MUB Employment FAQ

To be eligible to apply for student employment positions at the MUB, you must be a currently enrolled, full-time or part-time degree seeking student (graduate or undergraduate) on the Durham campus.

The MUB receives hundreds of applications annually. It is not practical for us to be able to respond to all applicants. If a department head is interested in interviewing you for a position, you will be contacted by email or phone.
Applications are kept on file for a period of time defined in our employment application policies, after which time, applicants should reapply if they are still interested in MUB employment.

Most hiring takes place in the spring for fall employment. Almost every department hires some new employees in the spring. The number of openings will vary greatly by department and year. The largest department is the Mail Room and they may hire 10-15 people each spring. Other departments may have anywhere from 1-8 openings. Again, it varies greatly. Fall and mid-year employment openings are less frequent.

The MUB usually has between 120 and 140 employees.

It helps, but is not required. Volunteer experiences and internships can be put on your application in addition to or in lieu of traditional jobs. If you have not previously had a job, it’s important that in your application you express the experiences and skills you have that you feel would make you a strong candidate for employment.

Yes and no. We look at all applications for the quality of the applicant. That said, there is a lot of training that goes into many of our positions and departments need to maintain diversity within the staff so that they don’t have an entire staff graduating at once. Since most of our hiring takes place in the spring, it is unusual that we would have a first semester, first year student on staff. First year students who have submitted applications would get the same consideration as any other applicant if departments look to hire at the start of the fall or spring semesters.

MUB Employees are not required to work a specific number of hours. All employees are encouraged to find the balance that is right for them and allows them to focus appropriately on academics. This can change every semester. The process of scheduling and the time or length of shifts varies greatly by the department and may include employees taking an even share of late night, early morning or weekend shifts.

Yes! Most students are hired to work in one department and employment in a second department may happen because a student expresses an interest in transferring, or an odd shift opening comes up that can be more easily filled by bringing in an existing employee from another department, rather than hiring someone for a single weekly shift.

Yes! MUB student employees are able to leave for a semester and return to their position after a semester abroad. It is very important that this information is shared with your supervisor as early as possible as it will affect the way they plan hiring and staffing.

Work study funds are not a requirement to be hired at the MUB.

Students with work study funds retain their employment when funds run out. A lack of work study funds does not mean that an employee gets terminated.

Every department has different operating hours and different standard shifts. The process of scheduling and the time or length of shifts varies greatly by department and may include employees taking an even share of late night, early morning or weekend shifts. 

During the interview process, you will be asked information about how many hours you are interested in working, and some departments may have specific shift openings that they need to fill and are hiring for specifically.

MUB Employees are not required to work a specific number of hours. All employees are encouraged to find the balance that is right for them and allows them to focus appropriately on academics. It is understood that schedules and a student’s desire for more or less hours is likely to change every semester.

Occasionally the University will "curtail operations" usually during inclement weather. During curtailed operations, the MUB remains open and maintains all operations as normally as possible (meetings continue, movies run, the mail room and games room are open etc.). Individual MUB areas may handle arrangements with their employees differently, but student employees should understand that they will be expected to work if they live on campus or in walking distance and can get in to work safely.

Student Employees are paid an hourly rate that varies based on their department, their job position, and the number of years they have worked for the Memorial Union Building.

Pay periods run for two weeks, beginning on a Saturday and ending on a Friday. Paychecks are issued/deposited on Fridays, every other week.

Work study funds are not a requirement of MUB employment and Work study funds do not change a student’s hourly rate. The pay rates listed above still apply. If a student employee has work study funds, they are required to notify their supervisor at the start of each new semester. The employee will have a (WS) job code in the payroll system that indicates they have work study funds. All hours worked should be entered into that job code as long as there are funds available. If a student exceeds their work study funds, they will be notified and then hours worked will be entered into a non WS job code. The unavailability of work study funds does not mean that an employee is terminated. Employment continues as usual.