Ashleigh Smith (‘25)
One of the biggest moments in a high schooler’s life is when they get their first paycheck from their high school job. The feeling of seeing hard-earned money in their bank account is something that no one can take away. However, the idea of being a full-time student and a part-time worker is something that has constantly been debated.
High school is extremely time consuming, not just the amount of time spent in school but also all the time spent on extracurriculars and homework as well. High school students are already tired from all of that, and adding time spent working a job can lead students to feel overwhelmed and stressed. According to Walden University, “students that work upward of 20 hours a week suffer from reduced academic performance.” Although not all students work more than 20 hours, there are many who work many more than that.
Students also find themselves at a catch-22 when it comes to having social lives while working. Students need money to have a social life, so they work, but when they work they have less time for their social life. It’s something that is consistently hard to balance and maintain for teenagers.
Junior Trinity Haney said, “My job definitely takes time away from things like school work, my friends, my family, and just time to myself. But I do think having a job is beneficial to high schoolers because it sets them up for their future.”.
On the other hand, working teaches kids many valuable lessons and gives them life experience in the real world. According to CollegeBoard, part-time jobs can help students be more “confident, and possess better time-management skills.” It is known that students who have jobs also do better in school; students who have jobs during school are “7% more likely to graduate high school on time and 22% less likely to drop out” according to Education Next.
Senior Emily Werner said, “I do not believe that this job takes away from other things in my life, instead I feel like this job adds more. I learn new life skills every time I work and I know I am making myself useful.”
Summer jobs specifically seem to have many positive outcomes, ensuring teens don’t feel overworked with both school and work. It gives teens something to do over the summer while expanding their skill set and understanding time management in a controlled way.
“Summer jobs have been shown to decrease incidents of violence by disadvantaged youth by 43%,” according to Walden University.
Getting paid and having their own money is a big part of getting a job, and usually one of the pushing factors. Earning their own money can teach teens the value of the dollar, and also financial independence. Many teens use the money to help fund their social life, but also to save up for big purchases like a car or college.
Getting a job in high school is a big decision that not every student is ready for. Jobs teach students about the real world and gives them financial independence, but is the time taken away from everything else worth it?
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