Student Employment

Please mail your completed application materials as soon as possible, but to arrive no later than Monday, August 24, 2009. The mailing address is: WWU Dining Services, Attn: Mary Altman, 516 High Street, Edens Hall 109, Bellingham, WA 98225-9196. Phone is 360-650-4991. Thank you!

We generally have enough openings to offer every qualified applicant a job. However, we may not be able to offer you a job at your preferred location. We are still accepting applications. Student applicants who apply by August 24th, 2009 should receive a confirmation email about 2 weeks from when their application was mailed. This email will provide confirmation details including which unit you've been assigned to. ALL APPLICANTS should plan to come to Student Employment Day on Saturday, September 19th, 2009 with the required identification and your Washington State Food Handler's Card. (Updated as of June 23, 2009)

Applicants who have relevant food service experience are given priority. Other work experience is also considered.

This year, University Dining Services plans to offer employment to about 400 student applicants for the beginning of fall quarter. This number is in addition to about 200 existing student employees who are continuing work with us.

Student employees who have the most relevant experience will have the greatest likelihood of working in their preferred choice of dining service locations. However, you may be offered a position in a location other than your top choice for other reasons. For example, we may have more qualified applicants than we have positions to fill.

Applicants who are hired will be assigned a unit, but may not necessarily be assigned to a specific job within that unit. At Student Employment Day, on September 19th, 2009 you will learn about your unit and will be able to sign up for the position and shifts that you are able to work. Returning student employees will be able to choose their positions first because of seniority. To insure shift sign ups go smoothly please make sure to bring your class schedule on September 19th. Each unit is different, so the jobs vary from location to location. At the Resident Dining locations, employees may cashier, serve customers, assist with cooking and food prep, and maintain the dining facility. At Retail Dining locations, employees may do everything from making espresso, cashiering, stocking shelves, or food prep. Catering is a little different. Scheduling of employees will be based on actual catering events. When you are hired, you submit your availability to the Catering supervisors, who will create an appropriate schedule.

Applicants who are hired to work at a dining hall, cafe or market will be assigned a unit, but not a schedule. At Student Employment Day, you will learn about your new unit and will sign up for the times and days of the week (shifts) that you would like to work (please bring your class schedule). Returning student employees will be able to choose their shifts first because of seniority. Each unit is open at different hours, so the schedules will vary from location to location. When you sign up for a shift, you will be responsible for that shift the entire quarter. Depending on the unit you may start work as soon as September 20th. If you are hired to work in catering, you will provide your availability to the supervisors and then you will be scheduled to work when there are catering events to staff.

Entry-level student employees will start at $8.55 per hour. We plan to do student performance reviews annually, each year at the end of fall quarter. Based on performance, there is an opportunity for a merit increase.

Yes. It is required that all student employees attend Student Employment Day in order to receive the required annual training, to be assured a job with a particular unit and the opportunity to sign up for shifts. If you are unable to attend due to pre-existing travel plans, you will need to get in touch with our HR Coordinator (360-650-4991) in advance of Student Employment Day to make arrangements for hiring after you arrive to campus. You will have to make up the missed training and will likely face fewer options in terms of open shifts.

If you are a new hire you will receive $50 of Employee Dining Dollars (Aux Points) for your participation in Student Employment Day. The requirements to receive this compensation are: 1) You attend the entire orientation day on September 19th, 2) you work the majority of fall quarter and 3) you have all your employment paperwork signed and up to date. The $50 of Employee Dining Dollars will be awarded to your account during the first week of November. Current (returning) student employees will be paid at their current hourly wage for the time spent in meetings and training (less a lunch break). Employee Dining Dollars (or Aux Points) can be used to pay for any purchase at any of our on-campus cafes, markets or dining halls.

Yes, in accordance with Washington State law and company policy, every employee must provide us with a copy of a valid Washington State Food Handler's Card. You should get a Food Handler's Card before you attend Student Employment Day. You can get this at any Washington State county health department during the summer, or go to the Whatcom County Health Department offices in Bellingham. For your convenience, we plan to have the Whatcom County Health Dept come to Western Washington University on the afternoon of Friday, September 18th for on-campus testing. This will be held at the Ridgeway Commons from 1:00pm- 3:00pm. It will consist of a training session and test, the cost is $10, cash only.

The day will start with check-in at 7:30 am at the WWU Performing Arts Center plaza. Next, the management team will present an orientation and training session inside the Performing Arts Center in which we discuss our goals, philosophies and operations with you. A variety of short training presentations will inform you about important aspects of high quality food, safety and customer service. You will end the day with a unit-specific orientation and shift scheduling (please bring your class schedules). Depending on the length of your unit-specific meeting, you should be finished sometime between 3:30 pm and 5:00 pm. A snack break will be provided mid-morning and we will also provide you with lunch at approximately 1p.m. when you leave the PAC and go to your unit-specific meetings.

No, you will need to apply online for Early Arrival so that University Residences can expect you. Make sure to indicate that you will be moving in early because of Dining Services employment. We will pay for your early move in charges provided that you sign-in and attend Student Employment Day, and that you work for Dining Services through the majority of fall quarter. If you are not able to work through the majority of fall quarter or if you do not sign-in on Student Employment Day, your student account will be charged for the early arrival. If you do not plan on working for us, please plan to pay for your early move-in as an individual.

Yes. First of all, if you are not offered a job with University Dining Services right away, keep in mind that we may have additional student staffing needs throughout the academic year. These positions will be filled on an as-needed basis at each of our dining locations. If you are looking to find another type of job on campus, a good resource is the WWU Center for Student Employment.