Recruiting and Hiring Students
Create an Employer Account on Handshake
- Post jobs, internships and research opportunities for free
- Promote your work opportunities specifically to SDSU students and alumni
- Find potential candidates within specific majors, year levels, etc. and message them directly
- Manage applications and schedule interviews
- Register for career fairs
- Host virtual or in-person information sessions and workshops
- Conduct on-campus interviews
Create an Employer Account on Handshake
Creating a Handshake Account for Your Department
- Sign up for an employer account in Handshake and confirm your email address
- Create a company profile for your department by clicking "Create New Company"
- Name your department following the naming convention: SDSU [your department] (I.e. SDSU Office of Housing Administration)*Do not join the company "San Diego State University"
- Once you have created an employer account, you may invite others in your department to join under the same "company"
For more information about how to create an employer account, read this Handshake Help Center article.
Posting a Federal Work Study (FWS) Position
When posting an FWS job on Handshake, please use the following guidelines:
- Job type: On-Campus Student Employment
- Is this a Work Study job: NoPlease select "no" under the Federal Work Study section. The system is not currently set up to recognize FWS approved student accounts and will prevent students from seeing your position if marked "yes".
- Job Title: please include "Federal Work Study" or "FWS" in the titleFor example, "Federal Work Study: Student Office Assistant " or "Office Assistant (FWS)"
- Job Description: please include: "Must meet the eligibility requirements of the Work Study Program as determined by the Office of Financial Aid and Scholarships"
For questions or assistance posting your position, please contact [email protected].
Hiring Student Interns Through SDSU's Learning Aligned Employment Program (LAEP)
LAEP offers eligible, underrepresented students at public colleges and universities the opportunity to earn money to help defray their educational costs, while gaining education-aligned, career-related employment (CSAC LAEP Program Handbook, 2023). LAEP was created pursuant to California Education Code (CEC) sections 69950 - 69969. More information about the California statewide initiative can be found on the California Student Aid Commission (CSAC) website. LAEP is a temporary program that runs until June 30, 2031.
Watch our SDSU LAEP Information Session for more details.
A student must meet the following criteria in order to be eligible for LAEP:
- Has a Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) on file at SDSU
- Is an undergraduate student
- Is enrolled during the academic year
- Has a minimum cumulative GPA of 2.0
- Is a California resident
- Is eligible to work in the United States (AB 540)
- Demonstrates financial need
- Meets at least one of the underrepresented background qualifications
To request verification for students' LAEP eligibility, email [email protected].
Research needs to be a significant component (51%) of a LAEP position when the employer is a public postsecondary educational institution. Research is not limited to scientific research and can take place outside of an academic discipline. The research should be directed and supervised by a mentor, faculty or staff member who determines the research requirements (CSAC LAEP Program Handbook, 2023).
The pay rate of an SDSU LAEP Student Intern is $18 per hour.
Monitoring LAEP Student Earnings
LAEP is a form of financial aid for the student and must fit into the student’s financial aid package. Students must not exceed their LAEP financial aid award. Supervisors & resource managers will have access to PeopleSoft to monitor students' earnings. Using a tracking spreadsheet to ensure the award limits are not exceeded is highly recommended. We also advise you to appoint students to a non-LAEP appointment SEA to absorb overages.
Phase One
- Position Creation
- Submit Employer Interest Form
- Receive Approval for Funding
- Career Services RM Submits Account Request Form (ARF) to Business & Financial Affairs (BFA). Please note that BFA processing will take approximately two weeks.
- Your department submits a Personnel Action Request (PAR). BFA processing will take approximately two weeks.
Phase Two
- Position Recruitment
- Post position on Handshake (required)
- Collect applications, identify & interview candidates, and select final candidates.
- Email [email protected] to request verification for students' LAEP eligibility.
Phase Three
- Hiring Paperwork
- Initiate SEA (Student Employment Application) for signing
- SEA routes to SDSU Financial Aid
- SDSU Human Resources completes
pre-boarding & background check - SDSU Payroll Services finalizes hiring process
- Intern begins work
If you have any questions about LAEP, email Industry Relations Lead Dannie Schwarz at [email protected]. To request verification for students' LAEP eligibility, email [email protected].