Federal Work Study

The Federal Work-Study (FWS) program provides job-based funding for undergraduate and graduate students with financial need, allowing them to earn money to help pay education expenses. Work-Study employment may provide the student with the opportunity of working in a field related to their major.  

Apply for Federal Work-Study

In order to submit a FAFSA and be reviewed for FWS eligibility, students need to be a U.S. citizen or eligible noncitizen who is admitted into a degree-seeking program at USU.

  1. Submit your FAFSA
  2. Check your USU email and any other email you've used to submit your FAFSA. We will email you:
    • If there is information on your FAFSA that needs to be verified
    • Your Financial Aid Offer
  3. Once you receive your Financial Aid Offer, submit a Work-Study Request. After we receive your request, we will verify your eligibility and contact you via email.

Request Work-Study for 2026-27

Federal Work-Study requests are now closed for the 2025-26 year; we will not be awarding funds for Summer 2026.

For additional help, email workstudy@usu.edu and someone on our team will assist you!

Access or Decline your FWS Award

Accept or Decline Your Award

You can accept or decline your FWS award online. Declining your award will cancel for both Fall and Spring. If you need to cancel for one semester but not the other, please contact our office.

  • Log in to my.usu.edu
  • Under the "Tools" section, select "Finances" 
  • Select "Federal Aid (FAFSA)" 
  • Select the Award Year you need to review in the top right corner 
  • Click on "Aid Offer' tab 
  • Scroll down to "Options to Pay Net Cost" 
  • Use the drop-down menu next to the FWS offer to accept or decline your funding, then click “Submit”  

FWS Jobs

Visit AGGIE Handshake to apply for FWS on-campus positions. Click “Jobs,” then filter and select “work-study” to view available FWS jobs. If you need help building a resume, contact Career Design Center

If you find an on-campus job you want to apply to that is not FWS, there is a possibility to convert that job to be FWS eligible depending on your eligibility. Tell the supervisor during your interview that you have FWS funding.

Access your FWS Funds

Once you accept your award, and got hired by a department on campus for a FWS-Eligible job in AggieHandshake, you will earn normal wages which will be posted from your FWS funds. Your department supervisor will teach you to submit timesheets. FWS earnings are not disbursed to your student account and will not reduce your tuition bills. They are earned wages you can use to make payments toward your college costs. 

Interested in creating a FWS job? Visit our page for staff and departments.

FWS Job Requirements

  • You must be enrolled and attend classes for the semester you work. 
  • You can start working the week before classes begin. 
  • You can have more than one FWS Job under certain conditions. 
  • The cumulative total hours you can work in one or more combined FWS jobs is 29 hours per week. 
  • Hourly wages vary among FWS jobs. 
  • The amount you are awarded corresponds to 75% of your earnings. Your department will cover the 25% leftover.  
  • Your earnings do not need to be repaid. 
  • Unused earnings do not rollover to the following year. 
  • If you or your department plan to extend your job during the summer, please contact our office to verify if you qualify. 

Renew your eligibility each year

A FAFSA needs to be submitted every year to renew your FWS eligibility. FWS eligibility may vary each year and is dependent on the information provided on the FAFSA such as, other types of aid you receive (including loans), family income, and non-work-study income during the previous year. You may also maintain your eligibility for federal aid following the required federal academic standards to remain in good standing.  
 
You can continue working in the same or different FWS job each year as long as you are awarded FWS each year. If you would like to continue working in the same position, work with your supervisor regarding employment opportunities for the following year. 

Benefits to a Work-Study job

  • Opportunity to network with USU faculty & staff who may become valuable references in the future. 
  • Flexible work schedules. Shifts can range from 30 minutes to up to 8 hours. 
  • Save on commuting time. 
  • Some employers may prioritize hiring FWS eligible students due to their limited budgets. 
  • It can potentially help you receive more federal aid the following year because work-study earnings are subtracted from your income. 
  • Students who are eligible for work-study may qualify for SNAP (food stamps) benefits 

Frequently Asked Questions

You can still apply for any on-campus part-time ACA positions on AGGIE Handshake. Let the employer know if you have or not a FWS award, even if the position is not a FWS specific eligible position. You can also talk to your academic department or professors and let them know you have this award. Sometimes a position can be created for you depending on the department’s needs. This could be a semesterly project rather than a weekly scheduled job. 

