Human Resources

Frequently Asked Questions

Benefits
Continuing Education
International Student Workers
Student Employment

 Benefits

Q. When do I become eligible to enroll in my benefits?

A. All employees being hired into a benefited staff position have a 90 day waiting period before being eligible to enroll. New Faculty and RD’s are the only class of employees without a waiting period and are eligible upon the date of hire. Employees who do not enroll in insurance when they become eligible must wait until the next open enrollment to add new coverage.

Q. How will I know it’s time to attend my benefits meeting?

A. Employees reaching the end of their waiting period will be invited to a benefit meeting by e-mail the same month they become eligible.

Q. Can the waiting period be waived?

A. No. The waiting period is for all new employees with this employment classification.

Q. If I do not need insurance, should I attend the benefit meeting?

A. Yes, because a waiver of insurance and benefits is necessary to have in each employee personnel file when applicable.

Q. If I leave Liberty, what happens with my insurance and benefits?

A. When an employee terminates his/her employment with Liberty, Human Resources will cancel all of the individual’s insurance and benefits and notify vendors of termination. Any formal notices of cancellation will be sent directly to the individual from the vendor. Health insurance will be cancelled effective the last day of the month in which the employee terminates. A COBRA notice will be sent by Ceredian to the employee to provide the option of continuing health insurance at the full cost.

Q. When can I make changes to my health insurance?

A. When a qualifying event such as a dependent losing other coverage, marriage, or the birth of a child occurs, employees may make changes to their existing health insurance coverage. Employees not currently enrolled in Liberty’s group health insurance may elect to enroll if the employee themselves loses other coverage. Without a qualifying event, you must wait until open enrollment which takes place each June and is effective on July 1st.

Q. Can I close my Christmas Club account?

A. Employees may stop the Christmas Club at anytime by submitting a P-1 to cancel their payroll deductions. Human Resources will provide a letter for the employee to take to Carter Bank to close the account and receive the funds contributed to date. No interest will be paid on Christmas Club Accounts that are withdrawn early and the employee may not participate again until the following year.

Q. When am I eligible to take vacation and sick/personal time?

A. Benefited employees are eligible to take sick/personal time after 90 days and vacation time after 6 months of being hired or becoming benefited if the benefited date is later than the hire date.

Q. What is the process for taking a planned medical leave of absence including maternity?

A. If an employee will be out of work for medical reasons for a period of time greater than 7 days, their department needs to submit a P-1 for a medical or maternity leave of absence. If the employee has disability insurance with Hartford, the claim needs to be reported using the instructions found on the Human Resources website under Commonly Requested Forms and Hartford Life and Disability Telephonic Claim Form. When the employee returns to work, the department needs to submit another P-1 to end their leave along with a doctor’s note releasing them to work. If maternity leave is going to extend beyond the time that the doctor has released the employee to work, the department and HR needs to be notified to determine whether this falls under FMLA protected leave. 

Continuing Education

Q. When am I eligible to start using my education benefits?

A. There is a 6 month waiting period from date of hire before you are eligible to use the education benefit.

Q. Where can I find the education policy and forms?

A. The education policy and forms can be found on the Human Resource site, under the Commonly Requested Forms section. Then scroll down to the Education Benefits to locate the policies and forms.

Q. What is the deadline to submit a Continuing Education (CE) form or a Dependent Grant-In-Aid (DGIA) form?

A. The Dependent Grant-In-Aid form is submitted once a year in April to cover the aid for the following year. (forms were submitted in April 2009 to cover Fall 09/Spring 10/Summer 10) You may submit a late form for processing. If you are newly married, you will need to submit a copy of your marriage license with your form.

Continuing Education forms are submitted for each course you take. These forms must be submitted to HR three weeks prior to your financial check-in deadline. Since your form requires your supervisors signature and the Registrar’s signature before coming to HR, you should submit your forms at least 2 weeks prior to the HR deadline to assure it will reach us in time. No late forms will be accepted. The deadlines will be posted at the HR front desk each semester, or they can be found on the Commonly Requested Forms page, under the Education Benefits.

