Working in college: Does it harm students? 

While financial aid can help with tuition, it doesn’t always cover everything and it doesn’t account for things such as groceries, gas, medications, rent and more. 

In many cases, students are forced to turn to working a job outside of school to keep up with expenses. 

Balancing work and school while in college is a struggle that many students at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette face. 

According to the University of Pennsylvania, “27% of full-time students and 71% of part-time students in 2018 worked at least 20 hours per week while in college.” 

The National Center for Educational Statistics said that, in 2020, those percentages had changed to 40% of full-time students and 74% of part-time students.Working while in college can be a good thing as it can help pay for the necessities of life, but it can become a big obstacle when it interferes with academics and mental health. 

Louisiana congressman Clay Higgins said, “Bottom line, I think that a young college student should work while they’re in school, but not at the expense of impacting the educational pursuit because what you’re spending on that education is such a massive amount of money between the student and the family, between loans and the families, it’s a huge deal now, and the value you get out of it is relatively low when compared to historical values of a college education.” 

Some students believe that if having a job isn’t completely necessary for a student, then they shouldn’t risk it affecting their academics. 

Latisha Paul, a sophomore environmental science major, said, “If you don’t need extra money while in school, then don’t work. It adds stress to getting school work done. Time to relax and dealing with people at work is stressful sometimes. Yes, extra money is always nice, but if it’s not a high need at the time, then don’t.” 

A major struggle that students tend to have when working a job outside of college is a lack of time to study and do schoolwork. 

Dylan Sellers, a sophomore mathematics major, said, “I chose to work outside of school because of the difference in pay. As a server, I typically make anywhere from $15-20 per hour that I work because of tips, so when compared to on-campus jobs, it’s very enticing to choose the higher pay.” 

He continued, “Some difficulties that I have as a server and student are that I drive 20 minutes to work every time. I also don’t have as much time in the evening to study and I typically go to bed after two hours or so when I get home from work.” 

Farmer Brown, a junior marine biology major, said, “I work as a server at a restaurant and work about 25 hours a week while also taking 17 credits a semester. I say that some weeks are much harder than others when it comes to trying to work while study, while others are much harder, especially when my exams stack.” He continued, “For instance, I had four exams stack in a week and then also was trying to work to support myself. It was a very tough week but I managed. It’s not always good and not always bad. It really helps with making yourself able to plan better, but you also have to sacrifice a lot of your time if you have work and take a lot of credits.” 

Though it can prove to be a challenge, having a job while in school can also be a great learning experience. Kate Ebarb, a junior kinesiology major, said, “Having a job outside of being a full-time student definitely comes with its troubles. Not only being overwhelmed, but genuinely missing out from events, friends and opportunities. However, I’ve learned to maximize my skills of time management and lessen my procrastination.” 

Choosing whether or not to work while in college is a personal decision that every student has to make based on their own needs. The life experience that can be earned through a job can be a great addition to a student’s skills, but if work interferes with academic performance, it can become a challenge for some students.