As kids grow up, we are expected to take on more and more responsibility in order to prepare for the outside world. Whether this be taking difficult classes or joining sports and clubs, teenagers become more and more stressed out as high school goes on. But some students go all the way, and get a job. At this school specifically, many AP students have taken on the extra stress of being in the work force.
“I work at Freddy’s,” informs Miel Lewis (11). “I definitely find it difficult to balance school and work. I work more than, I guess, the average student. It can be, like, 37 hours sometimes over the course of two weeks.”
While that might not seem like a lot to non-workers, it can be a heavy load when working at least six hours at a time, and especially working right after school. It can be especially difficult when the student has a test the next day, or just a rigorous AP class.
“Sometimes it can be hard to balance school and work, especially at night because I don’t get home till around 11,” spills Natalie Chu (11), who works at Bruster’s.
“I put a lot of effort in. I stay up a lot of late nights. It’s really difficult to work five hours and come back and do your homework, but you’ve just gotta push through,” says Blake Kovatch (11), who works at Wendy’s.
If it wasn’t obvious, getting a job is not for everyone. It requires time management skills and constant organization.
“Sometimes I’ll get home at 12 a.m. and I won’t have enough time to do homework because I’m just too tired, so I’ll just go to bed and do it in the morning. It can be difficult just to pass my classes. Sometimes I’ll have a test the next day, but I can’t study, because I’ll be at work,” says Lewis.
“I wouldn’t recommend it for the average, undedicated student,” confesses Kovatch.
But it seems that these students still don’t regret their added responsibility of employment. It’s helped them learn to take on more responsibility, how to deal with taxes, and how to manage money.
“I would recommend getting a job just to have some money on your side and get to know how things work,” states Lewis. “I started to learn how to file my taxes, calculate tax, and stuff like that. It also gave me an insight on what the real world is like.”
Picture Credits: Lubbock Avalanche- Journal