Guidance for Undergraduates

COVID-19 Guidance for Undergraduates

 

The Student Employment Office expects that employers will adhere to the Harvard University standards on health and safety. We urge employers to inform themselves on the facts of COVID-19 and to practice good personal hygiene, social distancing, and other CDC-recommended measures to lower risk of transmission. Please find further details about University guidelines here.

Given the COVID-19 pandemic, email phishing and job scams may be on the rise. Please always be vigilant and exercise common sense when responding to any job posting in the SEO Jobs Database or any other job-search databases.

To learn more about job scams, what to look for, and how to protect yourself, please visit the Federal Trade Commissions website.

 

Undergraduate term-time work:

Though there is no expectation of a work contribution to meet the cost of attendance for the summer term, this does not mean that students cannot or will not choose to work. The Student Employment Office and the Office of Career Services continue to provide resources for students regarding summer employment opportunities including many remote positions, career advising, and guidelines for remote employment. 

  • We continue to engage with many on and off-campus employers to keep our Jobs Database up to date with available opportunities. 

    • The Jobs Database is accessible to students with a HarvardKey.

    • The Jobs Database is updated daily.

  • The SEO continues to serve as a resource for students who are seeking different types of employment opportunities.

Regulations for Student Employment:

  • In accordance with normal College policies, students who take a leave of absence are not eligible for student employment.

  • While remote participation in all student activities (including student employment) is permitted at all times beginning May 28th, please note that some jobs may require in-person presence.

  • Students residing off campus nearby are bound by city and state restrictions on movement and congregating, and are not permitted on campus for any activity other than faculty sponsored research and student employment.

  • Students cannot work on Harvard payroll while outside of the U.S.

  •  Update your home and University mailing address! Note: Harvard students cannot update their home address in PeopleSoft. You must update your home address in my.harvard, which will migrate into Peoplesoft. Instructions for updating your home and University address can be found on the Student Financial Services website.

  • Student employees who are working in a state other than Massachusetts can continue on the MA payroll (or California payroll, if they are working in CA) until mid-September (90 days after the end of the MA public health emergency). At this time, we expect that any student who is eligible to continue working on Harvard payroll will be back on campus by that date for the start of the fall 2021 semester.

 

  • For students who cannot complete their I9 form on campus, I9’s can be completed with the SEO via Zoom. Please contact the SEO at seoweb@fas.harvard.edu to schedule a time to complete your I9 form remotely.

 

 

  • The Office of International Education has expanded its role, and will be advising and supporting international students, including providing resources related to practical and logistical matters, as well as academic, co-curricular and extracurricular support.

Additional Resources:


 

Resources and Opportunities

 

Please visit the Students / Search Jobs section of our website to learn about part-time job opportunities available to Harvard students!

 

Federal Work Study Program (Undergraduate Students)

  • Though the increase in scholarship to replace the term-time work expectation may mean that fewer students are eligible for federal work study, we still want to encourage those who do have it to use it. If you have any questions about your eligibility for FWS please contact us directly at seofwsp@fas.harvard.edu.

    1. who are not enrolled (either on a leave of absence or a gap year) would not be eligible to use Federal Work Study funds.
  • There have been many questions regarding the Federal Work Study program for this coming fall. Please understand that while we will not have a large on-campus presence, enrolled students are still eligible to be employed in on-campus and off-campus positions. We understand some employers may not offer remote operations and they would require students to be in-person to complete certain job functions. It is expected that employers will follow state guidelines regarding re-opening, cleanliness, and social distancing. We acknowledge that there is a strong demand for work amongst our students and many employers may benefit from utilizing federal work study students. We want to keep those opportunities, but safety is a priority. Students looking for positions that are on-site should discuss safety protocols with their employer. We also encourage employers to act with transparency and disclose safety measures up front.

  • Please note that students living outside of the United States are unable to use Federal Work Study funds for remote positions.