Filling a vacancy with an Oxford student

If you have a vacancy in your department or college, you can reach all the undergraduate, postgraduate and research staff on the Careers Service web site. Advertising with us is:

  • Free
  • Accessible - it is easy for you to write and post the vacancy yourself (we can help too)
  • Flexible - vacancies can be for temporary and permanent work
  • Streamlined - applicants can send CVs and letters to you electronically through our system

All colleges have an employer account set up on our site; if you haven't already used us then you'll need to add yourself as a contact, then post your vacancy.

If you're posting a vacancy for a department, then you may need to add the department information as well.

Log in using the link on the right hand side of this page; if you have any problems or if would like some advice, please contact our Employer Relations Team on 2-74663.

Advertising casual or part-time work to current Oxford students

The Careers Service’s new CareerConnect vacancy and events database can assist you in recruiting students for temporary work. It is a ready source of keen, available and interested students. The type of work can be anything from reception and customer service, outreach to high schools, lunch cover for your information desk, envelope stuffing for a mailshot or assistance with office relocation.

How does it work?

All Oxford students are automatically registered on CareerConnect, and they are encouraged to complete their profile and indicate if they are interested in part time work. Students will also highlight their computer skills and work preferences.

Work Preference:

  • Administrative/secretarial
  • Analysis and research
  • Copywriting/editing
  • Customer service (e.g. information desks)
  • Data entry
  • Envelope stuffing/mailing/bar coding
  • Fairs and conference support
  • Guiding and tours
  • Hospitality (e.g. table waiting/bar work)
  • Light lifting (e.g. books)
  • Reception
  • Retail
  • Study support for disabled students
  • Telephone interviewing/answering/switchboard
  • Translation

Computer Skills:

  • Access
  • Data analysis (e.g. SPSS)
  • Excel
  • Graphic Design (e.g. Adobe InDesign, Adobe Illustrator)
  • PowerPoint
  • Web design (e.g. Adobe Dreamweaver)
  • Word


Once you have an idea of the kind of work you would like a student to do, you need to email recruiters@careers.ox.ac.uk. We will send you a form to complete, and then will send details of the vacancy to the students who match your criteria. Interested students will then contact you, and you will manage the selection and payroll process. 

For more information or to get involved, email recruiters@careers.ox.ac.uk

Advice from Personnel Services

Engaging a casual worker:

Before engaging a casual worker please ensure you have familiarised yourself with the University’s policy on such engagements. A summary of the key matters you ought to consider are set out below. In order to avoid potential disputes over employment status, it is recommended that the maximum period of continuous engagement for casual workers should be eight weeks. For appointments for a longer period please follow the guidance set out at Recruitment and Selection.

Casual workers can be paid through the casual payroll and, although tax and national insurance is deducted from their pay, they are not considered to be university employees. When taking on a casual worker, you will need to complete these steps:

Pre-employment checks
Immigration: You MUST check the right to work of ALL individuals undertaking work in your department and take a copy of the relevant documentation. The Work Permits Desk can advise on who is entitled to work in the UK and what documentation is required.

High level checks: It is possible the nature of the casual work necessitates high level checks, such as CRB checks. More information can be found on the Personnel Services website.

Letter of engagement
You will need to prepare a letter of engagement (using the pro forma template [Note – this is password protected]) to be signed by the individual. This letter sets out the terms of the arrangement.

Pay
When setting the pay rate for the casual worker, you should set a rate that equates directly to an appropriate grade. It is not necessary to have the temporary vacancy formally graded, although if you are unsure of an appropriate rate of pay, the Reward team can advise. In all cases it is important to ensure that the rates are equal to, or in excess of, the National Minimum Wage.

Period
Arrangements for casual work should not normally extend beyond eight weeks. If the arrangement is likely to extend beyond eight weeks, you should contact Personnel Services as soon as possible.

Payroll
Casual workers can be paid on a weekly basis through the casual payroll. To arrange payment you will need to complete and submit a casual payroll form.

Holiday
Casual workers are entitled to 28 days of leave per year, including public holidays and any departmental closure days. Guidance on the calculation and payment of holiday entitlement for casual workers is available from the Personnel Services website.

Statutory sick pay
Casual workers are entitled to statutory sick pay. Information on payment and exclusions is available from the Personnel Services website.

Page last edited: 19 October 2011

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