The Working Woman

It’s pretty much a given that being financially independent requires a job. But when you’re a college student who has to manage school and work, you can’t just have any job. You need something flexible. You need a boss who is willing to work around your class schedule, and in my case, track schedule too. Most importantly though, you need a job that isn’t going to wear you out to the point that you’re not able to get your school work done on time and without losing too much sleep. Sounds impossible to find, huh? Well here a few tips to finding the job that balances work and school:

1.       Family Owned

Family owned businesses value honesty, loyalty, and close knit ties with employees more than any multi-million dollar corporation or food chain will.  Your boss is going to take strongly into account the feeling he/she gets during the first impression when determining their comfort ability with you as an employee to them. The more trust and loyalty you gain, the more empathy you will receive from a family owned operator when it comes to needing days off or flexibility of schedules. Unlike big corporations, a family owned operator builds lasting relationships with their employees rather than viewing their workers as simply replaceable.

2.       Slow Business

It also helps to find a job where the business isn’t necessary slow, but that you have periods of time where you would be able to pull out some homework and work on it. There’s nothing better than being able to get homework done while also getting paid to do so. Remember though….your boss does have to be ok with it.

3.       Flexibility

College life is crazy. Plans are always coming up. There are study sessions scheduled at crazy times and when it comes to finals you pretty much have to devote all your time and effort into studying. If you can find a job that will work with your forever-changing schedule and give you the time needed to pass your classes then managing school and work is going to be easy.

4.       No Late Nights

The workload from school is enough to keep you up late hours and cause a lack of sleep. Adding a job to that would just be worse on your body and your immune system. But a job with reasonable hours along with the slow business has its perks. Find a store or business that closes around seven or eight. This way you don’t get out too late to the point where you’re too exhausted to go home and do the rest of your homework. It’s also pretty convenient for the weekends. This way you’re not getting out of work too late to go out and have some fun.

I currently work at Cricket Wireless which is a low cost cell phone company. I was blessed to find the perfect job for a college student.  The store is family owned and I have a great relationship with my boss. I have been working here now for a year and five months and have built a very trusting and loyal relationship with my boss. I know that when I need a day off of work for exams or studying all I have to do is ask. And the hours are perfect. I normally work a four or five hour shift during the week and I get out at eight. We don’t get too much traffic in the store so I’m able to work on my homework when there aren’t any customers. I couldn’t ask for anything better.

Photos by Emily Covell is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.

The Beginning of My Independence

Growing up, I always had some sort of independence. Whether it was being able to ride my bike around the neighborhood with my friends, or waking myself up for school in the morning, I started my independence at a very early age. I probably started earlier than most. I grew up in what seemed a normal household on the outside, but on the inside wasn’t. My step-father, a plumber, struggled to pay the bills, while my mother, a stay at home mom diagnosed with a disease that kept her from working and functioning normally, did her best to manage my two brothers and I. As my siblings and I grew older the amount of independence and responsibilities we obtained increased. By the sixth grade I was doing my own laundry, making dinner for the family, making sure my brothers got up for school in the morning, and cleaning the house.

At the age of sixteen my mother passed away and my oldest brother moved out of the house. Being the only female in the household now, I completely took over the motherly responsibilities. I did the grocery shopping and even made sure the bills were paid. As stressful as these things may be, they had to get done. When it came time for me to graduate high school and move onto the college life I thought things would become easier. Instead, I took on a whole bunch of new responsibilities.

Now that I am a sophomore at Trinity I’ve pretty much learned how to manage my independence in the most efficient way, but there is always room for improvement. While juggling a full time course load, I also work on campus as an assistant to the Trinity baseball coach, off campus at Cricket (an up and coming cell phone and wireless internet provider), and I run track and field for Trinity as well. I am the sole financial provider for myself. Currently, I pay my own cell phone bill, car insurance (the car is already paid off), health insurance, monthly payments on the new tires I had to buy this summer, and any necessities or luxuries that I want or need. That’s right….I even buy all my own books.

While you may think I’m crazy, I really don’t have a choice. And for those of you out there who thought it was impossible to work and go to school, I’ll be the first to tell you IT IS! So if you’re interested in knowing how I manage my crazy schedule and don’t pull my hair out every day, continue to follow my blog and I’ll tell just how it’s done.

Photos by Emily Covell is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.