MFA Student Employment Opportunities

Overview

There are many employment opportunities at the university.  The ones that are available to a particular student are dependent on degree program, citizenship and visa status, the funding source for the position and financial aid eligibility.  Here is a summary of the types of student employment on campus.

SOA and MFA Film Service positions

These positions are funded by financial aid and are therefore limited to SOA and MFA Film students. Both domestic and international students can apply. Each spring there is a large scale application process for service positions for the next academic year in the SOA Student Employment system. Late in the spring term, supervisors will select students who have applied to fill their available positions for the summer and coming academic year. There will also be opportunities to fill positions that become available throughout the academic year.

Your MFA Film program affiliation will determine which positions are open to your application. Throughout the year any positions that become vacant will be posted for applications. Job descriptions, pay rate and approximate hours and supervisor information are posted in the SOA Employment system each spring.  

The class schedule of first year MFA students makes it difficult for them to hold service positions, so that cohort will only receive notices of positions that could work with a first year schedule. First year students are not eligible to apply for any service positions until after their first semester in the program.

CU Casual positions

Although there is no central registry, many Columbia departments and offices hire “casual” student workers, using their own budgets to fund these positions. Salary rates, duties and hours vary and usually these positions are open to any Columbia student with the appropriate skills. Opportunities that come to our attention will be posted in the weekly Call Sheet. You can also reach out to these frequent employers of MFA Film students:

Columbia Libraries, including Butler Media Center
Center for Teaching and Learning
Disabilities Services
Dodge Fitness Center
University Events Management

Teaching Positions

MFA Film students are eligible for two types of teaching positions funded by the School of the Arts; Teaching Fellows, who independently teach an undergraduate lab class in screenwriting or filmmaking skills, and Teaching Assistants, who conduct discussion sections that support Film and Media Studies undergraduate lecture courses taught by faculty. Preference is given to students who have taken more than one Film and Media Studies course at Columbia, or who have equivalent experience in the academic study of film. MFA Film students may also apply for teaching opportunities in other Columbia schools and departments that are open to their candidacy. The application process for these positions takes place during the spring term, and is managed in the SOA Employment system on the same timeline as the service position application.  

Work Study Positions

These positions are funded by US federal student aid, so are limited to U.S. citizens and permanent residents who are eligible for federal financial aid.  You will need to have submitted a FAFSA form to determine your annual eligibility.  Salary rates, duties and hours vary and these positions are available in many departments, offices and facilities at the university.  You can explore the central work study job listing here: https://www.sfs.columbia.edu/content/work-study-overview