In addition to taking classes and being involved on campus, many Augustana students take-on the role of student worker.
A large portion of the Augustana student population works regularly on campus.
“We pay about 1,100 students every two weeks,” Kelly Hall, payroll assistant, said. “There are actually about 2,000 students on payroll, but not all of them work regularly. For example, if you give one tour for admissions, you’re technically a student worker, but you may only get paid for that one tour.”
Student workers get paid an hourly minimum wage. In Illinois, it is $8.25 an hour.
Many wonder how the college affords such a regular and significant expense; however, Hall explained that the money used to pay student workers is already worked into a budget.
“Each department has a student budget,” Hall said. “I believe every year they can adjust that budget, whether they need more or aren’t using enough.”
Students have many varying opportunities for jobs on campus, which they can discover through Augie Hub or by receiving informational emails with job applications attached.
Student workers can be found everywhere on campus. From the Brew by the Slough to the Dean of Students Office; from the Reading and Writing Center to the basement of Bergendoff.
First-year student Rachel Lee has a job both on and off campus.
“I work at the Computer/Listening Lab in Bergendoff and Rock Island Fitness and Activity Center (RIFAC) in Rock Island,” Lee said. “Working on and off campus gives me an opportunity to meet a variety of people.”
Although Lee enjoys aspects of both of her jobs, she sees many benefits of being a student worker on campus.
“I chose to work on campus, because it was more convenient and it’s near my classes,” Lee said. “The benefits of working on campus are that I don’t have to drive to work, and I’m more involved with the school community.”
Many students, like Lee, appreciate the benefits of working on campus, from convenient location to flexible hours.
In addition, Augustana answered the question “Why should students work on campus?” by providing a list of what they feel on-campus job experiences give to students.
According to the Augustana website, campus jobs help students develop strong work habits and communication skills, improve time management skills, learn professionalism, network faculty and administrators and meet other students.
They also emphasize that “skills from a campus job will be transferable to a position after graduation.”
Augustana prides itself on the ability to provide countless jobs for students.
This is evident through the Student Employment Handbook’s Mission Statement. It reads as follows: “Augustana College promotes the development of the whole student by providing meaningful work experiences on-campus aimed at enhancing college and career goals through experiential learning opportunities.”
