Career Services is happy to provide payroll management services for local government agencies, creating a win-win situation for both UNL students and the agencies themselves. Students get the chance to gain valuable real-world experience through internships, while government agencies benefit from access to motivated and skilled individuals to help fill their needs. We believe this is a great way to foster collaboration between academia and the local community, ultimately contributing to the development of both students and the workforce. 

Services include verifying student status, setting up payroll, and issuing bi-weekly paychecks to the student. UNL bills each agency quarterly for total intern earnings plus a 20 percent processing fee.

Getting Started

Before interns can be paid through this service, the following must be completed:

• Annual Agency-UNL “Umbrella” Contract
• Internship Memorandum of Understanding
• Payroll Documents
• Intern’s Weekly Time Sheet

Annual Contract

Employers will first establish an “umbrella” contract which authorizes Career Services to provide intern payroll services and sets forth general responsibilities and terms of the agreement between UNL and the agency. For questions, and to initiate this contract, please contact Chance Radtke.

Student Status and Withholding

Students must be enrolled for at least one credit hour at UNL throughout the internship to be paid through student payroll. When a student has been selected for the internship, the student should contact Katelyn Rife to check eligibility to participate in the program and schedule an appointment to complete new hire paperwork.

Staff will verify the student’s enrollment at UNL. Social Security regulations waive taxing both student and employer as long as the student is enrolled full-time. UNL interns who graduate and are not continuing in a UNL graduate program lose their student status and are ineligible for internship payroll. Also, UNL graduate students may be ineligible for internship payroll if they are employed in a Graduate Assistantship at UNL. Check if your intern or a student you want to hire as an intern falls into one of these categories.

Internship Payroll Documents

The annual contract between the agency and UNL is supplemented by an individual Internship Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) outlining specific terms of employment.  The student and supervisor will complete and sign the MOU and provide it to Katelyn Rife for processing.

If the agency wishes to extend an internship or change the pay rate of an intern, a new MOU must be completed and submitted to Career Services. Wage changes must begin at the start of a pay period. Likewise, should the activities or expectations of an intern change significantly, a new MOU should be completed and submitted to Career Services.

In addition to the MOU, students must complete initial payroll documents before they can start working  Students should contact Katelyn Rife about required paperwork,  providing their full contact information and agency where they will intern.

Most students must complete the below payroll documents personally in the Business Office located in 324 Canfield administration Building (third floor, north side) and bring their Social Security card and a voided check:

• I-9 (and documents for I-9 verification)
• Personal Data Form
• Direct Deposit Form
• W-4
• Student Worker Agreement

Weekly Time Sheets

Once on the job, interns submit time sheets every Thursday. The intern’s agency supervisor (or designated representative) must sign these time sheets to verify hours worked and to authorize payment. Under no circumstances may one student intern sign the time sheets for another in lieu of a supervisor. Students are responsible for obtaining their supervisor’s signature and for delivering their original time sheets by 4 p.m. on specified deadlines. Employing agencies should keep a copy for their records. Time sheets submitted after the established deadline will delay an intern’s paycheck. Pay advices are available through Firefly.