Hiring Graduate Students 2023-24

To: School/Division HR Officers and Secondary Contacts, Business Managers, Student Services Managers

From: Elizabeth Mayer-Davis, Dean of the Graduate School; Beverly Wyrick, Director of Finance/Administration for the Graduate School; and ConnectCarolina HR/Payroll Representatives

Date: May 8, 2023 CORRECTED 12/12/2023

Graduate students may be hired for a semester, academic year, calendar year, or other periods as needed. Each campus unit may establish varying effective dates to meet their business needs.

The stipend calculator tool can assist users in determining the monthly flat rate amount to enter on the ePAR form. Use the dates suggested below and the calculator stipend tool to determine the correct amount of pay and to ensure the minimum stipend is met for students who receive tuition and fee awards for purpose of GradStar award entries.

GradStar uses these dates and uses the same logic as the stipend calculator tool. If you use other dates, the stipend may be under/overstated for the term. Reference the attachment for more detailed explanation of the calculation in GradStar.

Also, the Graduate Assistant job code is not included in GradStar. If you are transitioning a student from Graduate Assistant to Graduate Research Assistant or Graduate Teaching Assistant, you can either 1) submit a hire ePAR and transfer the employee into a position with a GradStar qualifying job code OR 2) update the current position’s job code via the Position ePAR, then once executes submit a hire ePAR and transfer the employee into the same position.

For more information, please view the Tips and Tricks for GradStar Load Success microlearning. In addition, please visit the Student Employment website for more information for hiring supervisors, managers, and students.

Other Considerations:

• Students who need to complete an I-9 must have a hire date that remains in compliance with Form I-9 guidelines. Section 1 of the Form I-9 must be completed on or before the date of hire and completion of Section 2, including the in-person meeting to view employee’s I-9 supporting document(s), must occur within three business days of the hire.
• Normally, students should not be hired before August 1 or end work after December 31 for fall semester and should not be hired before January 1 or end work after July 31 for spring semester.
• Newly hired students may receive access to Sakai for course planning but will not see their class roster until the hire action is fully executed and the effective date of the hire is reached. For questions on access submit a service request.
• Adjust summer appointments as needed to reduce errors such as over/underpayments for fall or spring semester appointments.

9-Month Appointments

The dates below are recommended for standard 9-month appointments. You may use different dates, but it is strongly encouraged to use the stipend calculator to ensure the intended amount of pay and to ensure the student receives the minimum stipend amount for tuition purposes.

12-Month Appointments

Units who choose to pay graduate students on an annual rate may also use varying dates to meet their business needs. A best practice is to align hire dates to coincide with the insurance policy year which is August 1 through July 31.

Helpful Reminders

• Training materials and other information for student originators can be found here, Student Originators.
• The expected job end date for the Hire or Edit Existing Job ePAR should always be one day greater than the Pay-through date.
• Be sure to review the instructions on placing and/or returning EHRA students from short work break here Short Work Break
• Lump sum payments for graduate students are not allowed. This decision was made by the Graduate School and OHR Benefits in response to Affordable Care Act (ACA) requirements for tracking benefits eligibility. Lump sums payments do not allow reporting offices to get an accurate count of student employees and the hours they work.
• The EHRA student auto term process runs daily from the 1st through the 14th of the month. During this timeframe anyone with an Expected Job End Date of that day or before will be auto-termed. Then on the 15th of the month, the catch-all for the whole month is run with dates within that same month. The process continues to run daily to terminate anyone with an expected end date within the month (except during payroll lockout).

Multiple Jobs Summary and UNC Employee Information

• Use the Multiple Jobs Summary and UNC Employee Information pages in the HR Work Center to review the student’s employment and job status prior to taking any action. These pages provide the following information:
  • HR and Payroll status, which helps determine if the employee is active or on a work break.
  • Appointments and their expected job end date.
  • Department, job code, and FTE.
• These pages can also help departments avoid hiring a student into the same job twice, as well as avoid term/re-hires or transferring the student out of the wrong appointment.

HR/Payroll Reporting Dashboard

• Use Job: Expected End Date report to manage reappointments for students in addition to other available reports.

Short Work Break Information

• Students should be returned from work break if they will be returning to their appointment. If they will not be returning, then they should be terminated.
• When completing the ePAR to return a student from work break, do not check the box to bypass compensation and funding. Instead, be sure to include compensation and funding on the action. This will allow the originator and all approvers to confirm the compensation and funding are accurate.
• Please be advised, if a student is transferring from a job that is on Work Break into a new appointment, they must first be returned from Work Break.
• When submitting hires, returning from work break, and termination, always be mindful of payroll deadlines.

HR/Payroll dates and deadlines calendars

• View HR/Payroll preparation and distribution calendars
• Note: Calendars are subject to change. Please review on a regular basis to ensure you have the most up-to-date information.
• TIP: you can pull the Payroll Deadline calendar into your Outlook calendar and view it side-by-side or as an overlay to your personal calendar. For step-by-step instructions, visit this website: Combine outlook calendar.

For policy questions, contact your dean’s office/business office, email Beverly Wyrick, Director of Finance and Administration, or email Alicia Rogers, Graduate School HR Director.

For process related or technical questions, submit a service request.