Should My Son or Daughter Work?

Your child wants to find a part-time job to help defray the cost of his or her college tuition. You may be concerned about the time that will be taken away from academics. Here are some answers to questions that parents most frequently ask about student employment:

1. Do students who work get lower grades?
2. Will a job distract my child from the real task of learning?
3. Does working help my student find a job after graduation?
4. How does employment help my child?
5. Does college employment help my child in the career decision-making process?

Do students who work get lower grades?

Studies have shown there is little difference in academic achievement between employed and non-employed full-time students. The 1994 NSEA/Cornell survey of 13,000 students showed that the grade-point average of both working and non-working students is about the same. However, full-time students who work off campus for more than 20 hours per week tend not to do as well academically and are more likely to not complete their degrees.

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Will a job distract my child from the real task of learning?

There is sufficient evidence that students who work are more likely to persist academically than students who don't work at all (Van de Water & Augenblick, 1987).  Much of this is attributed to developing a sense of belonging.

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Does working help my child find a job after graduation?

Yes. More and more frequently, students are choosing student employment opportunities to increase their chances of success in the job market after graduation. Employers have reported that given two applications with equal academic qualifications, they would hire the job candidate with part-time work experience over another without work experience.

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How does employment help?

It helps to view employment as a teaching and learning experience. By working, students will:

• Be given opportunities to learn new things
• Develop leadership skills
• Earn money to help pay off expenses
• Get support from employers
• Make new friends
• Learn transferable skills that will carry over to many other jobs
• Learn to take responsibility for solutions to problems
• Establish a network of references for postgraduate employment opportunities

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Does college employment help my child in the career decision-making process?

Research has shown that students who hold jobs related to their career interests and goals are more likely to experience career advantages upon graduation than their peers who are not working in occupations that are related to their interests.  These vocational advantages include higher levels of job satisfaction and career maturity, and a stronger belief in the idea that career decision-making is within an individual's control.

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