Jillian Carr is still an undergraduate, but in the office of institutional research at Rhodes College, she is a full-fledged colleague. A recent analysis she did of student data will probably be used in training for academic advisers this fall. Ms. Carr found that students who overestimate their verbal ability when selecting courses risk a lower grade-point average than those who overestimate their math ability. It is research that Jay Eckles, director of information services at the college, would do, if he had the time. "When I sit down and discuss things with her like factors contributing to the underperformance of students, I'm talking to a professional colleague," says Mr. Eckles. Ms. Carr works in his office as a "student associate," Rhodes's term for the 100 students who work in positions that would otherwise be filled by full-time staff members. An undergraduate even runs the entire Student Associate Program, keeping track of payroll and reporting directly to the president. Rhodes started the program in 2004 with the intent of offering students professional experience, worthy of a resume line. It does that, students say--and also saves Rhodes about $750,000 each year, a point equally important to administrators. Rhodes, which has an annual operating budget of $77-million, has long considered itself financially scrupulous, and college leaders say that is especially true during these difficult economic times. Since 2003, the student-associate program has grown from 20 positions to 100, with jobs as varied as coordinating 50th reunions and cataloging and photographing art. On the campus, the associates have become well-regarded. "When you start treating a student not as a consumer but as a colleague, remarkable results occur," says President William E. Troutt, chairman of the National Commission on the Cost of Higher Education. Students say the professional experience is invaluable. Hallie Graves was the student coordinator of the program two years ago and says the experience helped her get into law school