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The pros and cons of working while in college depend not necessarily on the job itself but instead on how often a student works. Having a part-time job while in school gives students insight into what it’s like in the work environment and also what it means to earn money. Having a job could also be an eye-opener to some people that money is not gained very easily. Having a job also comes with convenient cash. With a paying job, you can easily pull out some cash when you have immediate needs. Work breeds independence.
You will be a master of multi-tasking even before you start your very own professional career in the future. By then, it would not be as challenging as it would be without any experience. Adversely, having a job may bring also disadvantages towards a students life. If you have a job, this automatically means that you will have less time to do your other activities and also study. This might cause you to have bad grades. Overworked teens tend to sleep and exercise less and spend less time with their families. Getting a job might also cause an overwhelming load of stress for students.
Layman Balance, 2012) Studies have shown that working 20 hours a week or less has no significant impact on a student’s grades. In fact, students who work 15 hours a week or less while attending college have higher grades than students who don’t work. Researchers believe that working pushes students to manage their time more effectively and to eliminate unproductive activities, such as watching television. However, a full 50 percent of undergraduate part-timers clock in 20 hours or more per week, and these students are more likely to drop out of college than students who work fewer hours.
Homework assignments and study time compete with extracurricular activities, hobbies and chores. Students may feel that they do not have enough time to keep up with demands of school and life. While it is impossible to add more hours to a day, students can increase productivity by implementing time-management strategies. Managing time may be a personal challenge, but strengthening this skill can help improve academic performance. (Erin R. Wheeler, 2012). Students who are also employed are probably working to help pay for allege.
Those same students may likewise be on scholarship, which adds even more pressure to excel. Poor job performance can result in job loss; poor academics can result in scholarship forfeiture. Either can mean that a student can no longer afford tuition and may risk her college education. Those students who work hard at school and jobs and then squeeze in time for a social life and family obligations often do so at the peril of their own health. Late nights, poor diet, alcohol and drug use, and a lack of exercise are a good combination for bad health.
The stress of a student’s balancing act can bring on a host of mental and physical maladies and can exacerbate existing conditions. Anxiety, depression, substance abuse and eating disorders are just a few of the unintended consequences of trying to maintain an impossible schedule. And as they strive and fail, students may take additional hits to their self-esteem, feeling like they just cannot measure up to impossible standards. (Linda Emma, 201 1) With the freedom to choose how to spend your time, you may find yourself struggling to maintain your grades and keep up with new friends.
If you find yourself wishing for more hours in the day, focusing your priorities and learning some time management skills can help you balance your college schedule. (Shelley Frost, 2011) Students also face more indirect conflicts with high academic achievement from areas like finances and family support. Financial problems can still impede success. Limited finances can affect a student’s ability to budget school expenses. Some students go to college because of parental pressure or influence.
However, others may go to school of their own volition and have little to no uncial or emotional support from parents and other family members. (Neil Compeller, 2009) Taking on a part-time job while studying at university can booster bank balance and your skills in the workplace. But to get the most out of the experience, make sure you know your employment rights and what practicalities you need to deal with. Students who work part-time are legally entitled to be treated the same as comparable full-time workers; that is, workers on the same type of contract with the same employer.