<p>I'm starting a new thread because I don't want to be off topic to a comment posed on another thread.</p>
<p>Many students find that they need to work while they are in college. For some, this is to earn money for discretionary spending (personal expenses, entertainment, etc). For others,it is to contribute to the costs billed by their colleges. </p>
<p>Regardless of the reason, I would strongly advocate for a student working while in school. I don't have the specific article to post here, but there are studies that show that students who work up to 10 hours a week actually manage their time better than those who don't...and their grades are better. While I will not say this is true for everyone (how would I know that?), my "sample" of two college kids supported this. </p>
<p>Work in college comes in a several forms. As a note...income from ALL is counted on your IRS tax return.</p>
<ol>
<li><p>Federal Work Study- This is a need based financial aid award given to students as part of a need based financial aid package. Jobs are usually on campus (although some are off campus). The nice thing about work study income is that it is not counted as income on the FAFSA for the following year.</p></li>
<li><p>College work study- Some schools have their own funds to award work study to students. They use their own money to fund this. Again...jobs are on campus usually.</p></li>
<li><p>Off campus jobs- In most cases, there are employers off campus who will hire students part time. This is worth looking into if you were not eligible for work study.</p></li>
<li><p>On campus jobs that are NOT funded with work study money- Most colleges also have jobs on campus that are NOT funded with work study money. This is also worth a look-see.</p></li>
</ol>
<p>The advantages to working are not limited to the income. Once a student graduates, they will have some work experience, an employer who can write them a letter of reference and some knowledge of what it takes to be a dependable/reliable employee. In addition, if the student has worked, it is likely that they will also want to complete a federal/state tax return. It's a LOT easier completing a 1040EZ tax form (which is what most students would do to get a refund on any deducted taxes paid) and would well prepare you to complete you own tax returns in the future. Oh...and you would be contributing to the social security system in most cases...another plus for your future.</p>
<p>Even IF you don't receive work study as a financial aid award, you can still work....thus making some money to contribute to your college costs.</p>
<p>There are usually 3 types of “work study”, Federal work study, employment and non-work study.</p>
<p>The Federal Work-Study Program (FWSP) is a federally funded program and was established by Congress through the Higher Education Act of 1965 to assist needy students earn money to meet educational costs. Participation in the program is determined by the student’s financial need and is awarded as part of the financial aid package. Earnings are not applied directly to the tuition bill, but are used by the student to cover costs such as books, personal items, and transportation. FWSP funds may only be used on campus with on-campus employers or with approved off-campus community service employers.</p>
<p>Employment is an alternative form of funding for student who do not qualify for work-study funds, usually for citizenship reasons. Regulation of the Employment program mirrors the FWSP in that a student must show a financial need to be eligible for such funding. Employment funds are usually not permissible for off-campus use.</p>
<p>non work study postions are for students who are not FWS or employment eligible. These types of jobs are usually available on campus through food services , bookstore, etc.</p>
<p>And another thought…while it’s nice to hope for the “cool” jobs or the high profile jobs…if you need a job, don’t be picky. One of our kids worked at the Call Center (soliciting funds for the annual drive from alums). It was NOT the most desirable job as is the case with most telemarketing jobs…but it was a job! Once she had that one on her resume, she was able to “move up” to a much better and highly sought job at her school.</p>
<p>Thank you, Thumper and Sybbie for much needed information. Is social security tax assessed on any WS monies? </p>
<p>Our family is very much a working one with all of our kids having had a lot of jobs by the time they went to college. Our oldest who did the worst was the only one who did not have a job while in college because he was an athlete and the time element was an issue. But there were kids who had jobs checking IDs, and other things at the gym that got a lot of forced study time from such jobs since there wasn’t that much to do, and many of them were athletes and students who did well in both areas.</p>
<p>I don’t like my kids working first semester freshman year, and none of them did. I like them to take that time to peruse the situation and look for what is available. But none of my kids got work study. And my son going off to college has already gotten 3 job possibilities and applications just from his visits there. I find it hard to believe when I read about kids who just can’t find anything simply because my kids seem to fall into jobs all of the time even in the worst economic job environments. They do nasty, unrewarding (other than the paycheck) work at times, but they do get jobs and money. All of mine had nice bank accounts primarily funded by summer and vacation time work. We still get calls from a greasy spoon where I refuse to eat that is within walking/biking distance of our house, that wants one of my kids to be busboy, clean up or helper when they fall short on help. And the manager/owner always has an extra $50 on top of what they make on their shifts when they come on such calls. </p>
<p>We live in an area where few kids have jobs. Most have internships. I hope this is not a trend. There are often jobs available at nursing homes, little restaurants, cleaning services, heavy work situations and other places where the job is not what many consider “bragging” accomplishments. I beg to differ.</p>
We tried that! Told d1 that no way was she taking the car to campus because she needed to adjust to the school workload before she thought about getting a job. As a remission student more than our need was met, so she didn’t get work study. Well, as a remission student, she also isn’t eligible for institutional talent scholarships. The choir wanted her and couldn’t entice her with a scholarship, so they offerd a job. It’s just a few hours a week, thankfully.</p>
<p>*4. On campus jobs that are NOT funded with work study money- Most colleges also have jobs on campus that are NOT funded with work study money. This is also worth a look-see.</p>
<p>*</p>
<p>this is a good point. There are often “specialty” jobs on campus that aren’t work-study. University-paid tutors, life-guards at the rec center, other jobs at the rec center, etc aren’t always work-study jobs.</p>
<p>Agreed Mom2…lifeguards were in short supply at DD’s school and the pay was amongst the highest on campus…not work study. Jobs in the dining halls, call center and tutor center were not work study either. </p>
<p>At DD’s school there were jobs that were W-S but also not. DD worked in undergrad admissions for four years. This job could be paid with WS funds (for those eligible) or college monies (for those who were either ineligible or had exceeded their WS allotment for the year).</p>
<p>Thumper, as a full-time employee of the institution, my child is eligible for tuition remission as a benefit of my employment. Were she to head to a school in the same exchange coalition, she’d be a tuition exchange student.</p>
<p>I’m all for students working while at college. My D got a job in the student store last summer and is still there, and loves it! So far none of her internship applications has come through, so at least she has a job for this summer if nothing else pans out. She will end up with at least a year of work experience with real responsibilities, which I have read looks as good as an unpaid internship to future employers. Also, I have given her hardly any spending money, because she is earning her own. She is even paying into a retirement plan. It’s all been good.</p>
<p>I read on another post that student income up to roughly 5,000 dollars isn’t factored into FAFSA calculation. Is that true? My daughter also has work study factored into her aid, and I agree I think it will keep her focused. She worked about 10 hours a week in h.s.(against my will) but she got a 4.7 that year so I guess it helped : ) She is planning on working this summer to raise money towards her college costs. I truly hope the 5,000 cap is correct or her working will be in vain…</p>
<p>Yes she she is at a CSS profile school, but I swear I can’t figure out their calculations. We have absolutely no money and no equity in our home. I thought we would have did much better at the css school that the fafsa schools but that wasn’t the case at all.</p>