What are fitting jobs for a college student? (Please Help)

Career Opportunities & Internships
1

In the future after I finish Community College I want to attend a prestigious University and when I’m there I want a job that:

  1. Allows me to work at night(so I can go to classes during the day).
  2. No more than 5 hours a day(so I have time for studying)
  3. Does not require me to commute from my dorm for longer than 10 minutes(so I have time for studying)
  4. Pays at least $10.28-hour

I’m trying to decide which major should I take when I’m in Community College that would help me obtain a job that fits in the category above.

My main interest is in Electronics.

At first I thought I should pursue a Associates in Computer Science then become a Programmer but doing research it seems that programming isn’t really for me. Then I thought I could find a telecommute job as a Computer Support Specialist or a Customer Service Representative but someone told me that finding telecommute jobs for those positions are very difficult and isn’t something you should expect.

Any advise?

2

I would say most people at Universities look for on-campus jobs. They may be clerical or grunt work, working some desk or running errands. Such is life. The commute is nothing and the hours are very flexible. You might be able to find a job in research related to electronics on campus, which would good for furthering your career aspirations.

A programming job that is nights only and part-time and near your school… There’s just no way you’ll be able to find that.

3

I thought most Programmers telecommute, is that not true?

4

That’s not true. The vast majority work on site in offices like everyone else.

5

Here is a selection of more unique jobs that I’ve seen college students do;

  1. Contract debugging. Pay is huge, hours flexible.
  2. Paramedic. Good pay and 24 hours all at once.
  3. Instruction. Sports, dance or martial arts. Good rate of pay and you get to work out.
  4. Instruction. Photo, computer, whatever.
  5. Commercial pilot.
  6. Document translation. Almost always online.
  7. Real Estate Photography. Flexible hours.
6

Or you could go for the standards: Waitressing, working in a store of some sort, fast food, or in a Chuckie Cheese type of atmosphere…

Nope, you won’t start at $10.28 per hour (I’ve got to ask: why that specific number??)

You’ll start at minimum wage (with the exception of waitressing), as you learn the skills that will earn you a higher salary.

What work experience do you have now? Starting in high school may very well mean that you’ll be at a higher wage level by then.

7

This question is pretty hard to answer because we don’t know where you live or plan to go to college at so the CoL would be the real determinant of how realistic a $10.28+/hr would be. And how likely you’d be able to find a job that meets all your demands.

Realistically, the only thing that comes to mind that could possibly work would be a part-time freelance tutoring job on-campus but thats extremely competitive and a pretty unreliable occupation.

8

I don’t think you need to choose courses at a community college that will help you find a good part time job for while you are in college. There are lots of on campus jobs such as working at the front desk in a residence hall, working in a library or doing food service. Working in a campus computer lab might be a good fit.

9

I think your requirements are well intended but misguided. Plenty of students take advantage of federal work-study programs as part of their financial aid package. That involves working a campus job, usually (but not always!) for minimum wage. Campus jobs could be ones in dorms as baristas, library book runners, store clerks, etc. Most of these places operate during regular hours, but because students are the ones taking the jobs, shifts are vastly different from normal jobs’ shifts - typically you will be scheduled out by the hour and your classes ALWAYS take priority over work. You could wind up doing something like this: Class 9-10, work 10-1:00, class 1:00-3:00, work 3:00-5:00 every Monday, Wednesday and Friday; something different on Tuesdays and Thursdays.

Working a campus job also allows you to participate in the same activities as everyone else. If you go off campus, you will not get that kind of flexibility, so if you are in a group that is holding an event at night on a Thursday, you may have to skip it if you are working off campus but almost never have to skip it if you work on campus.

Now, there are also other options if you need to earn more than a work-study job can offer. First, you can schedule your classes around a potential job. For example, I had two semesters in which I had three Tuesday/Thursday classes and two Wednesday seminars, giving me brutal schedules on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday (Tues was 5.5 hours of class, Wed was 6 hours and Thurs was 4.5 hours) in exchange for four day weekends. If you are willing to work weekends, there are a lot of opportunities in hospitality, especially if you would be able to work double shifts.

There really isn’t any pressure to get “relevant” coursework in community college. Just get grades good enough to get into the place you want to go after, whether it’s a private or a state flagship university.

10

No, you don’t “need” to, but there’s not much question you could get a better job by getting some skills early on.

If your time is valuable in college, why plug away at a minimum wage job when you could earn many times that per hour with some skills?

It only makes sense.