to career opportunities.
• If you receive Federal Work-Study, those earnings are not counted when figuring your “need” on the FAFSA.

Federal Work-Study
Federal Work Study (FWS) is a federally funded student assistance program for students that demonstrate need through the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). You are encouraged to complete the FAFSA at www.fafsa.gov to determine if you qualify for a Federal Work-Study (FWS) award. When filling out the FAFSA, check the box for Federal Work-Study and if you qualify, you will be offered FWS as part of your financial aid award. Students awarded FWS are given priority in hiring.

Institutional Work-Study
Lake Michigan College provides its own funding in addition to the federal funds so students who are not FWS eligible may still be employed as student workers. International students are eligible to work under Institutional Work Study but must obtain a Social Security Card.

To be considered for any work study job you must be in a degree-seeking or eligible certificate program and enrolled at least half-time (6 or more credits). You also must complete all required paperwork.

Follow the Work-Study Application Steps to guide you through the process of applying and getting hired.

The College Central Network is used to access student job information and apply for jobs. You will create an account, complete the Work-Study application below and upload it to the Network. You can apply for open positions and then participate in the interview process if selected. Applying for a position does not guarantee employment at Lake Michigan College or at authorized off-campus employers. Student employees are hired based on skills and abilities and are expected to be reliable and to take their jobs seriously.

Once hired, you earn pay according to the hours you work and are paid for those hours bi-weekly. The maximum number of hours a student may work is 20 per week, but how much you will depend on the needs of the department, the department’s budget, how much work-study you are awarded and how much time you can devote outside of your schoolwork. Before you can start to work, you will be required to complete the on-boarding paperwork.

More information regarding the work-study program can be found in the Work-Study Handbook and by contacting Carla Bender, cbender@lakemichigancollege.edu, in the Financial Aid Office.

For help with the College Central Network, contact Debbie Gillespie, Director of Workforce Outreach at gillespie@lakemichigancollege.edu.

Please visit LMC's College Central Network to explore other positions such as internships and off-campus student jobs, as well as volunteer opportunities.