Balancing Work and School

I graduate. I print my job application, and it’s blank.

When you graduate and need to find an adult job or go to college, having prior work experience gives you a step up. Having a job in high school gives you both money and experience and shows you how to balance school and work.

Shelby Larcher, a senior at LHS, works at Westwood in Rathdrum. She works roughly four days a week, usually, from 4 to 9 p.m. Shelby takes college classes and generally has A’s across the board. Having a job teaches her independence, responsibility, and time management. 

“Having a job is only hard when I have to be up late to get something important done for the next day.”

Balancing work and school can be a job in itself. Some students can easily keep good grades while working, but others struggle a bit. 

Deegan Chambers, a senior at LHS, is a logger who works about 70 hours a week on average. He has hopes to move into the path of wildland fire fighting. He thinks it is hard to keep good grades because of the amount of time he spends logging. 

“Kids can’t live on mommy’s money forever. It is up to them to find a job and start pulling themselves up by their own straps”.

Whether it is working for an hour after school for your parents or having a full-time job on the side, it is proven possible to successfully graduate with good grades and work experience.

If you get a job and don’t decide to have a good work ethic, though, that is counterproductive.  

Students that have a job and play a school sport have an even harder time trying to maintain good grades. 

I personally have a job at Flame and Cork in Hayden, and I play for the Lakelands soccer team. With school from 8 to 2, practice from 2:30 to 4, and work from 4:30 to 10, I don’t have much free time during the week. I have never failed a class, so obviously, I have developed time management skills. 

Not only did I want to get a job, but my parents pushed me to get one. 

Having a job while in high school is nowhere near fun, but it teaches you things like customer service skills, patience, and experience in the given industry. 

Get a job!