FWS funding is limited and is awarded on a first-come, first-served basis.  
 
If you submitted your FAFSA, your eligibility for FWS is calculated based on the information you provided on your FAFSA, and your academic standing. 
 
If you haven’t submitted your FAFSA, a FAFSA is required to determine your FWS eligibility. 

This is FWS funding set aside for tutors to work in elementary schools in Cache Valley. These jobs are posted in AGGIE Handshake. Contact Todd Milovich for more information. 

If you decide to not accept your Federal FWS award, please decline it. After a certain date, if your award is not accepted, it might be canceled so another student can use it for a Federal FWS-based job. 

Depending on your unmet need, you may be awarded either loans or FWS, or both. Contact our office to learn more about your eligibility for both and whether or not your loan eligibility will be affected by FWS, or vice versa. 

FWS is a type of need-based federal aid.  Several factors can lead to a reduction in your FWS award, including changes in enrollment, scholarships, or other financial aid awarded after FWS funds are posted. For more information, please visit Federal Aid Rights and Responsibilities.

Yes, FWS earnings are taxable, just like regular work earnings, but are categorized as need-based income and not counted into FAFSA calculation. Please refer to your payroll department with specific questions about how your income is taxed. You will be required to complete a W-4 Employee Withholding Allowance Certificate when you start working, which will determine how much income tax is withheld from your FWS earnings. 

Yes, students must report FWS earnings on the FAFSA, however, it will not count as income like normal wages would.  

Starting 2024-25, the Department of Education will have the total you earned in FWS and subtract it from your total income, which can increase your eligibility for more federal aid. 

Students are not permitted to work in FWS positions during their scheduled class times. Students are required to submit their course schedule to their supervisor in order to ensure that they are not working during class time. If an employer requires a student to work during class time, the student should report this to the FWS Coordinator. 

If you are enrolling for classes, please submit the summer application and request FWS by submitting a request using the button above or by emailing us at workstudy@usu.edu.

If you are not enrolling for summer classes, federal regulations require some extra steps:

  • We must have your following year’s FAFSA ready and awarded. Example: If you want to summer 2024, we must have your FAFSA 2023-24, and FAFSA 2024-25 on file, ready and completed.
  • Please request FWS by submitting a request using the button above or by emailing workstudy@usu.edu.
  • Your department will need to contact us at workstudy@usu.edu to complete a summer bridge agreement, but we must verify your eligibility first, so please ask them to contact us at workstudy@usu.edu.

Please contact us at workstudy@usu.edu if you have any other questions

Current Federal Work-Study Employees

Access Your FWS Funds

Once you are awarded and hired for a Federal Work-Study (FWS) eligible job, you will work and earn wages like any other student employee. FWS funding helps subsidize a portion of your wages while you are employed in an eligible position. Coordinate with your supervisor to learn the specific timesheet process for your department.

FWS awards represent the maximum amount a student may earn through eligible employment during the award period. Actual earnings depend on hours worked, supervisor scheduling, job availability, and continued eligibility.

Important Note: FWS earnings are not disbursed directly into your student account and will not reduce your tuition bill. They are wages earned throughout the semester that you can use to make payments toward your college costs.

Keep in Mind

  • Enrollment: You must be enrolled and attending classes for the semester you work. If you withdraw from classes, stop attending, or fall below required enrollment, your FWS eligibility may end immediately.
  • Start Date: You can begin working the week before classes start.
  • Hour Limits: You can work a maximum of 29 hours per week combined across all USU jobs. We recommend 15–20 hours to keep your academics on track.
  • Unused Awards: Unused FWS awards do not carry forward to the next academic year.
  • Fund Availability: FWS funding is limited and subject to federal and institutional funding availability.
  • Summer Work: If you want to work during the summer, contact us in March to check eligibility.

