How to Calculate Your Hourly Wage

Whether you are being paid a stipend or a salary, it’s important to understand exactly how much you are making for every hour of your time. Here is how you can calculate your hourly wage based on each pay structure.

Stipend

A stipend is a set amount of money for a specific duration of time (a semester, a summer, a project), regardless of how many hours you work. It is usually paid in one lump sum or in fixed monthly installments.

  1. Estimate Your Weekly Hours: Determine how many hours you work per week.
    • Scenario A: You have a set number of hours you work
      • Examples:
        • You are required to work 15 hours per week.
        • You work a total of 200 hours during the internship, spread evenly across the weeks.
    • Scenario B: Most weeks are similar, but some weeks are different
      • If your hours fluctuate because of occasional busy periods (e.g., 15 hours most weeks, but 25 hours the week of a big event), find your total anticipated hours
        • How to estimate:
          • Add all weekly hours together and divide by the number of weeks
  2. Identify the Length of Your Internship: How many weeks is the experience?
    • Calculate the weeks between your start and end date.
      • Example: Most 300-hour internships are 15 weeks long.
  3. Calculate Your Total Hours Worked: Multiply your weekly hours by the total number of weeks.
    • Example: 15 hours per week x 15 weeks = 225 total hours.
  4. Identify Your Total Gross Pay: Start with the total amount of the stipend before any taxes are taken out.
  5. Do the Division: Divide your total gross pay by your total hours worked.
    • Example: $2000 ÷ 225= $8.89/hour

Salary

In many professional roles, you will likely be quoted an annual salary. This is the total amount you are paid to work for one full year.

  1. Identify Your Total Gross Salary: Look at the annual amount before taxes or benefits are deducted.
    • Example: A starting professional salary of $31,200 per year.
  2. Identify Your Standard Weekly Hours: For most full-time professional roles, this is a 40-hour work week.
    • Example: 40 hours per week
  3. Identify the Length of the Work Year: A standard calendar year has 52 weeks.
    • Example: 52 weeks
  4. Calculate Your Total Annual Hours: Multiply your weekly hours by the number of weeks in the year.
    • Example: 40 hours per week x 52 weeks = 2,080 total hours
  5. Do the Division: Divide your annual salary by your total annual hours.
    • The Formula: Annual Salary ÷ Total Annual Hours = Hourly Wage
    • Example: $31,200 ÷ 2,080 = $15.00 per hour

Need More Help with the Math?

Calculating your value is the first step toward financial independence. If you want to dive deeper or use an automated tool to double-check your numbers, we recommend these helpful resources:

By Christina Moreschi
Christina Moreschi Director of Career Engagement
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