While many Reedy students spend their evenings watching Netflix or finishing homework, others are busy flipping burgers, stocking shelves, or tutoring younger children: all part of life with a part-time job.

Working part-time is a quintessential part of the high school experience – students gain significant work experience, become financially independent, and have the opportunity to explore various career fields. Across Reedy, dozens of students work part-time jobs for several reasons and have learned many lessons along the way.

Part-time jobs are mostly popular among high school students for the experience and benefits they provide. 

“A factor that led me to find a job was mostly the job experience, because I feel like that’s something that’s really important going into college,” junior Mishka Sarebahi said. “Especially when you go to college, just having that experience will be really helpful when you adjust to the new lifestyle.”

In addition to gaining job experience, being part of a work environment can also offer students social benefits.

“I wanted to make money, but I also wanted to just fill my time,” junior Alexandra Berg said. “I don’t like sitting around and it gives me something to do and I have a good community of people there.”

Many students believe that working their jobs has taught them important life skills.

“I work at Calloway’s Plant Nursery in the morning,” Berg said. “Waking up early has taught me about time management and to be prepared.” 

Jobs often provide a unique learning experience while teaching students to juggle various responsibilities. 

“I work at Pizza Hut; my responsibilities include working the cashier, so I talk to customers and I take the orders, and I also make sure that everyone’s orders come in on time,” Sarebahi said. “I’ve definitely learned skills relating to customer service and how to appeal to customers.” 

Counselors also attest to working jobs while in school, believing that jobs will help students develop long-lasting skills that will benefit them down the line. 

“I think they can help you with responsibility in terms of work ethic and time management,” counselor Sharla Guess said. “There’s going to be times in life where you have to do multiple things and being able to have those skills to multitask is always a good thing to be able to do.”

The financial independence students enjoy, however, remains the most pronounced benefit to part-time jobs. 

“I think the biggest advantage of a part-time job, not to be shallow, is the money,” Sarebahi said. “Because when I got my first paycheck, it felt really good and you feel really accomplished when you spend your own money.”

Part-time jobs are often the first time people get to handle their own money; thus, students also stress the importance of managing paychecks carefully. 

“I figure out how much I’m getting paid a month and then depending on that, I pick how much I want to budget, and how much I want to save,” Sarebahi said.

“I put all my earnings in a savings account, and when I want to buy something, I’ll take it out of there,” Berg said. “Having it not immediately in my checking account, I want to spend it less.”

Besides skill-building and financial independence, working a job while in high school has provided students with beneficial information regarding their future career paths. 

“Working has definitely made me want to do something more social rather than working in an environment by yourself,” Sarebahi said. “In the future, I would rather do something with people and talk and be social.”

“I know I want to do something artsy, which I was able to explore,” Berg said. “I think about what I want to do in the future and aspects of the job has helped me with that.”

Despite the innumerable benefits, a part-time job is a heavy time commitment that should be taken on carefully.

“There isn’t a lot of time for homework because I work from school until seven and then I’d have dinner and get ready,” Sarebahi said. “I didn’t have as much time as I expected to.” 

Counselors urge students to be wary when considering a job due to such obligations as well. 

“Do you have the time to do it? And do you have any other outside commitments? Because a lot of times people forget ‘Oh, I have to go to church or I have to go to tutoring’ and then they get over-committed,” Guess said “So, are you dedicated to being able to do your school work and have a job at the same time?”

Students also believe their jobs can occasionally lead to setbacks in their personal life. “I feel like I definitely have less time for my extracurriculars because of my job,” Sarebahi said. “I sometimes have to miss social events for work.”

Despite possible challenges, a part-time job can be a rewarding experience if students have good time management and organization skills. 

“You’re gonna have to be good with the calendar and knowing when deadlines are that you don’t become overwhelmed and then also taking time to reset and take care of yourself,” Guess said. “If that’s exercise or hanging out with your friends, you still need to have that to bring down your stress level in the midst of everything.”

Overall, students believe part-time jobs are valuable cornerstones to being able to grow and learn important skills for the future. “Advice I would give definitely is to do it not for the money, but for the work experience,” Sarebahi said. “Because we really do learn a lot from it, and I think everyone would as well.”