I wanted to do work study but I’m scared if I can balance it with my studies. however, I do think it’s a great opportunity for me to learn new things, earn money, and put it as an extracurricular activity. Any advice?
What year are you in college? What’s your major and credit load? Is the job related to your major? Do you need the money?
If you can’t afford school without doing it, then it’s worth it.
My kid loved her work study job. Of course she liked the money which helped buying food, paying utilities and drug store purchases. But the job was a great break. She loved having something else to do than study or worry about classes. She loved her mentor at her job and the other students she met there.
Also as D went to a very selective expensive u, she liked meeting other students who shared her more modest background. Sometimes you feel as if you are the only person on financial aid and the only person not going someplace exotic for spring break. The job was a great grounding place.
Yes, work study is worth it.
I think work study can have advantages beyond the financial. First, if you are eligible for work study you probably need the money. A job can help with costs or if nothing else give you spending money. Not having as much financial stress can help you academically and socially. Second, I think it helps create a pattern in your college life that can be positive. Unless you find that you simply don’t have enough time to study many students would benefit from having a productive use of their time that is not school related. Bad things can potentially happen when you’re bored. I think it can be too easy to put off studying when you think “I can do that later”. Work study jobs are usually no more than 10 hours a week and as a rule aren’t too challenging. They are usually more student friendly than other jobs.
Yes it is. Studies have shown that students with jobs in college actually have higher grades than those without.
If it matters, my D was an engineering major, so pretty demanding. And she worked around 10 hours a week. One semester I remember she couldn’t work as many hours as she had in work study. Her job was flexible and she was able to work those hours when she had time over spring break and during finals as I think her’s were done early.
My daughter did work study both semesters her freshman year. The second semester she took on another job as well. I agree that it is a great way to meet other students and she loved having the money to go out for a pizza or hit up Target occasionally. This semester she decided not to do it and instead to grade papers which has not been very lucrative for her, she really misses the work study job. She can choose 5, 7, or 10 hours and they really work around your academic schedule so there’s little conflict with exams and homework. She can’t wait to get back to her Starbucks job (that’s work study at her school) next semester!
My D was hesitant about doing work study for the same reason but I encouraged her to look for a job where she would just work 5 hours a week.
That was not a problem although her employer made a calculation error so she was scheduled for more like 6.5 hours a week (mostly in small 1 or 2 hour time slots, in the school bookstore). Even though she originally was reluctant, she was OK with the extra hours.
Oftentimes with work study jobs you can study on the job or you get perks such as, she was scheduled to sell cds after a concert and in the meantime she got paid to attend the concert, only “working” during intermission and after the concert ended. She also got extra hours on Parents Weekend when the store would not normally be open, and it did not interfere with her studies or social life. Whether or not to work the extra hours was her choice. She is a good worker so she was the first student worker they asked.
She gets a discount at the school store, including on textbooks. She attends college in a state with a lower minimum wage than what she can make at home in the summer, but it’s pretty easy doing her job, it’s her spending money, and she’s building up a little savings even just working that little bit.
Definitely worth it. It will force you to develop good time management skills. It’ll provide spending money. And it will give you work experience that employers want to see.