Pondering Careers – Edition 36 – Part time work for students – yes or no?

Welcome back to Pondering Careers, where we talk about everything related to career education and development, and today we’re going to be taking a look at the impacts (positive, and negative) of combining study with part time work for secondary students.

This is a really interesting topic for people like myself who work in or with schools, because the decision around whether or not to start working part time is a pretty big one for a teenager to make, but it often takes a back seat to the other career conversations that are taking place during high school.

Perhaps this is a reflection on the perceived relevance of part time work in the context of a student’s entire career?

For the past six months, I’ve been working on a career ed program called Ready to Work that prepares young people for their first job, so I’ve had a lot of time to think about this.

One of the key questions we’ve tackled has been around when to deliver the program – should we wait until we think it is developmentally sound for young people to start finding work (if there is such an age), or should we be led by the teens and teach the content when they are ready to find a job?

Which really comes back to the question of whether or not we should be encouraging students find part time work at all…

In putting together Ready to Work, I’ve had to think long and hard about all of these issues, so in this week’s newsletter I’m going to share my position, which is that when a young person is ready and eager to start work then they should be encouraged to do so.

What happens when we work part time while we’re still at school?

Let me start out by saying that the evidence is a long way from clear on the question of whether or not it is ultimately beneficial for young people to start work while they’re still at school.

A quick search of the literature will turn up a range of research on the links between part time work and academic achievement, student stress levels, even links between working part time and substance abuse, with only limited longitudinal studies on the longer term outcomes of combining work and study. The longitudinal studies that do exist often show mixed results – poorer educational outcomes, but improved labour market outcomes.

But I’m not sure we should really be asking if it’s possible to make a generalisation about whether or not young people should be working while they’re still at school, because the reality is that it’s an intensely personal decision.

The decision that an individual makes should come down to their own circumstances, goals, and preferences, and trying to make an overarching judgement on the topic is not going to be beneficial in these conditions.

With that in mind, rather than creating a list of pros and cons, I wanted to start by looking at what happens when we work part time while we’re still in high school, and why students might be motivated to get a job.

What happens when we start work

Starting work is a big decision, and at any age it’s going to feel like a shock to enter an adult workplace for the first time.

I remember the first time I started work – I was 14 and petrified, and the exhaustion you have after your first shift (both mental and physical) is like nothing else you’ve experienced.

Student who work part time essentially get to peer behind the curtain, and taste what life is really like as an adult. It’s not all drinking tea and chatting with your colleagues, and there are new expectations to handle, all of which can be a lot to take in.

My daughter Rose started her first job late last year, and I watched her go through a couple of stages:

1. To start with she was running on adrenaline and just trying to keep up. A four hour shift left her exhausted, both from the work but also the mental strain of the stress and anxiety before her shift, which is pretty natural when you’re starting something new.
2. After a couple of weeks she started to get used to it, but with that came the gloom of realising that work is actually as hard as we’ve been telling her, and that it’s a lot less glamorous than it looks. She didn’t say anything out loud, but I wondered if she was starting to question the decision to work.
3. It took her about four months to get comfortable. Working three shifts a week over the school holidays certainly helped, but she seems to have gotten her groove and is enjoying her work now that she’s used to it. Her bank balance is starting to pile up, to the point where it feels like she has more disposable income than I do, and she’s not as tired after her shifts, even though they’re longer and she’s getting more done.

The school year has only just started back here for us, and she’s still a long way off senior school, so it will be interesting to see how she handles working and maintaining her grades, but overall she seems to have adjusted pretty well.

When they start working, they build new skills

Stretching themselves in a new environment gives them the opportunity to build an entirely different set of skills. It’s the same as when we exercise – if you only ever do one type of exercise, like riding a bike for example, you might get really good at it, but your muscles are going to hurt when you try something else.

Teens who start work get to flex their muscles in a different environment. They work in teams, communicate with customers, activate their maths skills while handling money, plus they build a whole additional set of workplace-specific technical skills.

One of the biggest changes I’ve noticed in Rose since she’s started working is that she tries to solve her problems by herself without just defaulting to asking me all the time – she perseveres with her problem solving.

They’re also building these skills at a time when employers are most forgiving – an employer has far more tolerance when a 15 year old makes a mistake than when a 19 year old does, because there are different expectations.

This is actually something that I don’t think comes up enough – students who choose not to work until they leave school may be at a disadvantage.

Some of their peers will have been working for years, and may be supervisors or team managers, which means students who leave school and then seek out work will be competing for the same roles with people with far more experience.

Employers know this – I’ve spoken with employers, recruiters, and scholarship providers who may see a lack of work during school as a red flag. They wonder why the student didn’t seek out a job, and if they’ll be capable of managing work and their other priorities after they graduate.

Working part time during school, especially if they’ve kept the same job for a few years, shows that a student is dependable and willing to work, which can be hard to demonstrate using extra-curricular activities.

Employers value the skill development that takes place in those first jobs, and they’re not particularly concerned about which industry they were in.

