Is Your Student Worker Getting Paid the Wrong Rate?

It happens more often than you’d think. A student clocks in, forgets to transfer to your department’s code, and the hours post at the wrong rate — or to another department’s budget. Here’s the part most supervisors don’t realize: once that timecard is approved…

…the system treats it as correct, and nothing downstream flags it.

That makes your review the checkpoint that counts.

Because many of our students work more than one job on campus, every shift has to be logged under your department’s specific code. It’s an easy thing to miss — and an easy thing to fix, as long as it’s caught before you approve.

A few things that help:

• Know your students’ rates. Rates are tied to years of experience in that specific position — not overall time at HU. So a senior who just started in your department may not be at the rate you’d expect. If you’re ever unsure what one of your students should be earning, just ask.
• Review before you approve. A quick scan of each timecard for the right department code and rate goes a long way.
• Feel free to fix it yourself. You’re able to correct transfer codes directly in ADP, so if something looks off, you can update it before the approval deadline — no need to wait on Payroll.
• Reach out anytime. If a correction won’t take or you’re not sure which code applies, just email Michael Fox (mfox@huntington.edu) and we’ll get it sorted.

Catching something before approval usually takes a minute. Catching it afterward is a lot harder — and the student is the one who ends up waiting.

Thanks so much for your partnership in getting this right!