Manage Your FWS Award

Your FWS award isn’t just a total amount—it’s a budget of hours. To make sure your job lasts the entire semester, use this simple formula to find your “Magic Number” of hours per week.

The “Magic Number” Formula

Award Amount ÷ (Hourly Wage × Weeks in the Semester) = Recommended Hours Per Week

Example: If you have a $2,000 award, earn $15/hour, and there are 15 weeks in the semester:

  • 15 × 15 = 225
  • 2,000 ÷ 225 = 8.8 hours per week

Track Your Earnings

We recommend keeping a simple spreadsheet or using a tracking app to log your hours. Your paystub will show your year-to-date (YTD) earnings, but it often lags by a pay cycle.

To stay on top of your balance:

  • Check your award: Log into your Financial Aid portal to see your total FWS offer.
  • Subtract your gross pay: Every time you get paid, subtract your gross earnings, the amount before taxes, from your total award.
  • Monitor the balance: If your balance is dropping too fast, talk to your supervisor about adjusting your schedule.

Students are responsible for monitoring their earnings. Earnings above the awarded Federal Work-Study amount may need to be paid by the hiring department from non-FWS funds.

Renew Your FWS Eligibility Each Year

You must submit a FAFSA every year to renew your FWS eligibility. The FAFSA for the next academic year is typically available each fall at StudentAid.gov. Students should complete it as early as possible once it opens.

Your eligibility may vary each year and is dependent on the information provided on the FAFSA, including family income, your earned non-FWS income during the previous year, and other types of aid you receive, including loans.

Your FWS eligibility may change if your FAFSA information is updated during verification or if required documents are not submitted by university deadlines.

You can continue working in the same or different FWS jobs each year as long as you are eligible for FWS each year. If you would like to continue working in the same position, work with your supervisor regarding employment opportunities for the following academic year.

Students who graduate, withdraw, or are no longer enrolled are no longer eligible to continue working in an FWS position.

Maintain Eligibility

Factor Why it matters
Enrollment You must stay enrolled to keep your FWS job.
Academic Standing Falling below Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) can end your eligibility.
Other Aid Large scholarships or third-party funding can cause your FWS to be reduced or canceled.

Students must continue to meet all federal financial aid eligibility requirements to remain eligible for Federal Work-Study employment.

Need help? Email workstudy@usu.edu and someone on our team will assist you!

Frequently Asked Questions

No. Federal regulations strictly prohibit students from working during their scheduled class times. Even if a class is canceled or ends early one day, you cannot clock in until that class period is officially over. You are required to provide your supervisor with a copy of your course schedule at the start of each semester to ensure no overlaps occur. If you feel pressured to work during class time, please contact the FWS Coordinator immediately.

It depends on your unmet need. Financial aid is a bit of a puzzle—we can’t award you more aid than the Cost of Attendance allows. If you receive a new scholarship or a large grant, your FWS or your loans might be reduced to keep your package within federal limits. If you have questions about a change in your aid offer, email us and we can look at your specific package together.

Yes. Just like any other job, FWS earnings are considered taxable income by the IRS. When you start your job, you will complete a W-4 form, and at the end of the year, you will receive a W-2 from USU Payroll.

Note: While the income is taxable, it is treated differently on your FAFSA.

Yes, but with a major benefit. You must report your FWS earnings as part of your total income on the FAFSA. However, because FWS is need-based earnings, the Department of Education subtracts that amount from your total income when calculating your eligibility for next year.

Essentially, FWS allows you to earn money for school expenses without that money counting against you for future financial aid. It’s one of the biggest perks of the program!

Once you have earned your full award amount, you must stop working under the FWS program for that semester. You should track your earnings throughout the semester to avoid a sudden loss of hours. In some cases, your department may choose to keep you on as a Student Hourly employee using their own budget, but this is at the department’s discretion.

Yes, as long as all positions are approved Federal Work-Study jobs and your combined hours across all USU jobs do not exceed university limits.

Possibly. Once your FWS funds are exhausted, your department may choose to continue employing you as a regular student hourly employee using departmental funding.

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