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Student Employee Development
Congratulations on your hire as a student employee at Sac State! You are now an important member of the Sac State workforce, and your work and contributions are valued by your colleagues. As a student employee, you have access to a variety of high-quality tools and resources for your personal and professional development. We encourage you to take advantage of these tools so you can be successful -- not only here at Sac State, but also in your future career.
Hiring Foundation
Onboarding
Once you’ve completed all required paperwork with the Human Resources Student Employment Office, you will participate in an orientation or “onboarding” process in your department. Onboarding is an important time for you to learn about your hiring department, job duties and tasks, and other employment expectations. This is a time of training, and you’ll be learning new systems, processes, and technology.
When onboarding, it’s important to discuss the following with your supervisor:
- Your work schedule and when to take breaks (if applicable)
- If, when, and how to record your hours worked, request schedule changes, and notify your supervisor regarding an absence
- Expectations of working in a professional environment
- Emergency procedures such as building evacuation routes and gathering places
- How to address an instance of bias, harassment, or unwelcome behavior in the work environment.
Required Training
You will be automatically assigned required trainings through CSU Learn, Sac State’s online training platform. These trainings cover important topics such as health and safety on the job, keeping data secure, and how to handle harassment and discrimination. Training links and reminders will be emailed to your Sac State account or you can access through My Sac State. Access to CSU Learn takes about one week. These trainings are to be viewed during your paid work hours, and should be completed within the first month of your hire at Sac State.
Getting Paid
Most student employees (student assistants, work study student assistants, and instructional student assistants) will report hours worked online by the monthly deadline. It is highly recommended to report hours worked at the end of each shift. Your supervisor will provide training on how to report your hours worked. Check out time entry resources and tutorials for additional information.
Professional Profile
It is important to establish your professional profile in anticipation of additional work opportunities on- or off-campus and for your future career track. Get your online profile together using these two free services.
Handshake
Handshake is used by recruiters for academic internships, and on- and off-campus employment. You were hired as a student employee using Handshake, so you’ve already started your profile. Make sure it is complete and regularly updated with your work experience.
The world’s largest professional network, LinkedIn offers student employees the opportunity to showcase their talents, knowledge, and professional identity. Take advantage of the campus Career Center’s LinkedIn expertise and help in getting your profile created and working for you. Schedule a 1:1 in-person or virtual appointment or attend their LinkedIn workshops.
Strengths and Potential
Planning for your future career starts with an understanding of your natural talents and strengths and where you want to be in the future. Sac State provides four important online assessments intended to empower you as you make important personal life and career decisions for the present and future.
Login to FOCUS 2 Career using your Sac State username and password to take the following four assessments:
- Personality Assessment
- Values Assessment
- Skills Assessment
- Work Interest Assessment.
Need guidance interpreting your results? Contact the Career Center and an advisor will help you navigate this process. You’re encouraged to share the results with your department lead and have a conversation about insights gained from the assessments.
Skills Development
You are invited to use the wide variety of professional development courses, books, podcasts, webinars, and other resources available online at CSU Learn. Classes are self-paced and accessible at your convenience.
Skills Bundles for Student Employees
Customer Service Skills: A selection of courses about effectively communicating with customers, improving conversations, service excellence, and addressing the needs of customers in an effective manner to succeed
Customer Service Skills Bundle
Power Skills: A selection of courses, articles, and a webcast for personal development. Focuses on interpersonal communication, developing a growth and adaptive mind-set, self-discovery, and time management
Career Development Journeys
Student employees wishing to explore and learn more about potential career paths are welcome to participate in a Career Development Journey. Each journey is a series of fun, interactive courses focused on skills development for a particular career path. Certificates of completion are issued within CSU Learn and are valuable in resume building for on- and off-campus employment.
To access:
- Use Google Chome or Mozilla Firefox internet browsers only
- Upon clicking the button below, you'll be directed to CSU Learn.
- Click the blue "Register" button to begin the class.
- CSU Learn will remember where you are in the class, so you can participate as convenient for your schedule.
Rookie to Rockstar: Mastering Professional Effectiveness
Administrative Assistant Journey
Customer Service Representative Journey
Stay Focused on Your Degree
It can be hard holding down a job while attending college. Juggling competing deadlines of academic, personal, and work lives can be challenging and stressful. Your wellbeing is of utmost importance while you are at Sac State, and we offer many resources to help you stay healthy and successful, including:
Student Health and Counseling Services
Future Career at Sac State
Are you interested in working at Sac State as part of your post-graduation career path? Many staff are former students and #MadeAtSacState! Learn more about the benefits of being an employee at your alma mater, including the employee fee waiver program.