Student Farm Worker, University Farm

About the job

The University Farm is about 40 acres of research plots, high tunnels, greenhouses, a small orchard, and the 1926 barn. The farm keeps a crew of six student workers year-round, and two of ours took summer research jobs that turned into fall ones. We are hiring two replacements.

You start at the end of the season the public sees: about 4,000 pumpkins, a borrowed cider press, and the open-house Saturdays described in The Barn Turns 100. Then the work moves indoors.

What you’ll do

• Harvest and stage pumpkins, and run the wagon and cash table on the season’s last open-house Saturdays (proceeds go to the food pantry).
• Seed, transplant, and water winter greens in the high tunnels and greenhouse range.
• Wash and pack produce in the old milking parlor for the pantry and the teaching kitchen.
• Prepare soil-core bags and labels for the Environmental Science soil-health lab.
• Clean and store equipment; after training, drive the farm utility vehicle.

What we’re looking for

• Willingness to work outdoors in a Wesconsin November, and the clothes for it (the farm lends insulated boots).
• Ability to lift 50 pounds and to kneel and bend for long stretches.
• Attention to labels. A mislabeled soil core is a lost data point.
• Preferred: a valid driver’s license, and coursework in food systems, biology, or environmental science.

Schedule and pay

Shifts are three to four hours between 7 a.m. and 5 p.m. on weekdays, plus some Saturday mornings through October. The Porter Loop’s farm stop runs weekdays through October 31; after that, a farm van leaves Founders Union at 7:40 a.m. and 12:45 p.m. on scheduled work days, and travel time counts as paid time. Over winter break the farm offers up to 40 hours a week for anyone who wants them.

Campus jobs are capped at 20 hours a week combined while classes are in session and 40 over breaks (see hour limits); for F-1 students the 20 is firm. Pay is biweekly by direct deposit; log every shift in the payroll system so your supervisor can approve it before the cutoff.

How to apply

Apply in PorterConnect, the student employment portal in MyPorter, under job number SJ-26-1141. Upload your class schedule and a few sentences about any outdoor, farm, garden, or physical work you have done; a résumé is optional. Interviews are at the barn, so wear shoes you do not mind getting muddy.

Apply by October 14, 2026. Questions about the job go to Nora Bakke, University Farm Manager, at bakken@uwporterfalls.edu or (715) 555–0192. Once hired, you complete an I-9 in person and a W-4 before your first shift; plan on a pay period or two before the first check arrives.