Q. How many courses can I take as an employee using my education benefit?

A. You are allowed to take 18 credit hours per year.

Q. How do I know if my education form got processed?

A. Once your supervisor and the registrar have signed your form, it will be sent to Human Resources. After it is processed and approved in Human Resources, you will receive an email stating that your form has been approved and sent to Financial Aid for further processing. At this time, you may request a copy of your approved form for your records.

Q. What if I get an email saying my education form was approved by HR, but the aid is not showing on my ASIST?

A. Your aid can only be posted if all of your requirements have been met. If you are in an undergraduate program, you must have completed the FAFSA and the VTAG. If you were selected for verification, you must provide specific documentation before your aid can be posted. You must also be registered for courses in order for your aid to post. If all of these things have been done, you should take a copy of your approved CE form to the Student Service Center for assistance. They are located near the indoor track at Campus North. Their phone number is 592-5100.

Q. What about grad students?

A. Graduate students are not required to submit FAFSA or VTAG applications. If you are under a qualifying graduate degree, Financial Aid will contact you to submit VTAG upon receipt of your CE form. You must be registered for courses in order for your aid to post. If your aid is not showing on your ASIST account, you can take a copy of your approved CE form to the Student Service Center for assistance. They are located near the indoor track at Campus North. Their phone number is 592-5100.

International Student Workers

Q. Can an International student work more than 18 hours per week?

A. NO, an international student enrolled in a full-time educational program is only allowed to work up to 18 hours per week.

Q. Can an International student work more than 18 hours per week during vacation?

A. According to US Citizenship and Immigration Services regulations, an International student is allowed to work 40 hours per week during any school sponsored vacation.

Q. Would an international student be allowed to work more than 18 per week during the last week of school or day or class?

A. No, the semester end date will be on the last day of the week and not when the student completes his/her final exams.

Q. Can an international student work during any holiday?

A. An international student will be able to work up to 40 hours per week during spring break, summer break, Thanksgiving Break and Christmas Break. Because Easter holiday falls on a Monday, and is only one day, the 18 hours per week will apply in this situation.

Student Employment 

Q. Where do I find the application for student employment?

A. The two forms needed to apply for student employment at Liberty University may be found online at www.liberty.edu/jobs under the “Employment Opportunities” link in the left-hand column, then Student Openings. The two forms you must complete are the Background and Reference Investigation form and the Student Application. You do not necessarily have to indicate a position for which you are applying. Applications that do not have the background form attached will be considered incomplete and not processed.

Q. Once I have submitted my student application and background form, what’s next?

A. Once you have submitted your student application and background form to Human Resources, please allow 7-10 days for processing and approval. We do not notify the students of their approval, since the volume is so high for student applications. Students are responsible for locating their own employment. Students can then search for employment by reviewing the available student positions located www.liberty.edu/jobs Employment Opportunities/Student Openings and contacting any department of interest.

Q. Where are the jobs posted?

A. The student job openings are posted at www.liberty.edu/jobs. Click on Employment Opportunities, then Student Openings.

Q. How do I know if I am eligible for Work Study?

A. Work Study is determined by the FAFSA, which every student is required to complete. The eligibility is determined by the estimated family contribution. If you are eligible for work study, you should have received an award letter stating such. If you are eligible for work study, the award and the amount is posted on your ASIST account.

Q. How many departments may I contact?

A. Students may apply for as many positions as desired. If you indicated a particular position on your application and change your mind, it’s permissible to still contact other departments that were not indicated on your application. Only submit one student application, please.

Q. May I work in more than one position?

A. Students may work in only ONE student position at a time.

Q. Do we send applications to departments?

A. Human Resources does not send student applications to individual departments. All approved student applications are available for review and are posted in a data base accessible to all supervisors. The supervisor may print any application that may be of interest to them.

Q. Will I be contacted for a job?

A. If a supervisor is searching for a student who has the skills and schedule desired for the open position, the student is contacted for an interview. Students are encouraged to contact departments themselves to search for an open position. At that time, the student lets the department know that they have completed a student application and background form and their application is available for review. If the department is interested, the supervisor will retrieve the application from the database for review and setup the interview.

Q. If I am hired, what is the next step?

A. Once you are hired, your supervisor will give you instructions for the Student New Hire Process. This information is also located on our website. Each student must have a student application, hiring paperwork from the supervisor and a completed Student New Hire Packet before starting employment.