Why would teens want a job in the first place?

The obvious answer here is to earn money, but that’s not the only motivating factor. When I’m talking with students about this decision I often find that there are a combination of factors at play, covering everything from the drive to earn a little cash through to a desire for a sense of responsibility, or even just because all their friends are working.

Regardless of the combination, I think we can whittle it down to these nine key factors:

1. Financial Independence: Many teenagers seek part-time jobs to earn their own money, reducing their reliance on family for personal expenses. This financial independence allows them to manage their own budgets, save for future goals, or simply enjoy the freedom to spend on the things they want.
2. Skill Development: Part-time work offers an excellent opportunity for teenagers to develop a range of skills, including time management, communication, teamwork, and problem-solving. These skills are valuable not only in the workplace but elsewhere in their lives, and teens are aware that they cannot get access to this type of skill development in a classroom.
3. Work Experience: Gaining practical work experience can be a significant motivator. Teenagers often seek jobs to build their resumes, making them more competitive for future employment opportunities or higher education applications.
4. Career Exploration: Part-time jobs allow teenagers to explore different industries and professions, helping them make informed decisions about their future career paths. This hands-on experience can provide insights into what they enjoy and excel at.
5. Social Connections: Working part-time can expand a teenager’s social network beyond their immediate circle of friends and family. These connections can offer support, mentorship, and potentially open doors to future opportunities. Sometimes, I speak with teens who are thinking about working simply because some of their friends are, and they don’t want to be left behind.
6. Sense of Responsibility: Holding a job fosters a sense of responsibility and maturity. Teenagers learn the value of commitment, punctuality, and reliability, traits that are highly regarded in both personal and professional contexts. In working, they get to enter the adult world at a time of their choosing, even if it’s in a limited format.
7. Confidence Building: Successfully balancing work and other commitments can significantly boost a teenager’s confidence. Achieving goals, overcoming challenges, and receiving positive feedback from employers and coworkers contribute to a stronger sense of self-esteem.
8. Saving for Future Needs: Many teenagers work part-time with the specific goal of saving for future needs, such as higher education expenses, travel, or a major purchase. This forward-thinking approach demonstrates an understanding of the importance of planning and saving.
9. Contributing to Family: Some teenagers take on part-time jobs to contribute financially to their family’s household. This sense of contribution can enhance family dynamics and provide a deep sense of personal satisfaction and pride. This factor is a particularly important one to consider in the conversation, as some kids may perceive that they need to contribute financially (or simply be less of a ‘burden’) when they don’t actually need to, and even if they do need to work we need to balance their own academic and career goals with the demands of their family.

Possible drawbacks to working

It’s not all sunshine and roses, and there are some real drawbacks to working part time while still at school – ignoring them would be a mistake.

These form the other half of the conversation, and also need to be considered by the teenager and the people supporting them:

1. Reduced Time for Academic Commitments: Engaging in part-time work can limit the time available for homework, study, and academic projects. This reduced focus on academics can potentially lead to lower grades and a decreased ability to engage in deep learning.
2. Impact on Health: The additional stress of balancing work and school responsibilities can adversely affect a teenager’s physical and mental health. Insufficient rest, increased stress levels, and poor eating habits can result in fatigue, burnout, and heightened vulnerability to illness.
3. Decreased Social and Leisure Time: Part-time employment can encroach on time that would otherwise be spent with friends, family, or engaging in leisure activities. This loss of social interaction can affect relationships and lead to feelings of isolation or missing out on key experiences typical of adolescence.
4. Cognitive Overload: Teenagers have limited cognitive capacity, and splitting focus between work, school, and other activities can lead to cognitive overload. This can decrease their ability to concentrate and retain information, impairing academic performance and reducing efficiency in task completion.
5. Loss of Control Over Time: Managing work commitments on top of school deadlines and personal activities can make teenagers feel like they have lost control over their own time. This can lead to a sense of being constantly rushed and unable to fully commit to or enjoy any single activity. Control is so important at this age, and teenagers need to carefully consider if they are willing to give up this slice of control in taking on work. The other side of the coin is that they may lose control over their time, but they’ll gain more control over their finances.
6. Workplace Exploitation: Teenagers, particularly those new to the workforce, may be at risk of exploitation, such as being paid less than the minimum wage, working excessive hours, or enduring unsafe working conditions. Educating teenagers about their rights at work is crucial to mitigating this risk and ensuring they are treated fairly.

So, should they be working part time or not?

At the end of the day, this is a decision that needs to be made on a case by case basis by the person who’ll actually be doing the work. It’s a multifaceted issue, but I think there the potential benefits of working are so significant that every teenager should consider their options – in other words, there’s no easy ‘yes’ or ‘no’.

Those who do want to work should feel supported and empowered to do so, which is why we’ve built the Ready to Work program. We’re hoping that it will give those working with teens resources to build work readiness skills and create confidence.

You can read past editions of Pondering Careers here.