Student Casual Employees

Before you begin working at a new job on campus, work with the departmental administrator or human resources representative to complete all of the new hire paperwork, including tax forms and the federal Form I-9.

All hiring paperwork, including the federal Form I-9 must be completed within three business days after beginning employment, and generally should be done before you begin. You cannot be paid until all of the paperwork is completed.

Generally, students who are enrolled half-time or more are limited to no more than 20 hours of work per week, across all compensated positions, on- or off-campus (generally fall and spring semesters).

Students who work as casual employees may not exceed 20 hours per week across all compensated positions during fall and spring semesters, inclusive of spring break. Student casuals are not limited to 20 hours per week during winter break or, provided they are not enrolled, during summer break.

If you have questions, please consult your hiring paperwork, or a human resources representative at your department or school.

On or Before Your First Day

Complete all required new hire paperwork

Your hiring department cannot enter you into payroll, and you will not be paid, until all of your new hire paperwork has been completed and submitted to your department administrator or human resources representative.

If you have not received the required hiring paperwork, you must contact your department administrator or human resources representative in order for your appointment to be processed correctly and for you to be paid.

Employment Eligibility: Form I-9

The Form I-9 is required for all newly hired employees who will be working in the United States to verify that you are eligible to work. Please check with your department administrator or human resources representative if you have had a break in service; you may need to complete another I-9 even if you have completed one previously.

The Form I-9 can be completed as soon as you have accepted your new position, and must be done no later than three (3) business days after your start date.

If you are a new hire, you are required to complete your Form I-9 in person at a University I-9 center. Please follow the steps below to complete this process:

  1. Access this online portal to complete Section 1 of the form.
  2. Do not provide a placeholder Social Security Number (e.g., 000-00-0000). If you have applied for but not yet received an SSN, please select the "SSN Applied For" checkbox.
  3. Once Section 1 is finished, visit one of the on-campus I-9 centers to complete Section 2.
     

International Students: If you do not have a Social Security Number (SSN), please refer to the International Student and Scholars (ISSO) website for information on how to apply for one.

Morningside/Manhattanville
CU Human Resources, Studebaker Building
615 West 131st Street
Hours: Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.
Note: Open to all new and returning hires; no appointment is necessary.

CUIMC
CUIMC HR, Georgian Building
617 West 168th Street
Hours: Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. – 5 p.m.
Note: Open to all new and returning hires; no appointment is necessary.

Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory
Climate School HR
Lamont Administration Building, Room 208
Note: Serves all LDEO campus hires, including those from IRI and CIESIN.

Morningside (Students Only)
208 Kent Hall
Schedule an Appointment
Note: This location is restricted to student employees (Work-study, student casuals, and student officers). Please be aware the center has returned to Kent Hall from its temporary location in Uris.

Specific Schools and Departments
Certain departments manage the I-9 process internally. Your hiring department will notify you if you should complete your paperwork directly with them.

  • Remember to bring the appropriate unexpired original documents with you, as listed in Section 1 of the I-9 online. The list of acceptable documents can be found on the USCIS website.
  • Please confirm your date of hire with your department administrator or human resources representative. This is required for the Form I-9.

International Students: If you do not have a Social Security Number (SSN), please refer to the International Student and Scholars (ISSO) website for information on how to apply for one.

All new hires must complete the Federal Form W-4 and state tax forms before receiving a paycheck. These forms provide the University payroll system with the required information to set up the appropriate tax withholding from your paycheck.

This will be provided to you by your hiring department. You must review the information, sign and return it to your departmental administrator or human resources representative.

After You Start Working

In the Time & Labor and Absence Management (TLAM) System used by all student casuals, you will be able to enter your hours worked and submit to your manager electronically for approval.

Once your profile is active in the My.Columbia.edu portal you will be able to see the "Faculty & Staff" tab, which will grant you access to complete your timesheets and enroll in direct deposit. The available timesheets will be determined by your start date coinciding with your I-9 employment eligibility completion date; however, you will only be able to fill in the last two (2) bi-weekly pay periods from the current pay period. 

Please remember you will not get paid if you do not submit a completed timesheet to the appropriate person in the department in which you are working.

Casual timesheets are due by Thursday at 5 p.m.
Note the early due dates in the pay calendar below highlighted in red due to University holidays.

Students may work a maximum of 20 hours/week except for the following dates when the maximum is 35 hours/week:

  • 05/25/2026-08/31/2026 (Summer Break) - 35 hours per week
  • 12/23/2026-01/15/2027 (Winter Break) - 35 hours per week

Additional notes:

  • Timesheets must be submitted in the Time & Labor and Absence Management (TLAM) System by Thursday at 5pm, with above noted early submission exceptions.
  • Casuals may not work more than 5 consecutive hours without taking an unpaid half-hour break.
  • Late timesheets will be processed with the following payroll.

Once your hiring paperwork has been completed and you are entered into the University payroll system—People@Columbia (PAC)—we recommend that you sign up for the free direct deposit service. Your paycheck will then be automatically deposited to your bank account(s) each pay period.

All student casual employees are strongly encouraged to enroll in direct deposit in PAC.

See Direct Deposit Instructions
Please note that there are specific instructions for student employees.

Most student casual employees are paid on a bi-weekly basis. Confirmation of your pay frequency was provided on the Casual Employment Form or NYS 195 Form you signed as part of your new hire paperwork. 

View the Student Casual Payroll Calendar

Once you are hired into the University's system, you will be able to view each of your paychecks via the my.Columbia portal. You can also access your W-2 and 1042S forms on the my.Columbia portal. 

Simply log in with your UNI and password, click on the People@Columbia tile, and click on "View Your Paycheck" under Self-Service.

In the atypical instance of an overpayment, the University has a financial obligation to attempt to recover the excess amount. The recovery process identifies employee and department responsibilities regarding overpayments of wages. 

Overpayments are a shared responsibility between the employee, Department, Human Resources, and Payroll to identify and correct the source of the error and subsequently recover the overpayment in as timely a manner as possible, including establishing a payment plan to recover the overpayment. The overpayment recovery process is detailed here.

Employees are expected to promptly report any discrepancies they note in their pay to their department. The department should also reach out to the student to discuss if an overpayment is discovered. 

Key Contacts and Resources