College is stressful. Everyone knows that. From the mountains of homework to the weirdly specific exam questions, your life seems like this weird little ball of stress, anxiety, and exhaustion all wrapped up in a human being with designer bags under their eyes with a coffee cup in hand. So, why should you add the stresses of a part-time job to the already stressful life you have? Well, currently, I have two jobs, and I can tell you that while it does not improve my stress life, it is helpful, and here’s why.
Have you ever heard the phrase “college students only eat Instant Ramen and McDonalds because it’s cheap”? Well, while that may be true for some students, having a part-time job means you’ll have a little spending cash on the side so you can buy, oh I don’t know, healthy food? Not only that, you won’t be left out of the traditional holiday gift exchange because you’re too broke to buy presents for another person. Having a little cash saved up from a part-time job is also great because it allows you to save up for future wants and needs, especially if you plan to travel abroad at some point in your college career.
Another great aspect of having a part-time job is that it allows you to explore your interests and get paid. On-campus jobs are normally pretty good about having jobs available for students on campus that fit with your class schedule and sometimes allow you to work on your homework assignments. Having jobs around campus can also help build connections with your classmates and professors that you may have in class later down the road. While the pay may be little, an on-campus job provides real-life experience with much more flexibility.
Lastly, one of the main goals of college is to be skilled enough to go out into the world and have a great career. It’s much more challenging to have a great career if your resume lacks work experience. Having work experience on a resume shows potential employers not only what you’ve done, but they primarily look at if you have desirable skills and experience to hire. If you have never had a job before, employers may get the impression that you were lazy or not motivated to work. By partaking in multiple part-time jobs in college, you are not only building up your resume but you are also gaining skills to enter the workforce.
So, how do you go about looking for a part-time job? First, talk to your advisor to make sure that by adding a small part-time job would not overload your schedule. Next, look around campus for job openings or ask professors in your major’s department if there are any job openings there. Next, check on the school’s website or if there is a website dedicated to posting job listings for your institution. Lastly, if it is something that interests you, apply. My suggestion would be to apply to multiple job openings encase one falls through.
Part-time jobs, while sometimes stressful and hectic, offer real-world experiences to students before they go out into the world and into the workforce. Having a part-time job in college is also a great experience for students who have free time, need spending money, or want to build up a resume.