How does work-study work at UT Austin?
A UT work-study offer is money you can earn in an eligible job, not a payment you receive upfront. You still apply for the job, and your hourly wage and scheduled hours decide how quickly you earn the offer.
In this guide
Where is my work-study offer?
Look in the College Financial Plan in My Financial Aid. UT considers financial need, other aid and, where relevant, earlier work-study employment. Both full-time and part-time students can be eligible.
An employer may ask you to share that offer. Keep the amount and award period handy when you discuss a schedule: a job offer and a financial aid offer are two steps you need to connect.
How many hours will the offer pay for?
UT’s employer policy defines the award as the gross wages you may earn in the semester. Divide your offer by the job’s hourly rate to find the funded hours, then compare that result with the weeks you can work.
For an illustrative $2,400 offer at $15 an hour, that’s 160 hours. Over 16 working weeks it averages 10 hours a week; over eight weeks it averages 20. Work-study funds won’t cover more than 19 hours a week, so starting late can leave part of that example offer unearned.
Scroll the table to compare every column.
| Working weeks | Average hours needed each week |
|---|---|
| 16 | 10 |
| 12 | 13⅓ |
| 8 | 20 |
Example inputs, not a UT wage offer. These are gross earnings before any deductions; your employer must approve your schedule.
Where do I find an eligible job?
Use Workday’s Student Jobs Site for on-campus openings and ask the hiring department whether the position supports your work-study award. One Stop says off-campus federal work-study is limited to select elementary reading or math tutoring jobs; ordinary off-campus jobs on 12twenty don’t use federal work-study funds.
Before accepting, ask the department for the hourly rate, start date, weekly hours and first payday. Then compare the expected pay with the bills due before it arrives.
What if I wasn’t offered work-study?
One Stop allows a review request through My Financial Aid, depending on available funding:
- Open Documents, then Upload a non-requested document.
- Choose Request for Work-Study for fall/spring, or Summer Work-Study Request.
- Choose Student as the owner and the applicable school year; summer uses the prior school year.
- In Enter Document Data, choose the option asking to be considered for an award.
- Select Upload.
Should I wait for work-study before job hunting?
Apply for ordinary student jobs while your funding request is pending. A work-study award can help an employer fund your position, but it can’t promise you a position or a particular start date.
Budget from the pay you can earn before a bill comes due. The number in your aid offer becomes spendable money only after you get hired and work the hours.
How we got this
Eligibility and portal instructions come from One Stop; gross-earnings and work-hour rules come from UT Financial Aid. The $2,400, $15 and week counts are illustrative inputs, with the arithmetic shown. Checked October 28, 2026. This is an independent undergraduate guide, not a decision on your own eligibility.