Titans Talk About Balancing School and Jobs
Hanafia Arsad
Staff Writer
Alexandria City High School students have been struggling under the weight of school and work obligations. Time management is an important role in the life of a busy student; writing agendas, organizing schedules, coping with stress, and enjoying life as a teenager.
Is it hard to balance school and work responsibilities?
Senior Jean Paul Bautista works in the Bradlee Shopping Center. He said, ” It depends on the responsibilities, but it’s hard as most of the time needs to be put into school responsibilities.”
Sophomore Jolan Foronda is a student-athlete who is a swim coach. He said, “For me, I don’t think it’s been difficult to cope with doing work while having school responsibilities. What I do for work is only once a week during the school year, so I don’t have to worry too much about it. Even when I do need to worry, I can usually find a way to balance the responsibilities so that it’s not too much of a hassle. Especially in June, when my job begins to be everyday and we begin finals and everything that month, it can be hard to balance the work and studying, but I always find a way around it to help me be more relaxed and not too stressed.”
Senior Mohammed Tahsin Ahnaf works at a 7/11 shop. He said, “Although it is difficult to manage work and school responsibilities, as a student I believe we all should achieve the tasks that challenge us. And colleges love a student that works part time, which shows leadership skills. In order to balance both responsibilities I sacrificed a few things from both work and school. In my senior year, I cut off a few days of work and I dropped out of an AP class that was weighing me down. I only wish teachers were more considerate about students that have jobs.”
Is it your decision to work? Why?
Students find that jobs provide them experience and money without relying on their parents.
Bautista said, “It is my decision to work as I don’t feel comfortable asking for money from my parents for something I want, but do not need.”
Foronda said, “Yes, it is my decision to work. I decided to start working because I wanted to be able to have my own source of income. It helps a lot because it allows me to be able to pay for things I want and need for myself without having to rely on my parents or relatives to give me money. It also gives me a sense of self responsibility. Being able to manage how much I spend and how much I save is up to me. Sometimes I do end up spending too much, which is a lesson to learn from and to do better next time, but whenever I do earn money, I make sure I put enough of it aside to save.”
Tahsin said, “It is my decision to work. Although most work-study students have jobs out of necessity, I work because of the experience I gain from it, and sometimes paying bills for your parents makes them feel proud of you. If any high school student is questioning whether they should get a part time job or not, my unbiased answer is absolutely. You learn a sense of adulthood. Just make sure you also keep time for yourself, meaning don’t overdo it.”
