Hiring a Student Research Assistant
How to Hire a Student RA: a Step-By-Step Guide
Step 1: Do You Know Who You Want to Hire?
Yes → Email your Faculty Assistant (FA) the following:
- RA’s full name and Georgetown email address
- Start date (must be a Monday)
- The FA will coordinate with the student to complete onboarding.
- Proceed to Step 5: Weekly Timesheet Maintenance
No → Email your FA the following details:
- Brief position description (1-2 paragraphs); also include any materials you’d like applicants to submit, such as a CV, cover letter, transcript, etc.
- Hours per week
- Work mode (Hybrid or On Campus)
- Application deadline
- Expected start date (must be a Monday) and end date
Note: If you plan to pay your RA using a budget other than the default Faculty Research Budget—for example, from a grant or center budget—please notify your FA. (Please note: the Faculty Research Budget is not the same as your individual Faculty Research Account (FRA).)
Click here for a sample job description to email to your FA.
Step 2: FA Posts Job & Collects Applications
After the application deadline, your FA will gather all applications from GMS and send them to you via Box (or provide printed copies, if you prefer—please specify).
Step 3: Faculty Member Reviews Applications
Once you’ve reviewed the materials, email your FA to:
- Identify who you want to interview
- Schedule your interviews:
- If your FA manages your calendar → FA will schedule
- If you manage your own calendar → you schedule interviews directly by emailing applicants.
Step 4: Interviews and Onboarding
Conduct interviews and notify your FA who you select! The FA will handle all aspects of onboarding (e.g., submission of all documents needed for HR or other purposes).
Step 5: Weekly Timesheet Maintenance
- Each week, the RA must complete two tasks: : (1) submit a weekly timesheet in GMS; (2) email the FA with any hours worked, cc’ing the faculty member.
- If the faculty member does not raise any objections by the payroll deadline (Monday at 5 p.m. the following week), the faculty assistant will review and approve the timesheet in GMS.
- If the faculty member has concerns about the reported hours, they should notify the faculty assistant as soon as possible. Hours can typically be adjusted within the two most recent pay periods.
Note: Faculty assistants will manage all timesheet approvals, though faculty members will also receive GMS notifications.
Questions? → Email your FA or Beverly Sapp (bls35@georgetown.edu) for more information.
FAQ
Work Hours & Eligibility
Each full-time faculty member may hire one RA for up to 15 hours per week during the semester (note: RAs cannot exceed this limit to avoid interfering with their schoolwork).
Faculty members may hire one summer RA to work up to 40 hours per week without prior approval. If a faculty member wishes to hire more than one RA—even if the combined total does not exceed 40 hours per week (e.g., two RAs working 20 hours each)—they must email the Research Dean with a justification. The Research Dean can approve requests for additional RAs and/or increased total hours.
Yes, but students must not exceed the maximum allowable hours across all roles per week (15 during the school year, 40 in the summer).
Student employees must not begin work until they are officially hired in GMS. The effective start date must always be a Monday.
RA Hiring Eligibility
Faculty may hire only currently enrolled students as RAs.
Exceptions are rare and granted only when:
- The RA requires specialized expertise not typically found among JD/LLM students (e.g., niche legal knowledge, an advanced degree, foreign language proficiency, or empirical research skills).
- An RA has been working on a project but has since graduated or transferred, and replacing them would create a significant burden.
Approval from the Research Dean is required for any exception. Hiring a non-student involves additional administrative steps and costs. Requests that do not follow the proper approval process will result in the RA not being hired.
Hiring Process - for Faculty Assistants
- Job Posting: If the faculty member wants to advertise for a position, the faculty assistant must Create a Student Job Requisition in GMS.
- Direct Hire: If the faculty member has already identified the RA to hire, a job posting is not required. Faculty Assistants will coordinate with the student to submit the Georgetown Law Student Hiring Form.
Onboarding Instructions - for Students
- RAs must complete the electronic I-9 form in GMS.
- RA must present employment authorization documents in person at McDonough Hall, Room 583, Monday – Friday, 9:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. (No appointment necessary). View the list of acceptable I-9 documents.
- For assistance, contact lawstudenthr@georgetown.edu or call 202-662-9050.
Failure to complete the I-9 process within three days of the start date will result in termination.