<p>Since spring of my sophomore year I have been working full time and my grades have suffered. I am now a senior but because I changed my major three times, I am at a sophomore level status in my major. I have since decided to quit my full time job and move back in with my parents to cut down on costs. I have a part time job now but I my grades have suffered so bad I don't know if I can even get into grad school now. Anyone working and going to school have any advice?</p>
<p>I'm not trying to make excuses or whine but working 55 hours during finals week is ridiculously exhausting and hard. I have been so sick the past couple of years because all I do is work and go to school.</p>
<p>This past school year I was working full time (split between two jobs fall semester, then between those two jobs AND an unpaid internship in the spring) and the best I can suggest is to just try your best this coming year to bring your grades up Mine slipped a little bit (went from low A’s & high B’s to middling/low B’s) but nothing too drastic, and I’ve been lucky in that I’ve kept the same two majors and minor since I started.</p>
<p>It’s rough but I think working so much sends a message that either A) You’re a very hardworking individual, and especially if you were working in your field (I wasn’t, but my internship was in my field) then you’re gaining valuable experience that could help you </p>
<p>or B) You have to work so much because you NEED the money, which is my case. I need to work nearly 40hrs/week in order to pay for my rent, food, phone, books, occasional going out money with my friends, etc. Parents can’t help with that and I don’t want to take out any more loans than I have to. </p>
<p>I don’t know how bad your grades got but since you’re still only sophomore level in your major, it sounds like you have another year or two at least until you’ll be able to apply for grad school anyway. If you do really really well and are able to explain your low grades from before (ie. working so much because needed the money to survive) then I think you could turn things around in your favor.</p>
<p>I worked full time as a server so it wasn’t really for experience in my field I just pay for all of my own education costs and even with loans and a scholarship I was unable to come up with the money for everything, I needed money for books, gas, etc. I’m thinking about taking out some private loans to help out with the money situation because I have such a hard time balancing both school and my job. </p>
<p>I got a D in one class and I’ve had a lot more Cs than I would have had I not been working so much. I was an IB student in high school and I am appalled that my grades have slipped so much since then.</p>
<p>I commend you for working so hard as well and being able to find a balance. It really is a lot more difficult than most people realize. I just find my major so demanding (its molecular bio and the advisors at my school actually recommend that once you take on a major in molecular bio that you not work at all while you are in undergrad)</p>
<p>I worked full-time and counted as a full-time student with ten hours per quarter for my first year of college. I took one math class and one physics class each quarter and used a lot of time at work to study (which was officially against the rules but since I worked for the government nobody really cared about productivity). It was brutal, but I maintained a 4.0. I know other people who two a similar course load as me (the higher math and science classes plus a fluff class each quarter) AND worked full-time, or who had kids (which is also a full-time job). They could do it but they relied on the support they got from spouses, boy-friends, etc. I also don’t think they got the same grades I did.</p>
<p>I worked six different jobs while going to school. The worst semester I ever had was when I took 17 credit hours while working 30(Not 45) hours at a part time job. That semester I had Calculus/Chemistry/Physics/Japanese four days a week and I remember waking up at 7am and going to bed at 11pm six days a week. I didn’t do anything else outside of that. On the weekend I was on a tennis team but I couldn’t go to all the matches since I rarely had enough time to spend seven or eight hours on Sunday for the match.</p>
<p>That being said, working while going to school and taking a full course load definitely shows you how to manage your time. You cannot screw around and watch television while on a strict schedule. Even if you do not get a 4.0 GPA(unlike the other poster above) you will most certainly learn how to develop a work ethic. This will help you later in life(Even though it may not show right now).</p>
Mine slipped a little bit (went from low A’s & high B’s to middling/low B’s) but nothing too drastic, and I’ve been lucky in that I’ve kept the same two majors and minor since I started.</p>