Pros and Cons of a part time job

 There are a laundry list of pros and cons when it comes to working while in university. In order to decide if working while in school is right for you, ponder the following before making a decision.

PROS

MONEY!
Money money money. An obvious perk to working. You can pay your bills, get faster internet on your phone (to help with homework... obviously!), or buy that organic chocolate milk that you like. Having a bit of extra cash can go a long way to reducing your anxiety if you are worried about making ends meet. Everyone's expenses differ, so figure out your budget and know exactly how much you need each month and work from there. You may find that you can't balance your budget and therefore have to work, or maybe you can squeak by with bursaries and OSAP.

EXPERIENCE
Working gives you experience, so you can get a job, so you can get experience, so you can get a job...
The cycle continues. Even if you are working at a burger joint you will be gaining work experience, time management skills, and valuable transferable skills that you can put on your resume.

DISTRACTION
You may enjoy the strict non academic time that work provides and find that you return to your academic work refreshed. I know I did!

CONS

NO TIME!
Working lots gives you money, but it takes you away from your studies. School can be hard to balance even without any work, so add 8, 16, or 24 hours of work and your homework can quickly get away from you. It is nearly impossible to do school work AT work, since you need to be focused on your job. On the flip side, if you are stressed out about school, you will be less productive at work which bosses notice!

STRESS
Depending on your work environment, working during the school year may add unnecessary stress to your life. Demanding fast paced environments are difficult at the best of times, and can become even harder to handle when you have so much else on your plate. Choose your workplace wisely.

LOW WAGE
All that work for not a lot of money! Minimum wage can be a nice supplement for other income sources that you may have, but it can be challenging  to rack up those bucks on minimum wage.


Taking all of this in to account, think carefully about what is right for  you. You may be able to balance work and school, but you may encounter challenges. Only you know best!

Good luck Badgers!

Becky White
4th Year Tourism and Environment (Hons.)
Lead Career Assistant