Students who work all year should be given a round of applause. It is not easy to work and simultaneously be a full-time student. While work may be a priority, taking care of yourself should come before anything else.
It doesn’t matter how much time you dedicate to work or chose it over school; if you are not taking care of yourself, all that hard work will be for nothing. I understand that many students work for different reasons: some need to pay for bills, housing, food/groceries, etc. or help out their families financially. However, many students have a tendency to over work themselves. They have assignments, projects and exams to worry about, and when they choose to add another thing on their plates, it can exhaust them further.
There are some students who unfortunately cannot work fewer hours or stop because they need the money. Not every student has the luxury of just focusing on school. That’s just a hard reality that many college students have had to face, including those who have been working since high school. As I mentioned before, it is not an easy task to take on so many things at once. Sometimes it can lead to students putting too much time into their jobs, which causes them to lose focus on their school work and enter early burnout in their academic careers.
It is important to remember that it’s okay to ask for a day off to prioritize your mental health, especially if you have an exam coming up and don’t have the time to study. I am a full-time college student who attends school five days a week while also working on weekends. Taking four classes alongside my other extracurriculars does not give me enough time during the week to study. When the weekend rolls around, I’m more focused on my job than my homework. So when do I study? In between classes. It’s not enough, and it’s definitely not healthy. I had a hard time deciding whether to go to work or not the day before my midterm because I knew I needed to take time to study and ensure I would do well. However, I also needed the shift. At the end of the day, I chose school over work. It felt better to pass an exam knowing it was because I studied rather than going into the exam unprepared.
For some students, making this decision can be tough, which is understandable. Everybody has their own reasons. But I think it’s important to keep in mind that you are going to college not so you can fail, but because you want to work towards a better future. Not every student is working their dream job right now, so I think it’s fair to say that they don’t want to end up working there forever. I love my current job, but I aspire to do something else in the future. It is important to think of your future when deciding to take time off for school or yourself. If you know it will do you good to have a break from work and focus on your other priorities, then do it. You are doing amazing, so remember to be proud of all your accomplishments and hard work.