How to deal with working and school

The long debate on whether freshman in college should work while in college has been going around for ever. Most people tend to think that you need to focus on school and not work your first year of college.n However, some people don’t always have the luxury of not working. One thing I will tell you, is to not overdo it.

My first semester I had just started a new job as a work study on campus. I was still planning on working at my previous job as well for the weekends. I thought that I would be able to handle two jobs and school. I ended up working 7 days a week and was stressed out. Eventually I started working 6 days a week instead of 7 which sounds great except that it was the same day as my other job. I would go to classes from 8am-12pm, grab lunch, go to work 1pm-5pm, pick up my friend from campus, and going to my other job from 6pm-9pm. I was not able to go home and change as I had to change at work. I also was not able to drop my friend off at her house as I was not able to get to work in time if I dropped her off. I would arrive at my other job 15 minutes before work and change. I did not even have time to eat supper until I got back home after 9. At my work, you only got a 30 minute lunch break if you worked 4 hours, but I was working only 3. Sometimes I had to stay till 9:30 because we were busy. I say all of this to let you know to not overdo it. Some people have to work 2-3 jobs just to pay for schooling but if you do not have to work that many jobs, I would not suggest doing it. I ended up quitting my weekend job as I could not handle all my school work and both jobs. I do not think that working was bad and do not regret having a job, I just wish that I only had one instead of two.

Here are some tips if you decide to work a job:

1. Make sure to get your work done before going to work if you are working closing shift.
2. Try to get your work done on the days you are not working so that you are not rushing to get so much done and then working 7 hours.
3. If you are having trouble balancing work, school, and friends; request pushing back your hours a little bit.
4. Bring some of your school books or laptop to work so you can study on your lunch break.
5. Try to get work done between classes or during your lunch.
6. Use the weekends since you most likely won’t be working all day long.

These tips definitely help me out when it comes to school and work. Hope these tips can help you manage your school work and job schedule. At the end of the day, if you feel that you do not want to work then don’t. School is more important in the long run and if you don’t absolutely need to work, then only do it if you want to.