Purpose. The previous Student Volunteer Service IRM is revised.

Audience. Unless otherwise indicated, the policies, authorities, procedures, and instructions contained in this IRM apply to all business units.

Policy Owner. The HCO

Program Owner. The HCO, Office of HR Operations (OHRO), TA, PEO

Primary Stakeholders. The HCO, OHRO, TA Division, Employment Operations (EO) Division, and Strategic Talent Analytics and Recruitment Solutions (STARS) Division

The Student Volunteer Service provides IRS with an opportunity to enrich the educational opportunities of student volunteers and gives student volunteers early career experiences to guide them in making future vocational choices;

The duties of the position must be related to the student volunteer’s curriculum and

Student volunteer’s work experience gained through this program may be credited as related experience under examination rating procedures.

Student volunteer service is open only to students as defined in Section 6.308.1.1.5(a);

A student volunteer must maintain a minimum GPA as defined in Section 6.308.1.1.5(b) above;

A student volunteer must have reached the minimum age of 16 at the time of appointment as defined in Section 6.308.1.1.5(c) ;

A student volunteer must be a U.S. citizen, national, admitted to the U.S. as a permanent resident, or authorized to work in the U.S. as defined in Section 6.308.1.1.5(d) above;

A break in service as defined in Section 6.308.1.1.5(e) and

A student volunteer must be available work a minimum of six weeks.

A written agreement is required between the IRS, school, and student volunteer. This written agreement should include a description of the program, its objectives and benefits to the school, IRS, and student volunteer. The agreement should define the responsibility of the student volunteer, school, and IRS in planning and coordinating the student volunteer’s academic and work experience. A sample agreement is provided below in Exhibit 6.308.1-1, Student Volunteer Program Agreement.

Student volunteers authorized by 5 USC Section 3111 are considered Federal employees under 28 USC Section 1346(b), Federal Tort Claims Act for the purposes of:

Student volunteers are not entitled to benefits such as sick or annual leave, health or life insurance, or payment of any kind from the IRS.

Investigation requirements for the student volunteer will be determined by the student’s work duties. These duties will be matched as closely as possible to actual positions. For example, student volunteers participating in projects involving duties similar to those of an information technology specialist may require an investigation for a moderate risk position;

Student volunteers may have access to information including tax returns and tax return information as necessary in the performance of their duties. Each student must be made aware of the laws and regulations governing disclosure of tax returns and tax return information. They must also be made aware of the laws and regulations governing the protection and privacy of records pertaining to individuals and standards of conduct required by Executive Order 11222, Standards of Ethical Conduct for Government Employees;

Student volunteers may not disclose any tax returns or tax return information obtained in any manner except as authorized by 26 USC Section 6103, Unauthorized Disclosure. Furthermore, student volunteers will be subject to criminal and civil penalties for unauthorized disclosure of information protected by 26 USC Section 6103 and

All student volunteers must be fingerprinted (see IRM 6.731.1, Suitability Determination for Employment) and given a standard employee orientation upon entering on duty.

Each appointing office will conduct periodic reviews of this program to assess compliance with laws/regulations and usefulness in organizational goals/objectives in terms of relationships with the students and schools. This program may be subject to HCO review as part of the PEO Accountability program

As reports are requested by the Department of the Treasury (Treasury) and OPM, the HCO will request the appropriate information from servicing HCO, TA, EOs.

Student volunteers must be enrolled and attending, at least half-time, in one of the following: an accredited high school/trade school; a technical/vocational school; a junior/community college; a two or four-year college/university; or any other accredited educational institution;

Student volunteers must be at least 16 years of age at the time of appointment;

Student volunteers must obtain and maintain a GPA of at least 2.0 on a 4.0 scale;

Student volunteers must be a U.S. citizen, national, or lawfully admitted to the U.S. as a permanent resident or otherwise authorized to be employed (as evidenced by documents proving authorization to work in the U.S.)

Break in Service. A student volunteer is deemed not to have ceased to be a student during an interim between school years if the interim is not more than 5 months and if such individuals show to the satisfaction of the OPM that the individual has a bona fide intention of continuing to pursue a course of study or training at the same or different education institution during the school semester (or other period into which the school year is divided) immediately after the interim;

Student volunteers MUST be available to work a minimum of six weeks in the program (work schedules vary) and

Once placed in the program, student volunteers may continue to volunteer as long as they meet program eligibility requirements. Participants in the Student Volunteer Program must end their internship at the time of graduation or withdrawal from enrollment.

A current resume (no special format required). Please include your expected graduation date.

Unofficial transcripts clearly showing your current enrollment and grades/GPA.