Student Salary: Student Work Jobs

For most students, being at school is all about learning in their classes, but for a quarter of the Upper School kids, school also involves having a job during their free block or after school. Many students have found jobs through the school’s work-study program, such as reshelving books, grading papers, doing sports photography, and more. These roles can be a fun, low stress way to get experience in a working environment.

 If you are younger than 18 years old, you first must receive a work permit in order to get a work-study job. Brittany Nuño, the Upper School Division Coordinator, says that after students apply for an available job, they fill out a work permit application. A teacher then fills out a statement of intent to employ them, and after the student obtains the necessary signatures, they turn their application into Nuño with an ID. Once she processes it, she will issue them a work permit. “

For many students at the School, work-study jobs are not only a source of money, but also a way to get experience in a working environment without having to leave campus. Freshman Andrea Walker, who works in the library, decided to join the work-study program because she “loves the library, loves to read, and loves Ms. Cuellar.” She also started working in the library to earn some money, which is a motivator for many students employed at the School, although some students opt for volunteer hours instead of a paycheck. Freshman Loire Williams added that her job makes her “feel more independent.” Fellow freshman Kyla Robertson agreed, saying, “It gets you prepared for life.”

Work-study jobs are not only great for students, they’re also beneficial for teachers. Juan Fuentes, a math teacher at the School, said that teacher’s assistants (TA) are helpful for him to minimize the time spent grading. Instead, he says, “I could just have a rubric and have a TA fill it out, and it saves me a lot of time.” In addition, being a TA also helps students better comprehend the subjects they are helping with. As Fuentes said, “they generally want to learn more about the subject, or they felt that subject was empowering when they took the class.” 

According to teachers’ and students’ perspectives, the School’s work-study program offers teachers a helping hand in the classroom, and gives students valuable experience for the future.