Student Employee of the Year

2026-2027 Student Employee of the Year

Nominations are NOW Open! Nominations close November 15, 2026.

This year, the University of Wisconsin-Madison Student Employment team will host the ninth annual competition for Student Employee of the Year.

Each year, the National Student Employment Association (NSEA) hosts the competition for the Student Employee of the Year. This years process will begin with campuses choosing one Student Employee of the Year winner for each of six categories (see categories below). The winner of each category, will then be submitted to NSEA for consideration.

The UW-Madison Student Employment Team will convene a selection committee from supervisors of students and other student-employment stakeholders across campus to choose the winners.

Deadline: Nominations are due by Sunday November 15th, 2026 11:59pm CST

Eligibility

Nominees must be a UW-Madison student in a Student Help or Graduate Assistant position at UW-Madison or at one of our Off Campus Federal Work-Study partners.
- Please note if the winner of the graduate student category is a Teaching Assistant, per NSEA rules they will not be able to move on to the national competition.
By February 2027, students must have been employed by their current employer for 6 months part-time or 3 months full-time.
Students who are graduating in May 2027 are eligible for the award and scholarship.
Students who are graduating in December 2026 are eligible to be nominated but are ineligible for the scholarship since it is awarded in the Spring term.
Students who have previously won a scholarship through the Student Employee of the Year competition will not be eligible for nomination.
Information for the winner for each category will be released to campus for public recognition.

Nomination and Selection Process

Students must be nominated by their supervisor to be eligible for this award. Supervisors can nominate their student for one category or multiple categories. A separate nomination must be written for each category (please do not copy paste your letter for each category). Supervisors must submit their electronic nomination form(s) by the deadline, 11:59pm Sunday, November 15th, 2026. No late applications will be accepted.

The winner of each Student Employee of the Year category will receive a $500 scholarship.

Winners of Student Employee of the Year Scholarships will be notified by January 2027.

Please contact Kristina Rittel (kristina.rittel@wisc.edu) with questions.