Page 298 - Keys to College Success

to include. They may review your materials for you and
offer suggestions. They may also have electronic templates
that you can use to create documents more easily.
Interviews and placement. Career offices often spon-
sor job fairs where you can connect with a variety of
employers, and they have updated job listings available.
They may coach you one-on-one before your interview,
and may also have interview workshops available to
students.
Along with your future planning, you may want or
need to work now, during your college career. Even the
most basic job has benefits in both the short term and
long term.

WHAT CAN WORKING NOW When you attend a career fair or job interview, wear professional
clothing and pay attention to your appearance -- it makes a
do for you later? positive impression.

Combine recent economic challenges with the astro-
nomical rise in college costs over the last generation, and you have a recipe for finan-
cial challenge that nearly every college student has to reckon with. “As prices soar, a
college degree statistically remains a good lifetime investment, but it often comes with
an unprecedented financial burden,” reports the New York Times. Outstanding stu-
dent loans in the U.S. have passed $1 trillion, and the average debt for all borrowers is
$23,300. Often the students who can least afford to pay back the loans in a timely
fashion are saddled with the heaviest debts. 9
To improve this grim picture, the number of students combining coursework with
one or more jobs has grown. The most recently tabulated data from the National
Center for Education Statistics (2007) showed that almost half of traditional-aged
undergraduates held jobs of some kind while in school, with over 20% working
between 20 and 34 hours a week. Given the economic challenges that have hit since
10
that time, these numbers have probably increased.
If you have to work or choose to work, take heart. Whatever you risk in devoting
time and energy to your work, you will take away a reward that will serve you in the
future.

Working On and Off Campus

Students have a range of job options, although many factors affect which jobs suit a
given student and how likely the student is to be hired. Remember that any job, no
matter what area or what tasks it requires, may in some way connect to future career A program providing
WORK–STUDY
success. Someone who takes a legal proofreading job to make extra cash might dis- employment to college
cover an interest in law. Someone who answers phones for a newspaper company students to help pay
might be drawn into journalism. A seemingly random job might lead you down a school expenses.
major life path. be federally funded or
Work–study jobs can
On-Campus Jobs independent and are
usually related to
Jobs on campus may or may not be part of a work–study program (federal work– study or focused on
students’ area of
study programs are need based, so if your school participates in a federal work–study community service.
program, you will have to demonstrate need in order to be eligible).
On-campus jobs can help you forward your career goals in several ways. One,
if you work in an area of academic or career interest, you are building knowledge
and perhaps experience as well. Two, because they are close by, often flexible and

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