Eligibility

Not all financial aid students are eligible for Work-Study. Make sure you confirm your eligibility before you accept a Work-Study job. You can make sure by visiting my.harvard.edu.

If you applied for and have been offered financial aid, your aid package normally includes a job designated either as Term-time Job or Federal Work-Study Program. This job offer equals the difference between your financial 'need' (determined by the financial aid office) and all of your resources, including family contribution, grants, and loans.

If you are a U.S. citizen or permanent resident and your financial need meets the requirements set by federal rules, you will then be eligible for Work-Study. You are not eligible if you are a foreign student, an incoming freshman who has not yet registered, or a June graduate after Commencement. Students on leave and those registered solely for study elsewhere are not eligible for term-time Work-Study.

Because Harvard looks more closely at your family's financial circumstances than federal rules require, many students at Harvard receive more aid than they would using federal rules alone. These students are then ineligible for FWSP even though they have significant financial need. If you receive scholarship awards in addition to those offered by Harvard, your need by either calculation could be met, also making you ineligible for Work-Study. If you are in doubt and would like FWSP eligibility, you are always welcome to confirm your FWS status with the Student Employment Office or the Financial Aid Office.

Most students eligible for FWSP during the academic year are also eligible in the summer as long as they plan to return to Harvard in the fall and file for financial aid. In early March, the SEO e-mails students inviting them to apply for summer FWSP. After completing the brief application in the Student Employment Office, students are notified of their eligibility for Summer FWSP before Spring break. A completed referral card serves as the acceptance form for Summer FWSP.