Spring Break
Work may hurt school performance
A report that 46 percent of all full-time working students spend at least 25 hours a week working instead of studying
Dray Miller, Daily Staff Writer
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Elkin is just one of many students at SJSU who pull double duty by working a full time job while they put a full time effort into the classroom, in the hopes of earning a college degree that may lead them on to better jobs in the future.
A report released last week by the California Public Information Research Group's (Calpirg) Higher Education Project, the California State Student Association and the University of California Student Association suggested almost half of all full-time college students who work are putting in enough hours on their jobs to hurt their performance in class.
Elkin, a member of the local Teamsters Union, said he takes classes in the morning, then heads to work in the afternoon, where he often stays as late as one or two in the morning.
This schedule allows him to sleep six to seven hours a night, if he is lucky, he said, but leaves him little time for anything else.
"It's a major pain in the ass," Elkin, an English major, said of splitting time between work and school. "It's different working and going to school because there are other things in life a college student would like to do, including spending the money you make."
He added family and friends often get placed on the backburner in favor of work and studies.
The report released last week, titled "At What Cost?: The Price that Working Students Pay for a College Education," was based on data from the 1999-2000 Department of Education's National Postsecondary Student Aid Survey.
About 50,000 undergraduate students, representing 65 million, were surveyed for the report, according to Calpirg Higher Education Advocate Merriah Fairchild.
It estimated 46 percent of all full-time working students work at least 25 hours a week, and 42 percent of those students reported their work schedule had negative impacts on their grades. Sixty-three percent of students who work 25 or more hours a week reported they would not have been able to afford college if they did not work, and one fifth of all full-time working students put in 35 or more hours a week on their jobs.
Fairchild said the report came out at a good time, since California legislators are preparing to map out their budget for next year.
"It's an important time to encourage them to prioritize higher education," she said.
Alternatives to working, such as grants and student loans, do not appear to be a popular choice among students who depend on themselves for a college education.
Laura Kerr, a representative of the California State Student Association, related her own personal experiences to the report.
She said while she was an undergraduate student at Humboldt State University, she worked 35 hours a week in addition to a full schedule of on-campus activities and classes, and was ultimately forced to stop work to enhance her performance in the classroom.
"I honestly thought I could do it all," Kerr said. "It took a (faculty member) to sit me down and basically tell me something was going to have to give."
Kerr said she had already taken out student loans, and elected to quit work and take more loans out, a move that allowed her to focus more on school.
But she said that taking out student loans isn't necessarily the best idea for students.
"I think if a person has dreams of higher education, they have to consider the amount of debt they will incur down the line," Kerr said, referring to the interest students accumulate on student loans.
Grants, which do not require repayment, do not appear to be a viable resort for most students either.
According to the report, since 1981, the average grant aid per student, as a percentage of average tuition and fees at a typical public four-year institution, has dropped by 33 percent.
Such statistics, the report suggests, show students are in need of government intervention to ease the stress and workload of many college students.
"The typical full-time student spends 36 to 45 hours a week on their course work. Students who work 25 or more hours a week are spending 60-80 hours on academics or paid work," Fairchild said. "Congress should make college more affordable by increasing grant aid so that students are not sacrificing a quality college experience."
