Online Student Employment & Cooperative Education (SECE) System by Renee Kimoto The Student Employment & Cooperative Education (SECE) online system was launched in the beginning of the fall 2000 semester. Students at UH Manoa can now search for part-time jobs and obtain referrals online at the secured Web site: https://sece.its.hawaii.edu/servlets/Sece. Both University and non-University employers can now post and manage their jobs online. Perhaps the biggest advantage is that students and employers can conduct transactions anywhere, anytime as long as they have Web access. Since ITS first released the system, a lot of feedback was received and in mid-December 2000, a second release was launched to include requested changes and bug fixes. A third release is scheduled to be out before summer 2001. This is the first application at UH to utilize Lightweight Directory Access Protocol (LDAP) for user authentication. System Features and Benefits Students: Students must first register with the SECE system. During the registration process, the student's academic record is checked to determine whether he/she is eligible to work. A student may then search for jobs and, if eligible for a particular job program, obtain the referral online. Students no longer have to go in person to view the job boards or get a referral from the SECE staff. Various search options are available so students can find jobs in specific fields, locations, by pay, or program type. Employers: Employers must first register with the SECE system by creating a profile. Once registered, employers are able to post new jobs, close jobs, and re-open previously listed jobs. Employers can also see the number of referrals that have been given out for jobs that are currently being advertised. A big advantage of the online system is that repetitive manual entering of data is minimized. Once an employer enters the job information, the same record is used to subsequently handle future transactions. With the third release of the system, the amount of paperwork that is kept on file and routed for signatures will also be minimized. Currently the hiring department, chair/personnel officer of the unit, the fiscal officer, and the SECE office each keep copies of all documents. With the new release, the appropriate parties will be able to view their student employment records online. The SECE office anticipates being able to review jobs faster since fewer manual processes need to be performed. The Web site is quickly gaining popularity as employers and students discover the benefits of using the online system. Myrtle Ching-Rappa, the director of the UH Manoa SECE office, says the number of jobs being advertised has increased since the system has gone online. This provides added opportunities for students. However, this also means greater competition for employers since students have more options to choose from. She recommends that employers be more creative in advertising their jobs to better attract students. ITS Username and LDAP Authentication The SECE application is the first to utilize LDAP for user authentication (see related article on LDAP at UH). This means UH employers and students will need an ITS username to access the new SECE system. Initially, this created some confusion since some staff on campus (especially those with departmental e-mail addresses) did not previously have a need for a personal ITS username. The University of Hawaii system as a whole is moving towards using the ITS username as a way to authenticate access to many future applications. User Tip: An ITS Username (previously referred to as a UHUNIX ID) is that part of your e-mail address that precedes "@hawaii.edu". If you are a UH student, faculty, or staff (or other institution closely affiliated with UH), you need an ITS username to login to the SECE system. Visit www.hawaii.edu/help/accounts/idreqinfo.html or call the ITS Help Desk at 956-8883 for more information on obtaining an ITS username. What's Ahead As of this writing, a third release of the SECE online system is scheduled to be out before summer 2001. This version will include the online Student Employment Work Agreement (SEWA) and equivalent Form 25 features. This will allow employers to hire students online. Users can expect changes from the current process, but overall the system has been designed to simplify functions and expedite the hiring of students. A big advantage will be the daily update of SCOPIS (the student payroll system) so departments will not have to wait two weeks before finding out if a transaction went through. Training sessions have been ongoing since the beginning of February to help departments with the transition and allow them to better understand the system. In the future, it is anticipated that the system will allow for the mass handling of FICA changes. ITS also intends to expand the system for use by other campuses in the UH system. Comments and Feedback The system is still a "work-in-progress" as enhancements are being added and bugs are being ironed out. Both the MIS project team and the SECE office request your patience and cooperation as we transition to the third release, which includes online hiring functions. We also welcome your questions and comments so please send them to: mis_info@hawaii.edu or sece@hawaii.edu.

Information Technology Services Maintained by: editor@hawaii.edu		©2001 University of Hawaii Updated: April 04, 2001