Students Struggle Juggling Work, School

By Jolie Shultz
Editor In Chief
IG: jolie.rebecca

Thirty or so years ago, teenagers didn’t necessarily need to hold down a job while in school. Whether that would be high school or college, it wasn’t as common as it is in today’s current age.

With the world’s current state of inflation, it’s a lot more common to see students working.

“I started working my sophomore year of high school with just a summer job at the pool, but I’ve been working a full-time job for over a year now,” said Hutchinson Community College and Nickerson freshman, Tenley Kaufmann.

Taylor Schrag, a Buhler freshman, also started working her sophomore year.

“I like being able to have something to do,” Schrag said. “I think it kind of keeps my mind busy and like I can be proud of myself.”

But what is arguably the biggest advantage of having a job? The paycheck.

“I like having the money there. I like paying for myself and not having to rely on other people to buy stuff for me.” Schrag said.

Kaufmann holds similar sentiments.

“There’s an independence factor to it, having your own money. You’ve worked hard for it,” she said.

However, balancing work, school, and your social life can have its challenges.

“I used to find balancing work, school, and my personal life difficult since I was working so many hours, on top of competing in sports,” Kaufmann said. “Setting boundaries helped a lot.”

Both find the benefits of working while in school to outweigh the struggles.

“I think working through school helps build a lot of good character traits and a work ethic,” Kaufmann said. “Learning how to handle different situations and people, learning how to deal with stress, learning better time management, I think those things can be a huge benefit in people’s lives.”

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