Jobs, Internships, and Research Opportunities
Build experience and gain skills
Jobs and internships can provide you with valuable experience and help you develop career readiness skills, such as problem-solving, teamwork, and communication, while providing you with a paycheck.
Use Handshake to search for jobs and internships
Search for jobs and internships and apply right in Handshake. Find an on-campus job or internship for this quarter or a full-time job to start your career. Check out the Overview video to learn what you can do in Handshake.
On-campus jobs
Handshake is the sole platform to search for on-campus student jobs, including Work-study positions.
Tips for using Handshake
- In the Jobs tab, search for “UCSC” as a keyword or use the “On Campus Student Employment” job filter.
- If you are eligible for work-study jobs, you can search for these jobs by using the “Work-study” job filter.
More about Work-study
Work-study is a part of your financial aid package
If you receive a Work-study option, you are awarded a set dollar amount for the academic year. Your wages may not exceed this set dollar amount; if they do, the on- or off-campus organization must pay the full cost of the wages.
Check if you’re eligible for Work-study
Work-Study awards are listed in your financial aid package.
- Log in to MyUCSC
- In MyUCSC, click on the “Financial Aid” tile
- On the left, click on the “Accept/Decline Awards” tab and click on the current award year. This is where you will see if you were offered a work-study award.
See the Financial Aid and Scholarship Office’s website for more information.
Request to be reconsidered for Work-study if you were not offered an award
Fill out the Request Work-Study eForm located in MyUCSC.
- Log in to MyUCSC
- In MyUCSC, click on the “Undergraduate Student eForms” tile
- On the left, click on the “Request Work-study” tab
- At the bottom of the form in the Indicate Interest section, select “Work-study” and submit the form.
You will be notified of the next steps as your eForm is evaluated and processed. If you have concerns about how requesting participation in work-study may affect your financial aid, consult with the Financial Aid and Scholarships Office.
Accept your work-study award before applying for a work-study position.
While all students may view and apply for work-study positions, we encourage students to only apply once they have accepted their work-study award. Employment is not guaranteed.
After you apply and get selected for a job, you’ll need to complete the onboarding process before you can start working and get paid.
On-campus internships and research
Each academic division hosts various internship and research opportunities for students. In addition to the divisional links below, we also encourage you to visit your academic department’s website for further opportunities.
Internships and research opportunities by academic division
Additional research support
- Create a research opportunity for academic credit with an independent project
- Learn how to prepare for undergraduate research
Off-campus jobs and internships
In addition to hosting all on-campus jobs, Handshake also hosts off-campus jobs and internships.
Other job boards
We recommend diversifying the job search sites you use.
- Indeed
- CalCareers (California State Jobs)
- USAJobs (Federal Jobs)
If you have specific companies in mind, search for entry-level jobs or internships on their respective careers pages on their websites.
Off-campus summer research
If you are interested in doing research at another university, consider applying to summer research programs.