Summer Student Research Assistants Policy and Procedures

Policy and Procedures for Summer Student Research Assistants:
For Externally Grant-funded Student Researcher Positions at IWU

These positions meet the following criteria:

• An intensive and well-defined research experience (at least 20 hours per week)
• A meaningful collaborative effort with a faculty mentor
• Opportunities to enhance traditional academic experiences with more in-depth study and further development of research skills over a period of time. The primary objective of these positions is the educational development of the student the secondary objective is furthering the research interests of the faculty mentor. These positions vary according to the nature and location of the work involved. Some may be maintained entirely on- campus; others may involve fieldwork or take place entirely off-campus.
  
  Because the nature of most research necessitates extended and/or unusual hours, Summer Research Assistantships will receive stipends and will be considered salaried, exempt positions. They will, therefore, not be subject to overtime pay. Summer Research positions will be based on a 40-, 30- or 20-hour week and receive bi-weekly stipends, following the biweekly payroll schedule established by the Business Office.

Policies and Procedures:

1. All mentored faculty-student collaborative research positions will be paid on a stipend basis and can be prorated appropriately for 20, 30, or 40 hours per week. (See SRAA form for stipend details).
2. A Summer Research Assistant Authorization (SRAA) Form needs to be completed and submitted to Carlo Robustelli, Director of Grants and Foundation Relations, or Shireen Schrock, 200 Holmes Hall, April 15 deadline.
3. Payment of stipends is handled by Shireen Schrock, Faculty Grants Manager, Holmes Hall 200, 556-3902, sschrock@iwu.edu. Therefore, if there is any deviation or required change from the amount of time a student assistant will be spending on research from that information provided on the signed SRAA Form, it is the responsibility of the faculty mentor to provide any change in payment schedules to the Grants and Foundation Relations Office so that payment requests are processed in a timely and accurate fashion.
4. All students must provide the required documentation for student employment prior to receiving their stipends. This can be done with the Student Employment Coordinator, Tammy Baker, Financial Aid Office, Holmes Hall basement tbaker1@iwu.edu, 556-3299. FICA will be paid out of grant funds, calculated at 7.65%.
5. Students in these positions are eligible for on-campus housing. Housing requests are negotiated between the faculty mentor and the Provost and Dean of the Faculty.
6. PI’s are responsible for ensuring that student researchers receive Responsible Conduct of Research training according to federal regulations if research is funded by federal grant. If you have questions regarding Responsible Conduct of Research Training, contact Shireen Schrock, Faculty Grants Manager, Holmes Hall 200, 556-3902, sschrock@iwu.edu.