Work is education
The reframing of student employment
What is Work+
Work+ believes work is education.
What if there was a shift in the belief that work and learning were separate? If we divested our assumptions that college builds knowledge and jobs were necessary but existed in the periphery, how would that impact career readiness outcomes?
Work+ positions student employment as a scalable pathway toward career readiness. It challenges the assumption that internships, co-ops, and classroom learning are positioned at the top of the developmental pyramid. Student jobs are one of the few, scalable opportunities for every learner. When removed from marginalized assumptions it can become the core of the student experience. An experience that doesn’t depend on luck or privilege.
With this model, jobs become launchpads for leadership, belonging, workplace literacy, and upward mobility.
Especially for first-generation students, low-income students, or those students who have historically been excluded from opportunities. This proven framework has transformed student employment into a learning experience that reaches students where traditional internship and career programs have not been able to.
Work+ is the official framework for student employment at Arizona State University (ASU), transforming campus jobs into invaluable learning experiences.
The Work+ story
Developed at Arizona State University, Work+ has reframed how supervisors mentor, and how educational institutions structure student roles, as well as the articulation of that value to future employers.
Our framework centers on three measurable outcomes: increased career readiness, stronger student-supervisor relationships, and the articulation of transferable skills aligned with NACE competencies .
Why Work+ exists
Work+ evolved from a commitment to student-centered design for integrating work and learning, which is one of University College’s foundational principles, operationalizing ASU’s core charter principle of measuring success through inclusion.
Identified as historically under-resourced, ASU understood the significant potential of student success via career development, especially given that more than 8,000 students are employed on campus annually.
Out of this insight, Work+ was created as the most scalable learning platform an institution already has.
Through the implementation of Work+, student work could become equitable, providing access to career-ready training to first generation students and those with high financial need who may not have the resources or financial ability to develop career competencies outside the classroom.
Annual Arizona State University Student Employment survey
89.7% of working learners say their on-campus role helped shape their career goals and support professional growth.*
91% of students report the ability to articulate the skills they are building.*
*2025 Student Employment survey. Learn more from us about student employment at ASU through our State of Student Employment report.
The outcomes of Work+
As the official framework for student employment at ASU, Work+ is an integrated working-and-learning experience.
Driven by ASU’s charter and designed to impact student success, student employment will contribute to a working learner’s career growth through three interconnected outcomes.
By honing in on these pillars, campus employment morphs from transactional to transformational, ensuring working learners gain career confidence alongside opportunity.
Outcome one: Increasing career readiness
Outcome two: Enriching supervisor and working learner relationships
Outcome three: Ensuring working learners gain skills and confidence to articulate their transferable skills
How Work+ works
Work+ embeds career readiness directly into the work students are already doing, without adding to supervisors' workloads. Through annual Supervisor Foundations training, faculty and staff gain practical strategies, tools, and shared language that transform existing practices into intentional learning experiences. The framework strengthens what's already working while connecting those practices to measurable student outcomes.
What is career readiness?
Visit the NACE (National Association of Colleges and Employers) website for an in depth overview of the Career Competencies from the organization that leads international efforts to bridge education and employment.
