How to Hire a Student
The following information is to be used as a guide for those individuals (faculty or management) wishing to hire or obtain the services of a student employee.
Student Employment Eligibility:
Student rates may only be used when employing individuals currently registered as students at a high school, or post-secondary institution or in an undergraduate or graduate program at a university.
Student Job Postings:
Please visit the Careerspace for information on hiring student employees, posting a student job, and student funding that is available.
Student Pay Rates (non-union):
The following are the defined classification and pay rates for student employment:
| Classification | Hourly Rate | Definition |
|---|---|---|
| Unspecialized Jobs | $17.60 (As of October 1, 2025) | Where a student is employed in general labour. |
| Specialized Jobs | $18.10 (As of October 1, 2025) | Where a student is required to have special knowledge or skills in a position. |
Note: Unless expressly authorized in advance by the Department of Human Resources, all students employed by the University must be assigned one of the two student rates. Unauthorized variation on these rates will not be processed.
Student Hours:
Students are eligible to work up to full-time hours, providing they comply with other relevant guidelines/polices, such as Graduate Student Status, Trent Work Study Program, Work Permits, Employment Standards, etc.
Hiring a Student:
When a student is employed, a Student Employment Form must be completed and sent to the Payroll Office (Blackburn Hall Suite 123):
Note: if the student is being paid from a Research Account, you must follow the steps under How to Hire a Research Employee.
Note: You must attach banking information and both the Federal and Provincial Tax Forms.
If you have any questions concerning this form or the procedures which should be followed to ensure that students are paid promptly, please contact payroll@trentu.ca.
Mandatory Training:
All new employees in Ontario, including student employees, casual employees, TAs, markers and volunteers receiving an honorarium of $500 or more, are required by law to complete the Health and Safety Awareness Training for workers on their first day of employment. New supervisors are required to complete the Health and Safety Awareness Training for supervisors.
If new employees have already completed this training through another employer, they must provide proof of completion to their supervisor prior to their start date. Supervisors are required to attach the proof of completion with the employee’s hiring paperwork, and inform Human Resources by email that the employee has already completed the training. Proof of completion will be retained on the employee’s personnel file.
Workplace Violence and Harassment, Human Rights and AODA, Cybersecurity, and Privacy Training must also be completed within one week of commencing employment. All mandatory training can be accessed the "MyTraining" tab in the Employee Portal in VIP. Please review the user guide for help with accessing Mandatory Employee Training.
The Health and Safety Awareness training (Worker or Supervisor), Workplace Harassment, and Health and Safety Orientation for Trent University modules must be completed once every 5 years. More information on Training & Orientation can be found on the Health and Safety website.
All mandatory training can be accessed through Blackboard on the MyTrent Learning System: https://my.trentu.ca/portal.
Note: Students that have a staff email account set up, are automatically enrolled in the mandatory training listed above. Students that do not have a staff email account, should visit the Health and Safety website to obtain information on how to access the training course via Blackboard.