<p>My son just finished his freshman year. He signed up for a summer class and is working two summer jobs. None of my son’s friends have gotten jobs this summer. One of them just asked my son why he was working at all! I don’t get it. What is that thinking all about? </p>
<p>I asked my son what they are going to do for spending money. Apparently, parents are giving their kids pocket money for this school year. I know that we can’t afford to do that. My son has fraternity dues (his choice) in addition to his walking around money. I know that one parent did tell me that she is going to pay for fraternity dues this year for her son if he gets involved with Greek life this year.</p>
<p>We told son either he had to work or go to summer school. He did a Maymester abroad and is now taking 2 classes and working some for my husband. To my surprise (and delight) most of his friends are working at least part-time this summer. None of them did during high school.</p>
<p>We do give son pocket money during the school year but he knows he’s going to need to find some PT work next year. We gave him a free pass freshman year because we wanted him to concentrate on his school work.</p>
<p>That’s interesting. Most of my son’s friends have not bothered looking for a job. Most did not work in hs either. My son did work for a bit for 2 summers while in hs (only 20 hours per week in hs). </p>
<p>Two of my son’s friends have tried finding a job and they were not successful to date, but the others never bothered looked for a job. Now one of them is asking why my son is bothering to work! These are bright kids who work very hard on their studies. They are definitely not lazy when comes to school work.</p>
<p>We are with you northeastmom. All of our kids have worked in college- the amount depending on their class load. They all worked in high school also; they have all been anxious to help contribute, even though now that I think about it, I don’t think we have ever told them they had to work. They knew that if they wanted anything extra, they would have to earn the money for it. I remember wanting to get a job as soon as I was old enough so that I could have money for extra things in high school. My kids always seemed to like working, and I feel like they appreciated their purchases more knowing that they worked for them. Our last one in high school is only 15, but signed up with youth employment this summer and has earned some money weeding, doing cleaning jobs, and pet sitting. He would have a hard time working during the school year as he has a lot of EC activities, but he was anxious to find something this summer. Our junior in college works during breaks and summers to earn spending money for college- as a theater major who does shows at odd times throughout the year, she has a hard time finding a job that fits with her schedule during the school year. Our older two worked from the time they were 16. Both have now graduated from college- our D with her master’s- and she has been so thrifty with her money that she bought her first house at 24. I really think they learned the value of money from their hard work and many odd jobs. If students can fit work into their schedules, I feel as if it really teaches them to appreciate how hard it is to earn a living!</p>
<p>takeitallin, my son likes working too. He loves to watch his bank account grow and he needs every dime. I also know how important Greek life is to him because I don’t pay for that, and those bills would be too high for me. I never asked him to work 2 jobs at the same time, but he is managing it. I also did not ask him to work so many hours while taking his summer class and that worked out well too.</p>
<p>My son loved his w/s job too. He only hopes to get one this year as well. He hopes to work during the school year as well.</p>
<p>Same here…my son was lucky and was rehired by a retail store he worked for last summer. He contacted them at spring break and they kept a slot open for him. Not one of his friends has a job though most are doing at least one class at the local CC (my son is doing an online class).</p>
<p>My son said the other kids looked for jobs, but I think that meant they applied at a couple of the more desirable places. I don’t think any of them applied for any fast food or restaurant bus boy jobs. If they really wanted jobs they wouldn’t be so picky!!!</p>
<p>Last summer my D applied for several jobs, including fast food. No one would hire her, even though she is hard working, responsible, and is very bright. Why? Because she attends college out of state, and employers preferred to hire workers who can work longer than 3 months. She took one class at our local university, did an unpaid internship 2 days a week, and after 6 weeks home was finally hired at a local nursing home for the rest of the summer.</p>
<p>This summer she is working a full-time unpaid internship she obtained thru her school and is in another city. They also provide a stipend to cover living expenses. She will be home when it’s over for a little over 3 weeks and fortunately has been offered a job (paid!) during that time.</p>
<p>“Apparently, parents are giving their kids pocket money for this school year. I know that we can’t afford to do that.” - We can afford to do that (especially with DS’s scholarship), but we’d prefer not to. Kids learn a lot from jobs, especially grunt jobs. </p>
<p>The problem is as others describe… not many summer jobs for kids staying only 3 months. (Some kids continue their hs job, but our son was waaaay too busy with schoolwork and music to have a hs job. Even the GC told us, “school is his job”… and that advise did yield several nice scholarship offers. ) Next year we hope for an internship - he only needs one offer </p>
<p>college_query - Kudos to your daughter for making the most of opportunities!</p>
<p>I was able to obtain a job right after my senior year of high school. That first summer I did not get more than maybe 10-12 hours a week. The second summer it increased to maybe 15 a week but even that was touchy at times. The third summer I still had the same job, but also added an internship which was unpaid but very demanding hours-wise. Last summer I spent the summer in Wisconsin doing a paid internship that also included housing and meals. I was able to keep my summer job for the period that I wasn’t doing my internship. Now, I work full-time for the company. I literally went from the very bottom to a mid-level position in the company. Loyalty and respect are a two-way street in the job world…</p>
<p>My son also had a bit of trouble finding a job, but he did get 3 offers within a week. One job was one that he worked while in hs, and it is a seasonal job so working for only the summer was not an issue. He applied to a lot of places to land a job and he applied as soon as he came home.</p>
<p>The second job hired him and my son quit once offered the third job because this job was awful. I do feel that they were taking advantage of the fact that it is an employer’s market and they were not nice at all. </p>
<p>The third job has worked out very well and my son likes it.</p>
<p>My kids have all worked summer jobs since the age of 14. And then supplemented that with babysitting. They learned pretty quickly that hourly they actually did better babysitting. Oldest is subletting on campus this year, found two jobs and is taking a course. She called me last month after her restaurant job and informed me that she has been watching the manager with applicants. There are several universities in the city where she lives and her perspective is that all the applicants look presentable, and must be reasonably intelligent, given the universities they are attending. None of them are getting hired because the manager prefers to hire employees with experience! And her other job is a church run daycamp (all those babysitting references paid off!)</p>
<p>She was bit amazed and grateful that all those summer jobs that she did for spending money and extras have enabled her to snag two jobs and pay for her summer.</p>
<p>It is actually quite hard to get a seasonal job unless you work in a seasonal business. Kids who have the credentials to be lifeguards or camp counselors do well, but many others do not. </p>
<p>I think that if working for pay in the summer is a high priority, it’s a good idea to look for a job in a seasonal business, either at home or in the college community (where there are usually plenty of cheap summer sublets), many months in advance. In my area at least, camp jobs fill in the winter for the following summer.</p>
<p>Bhmomma, that is why I am thrilled that my kid got that 3rd job. It is giving him the work experience that he needs to land future work. This year he really did not have this type of work experience, but he was hired anyway.</p>
<p>What I don’t get was the comment about, “Why are you bothering to work”? Is this a new trend that college students think that they should not bother looking for work? I don’t understand that line of thinking. I know that in college I would have felt guilty taking money from my parents to go to the movies, to buy that extra blouse, etc. My father used to send a couple of dollars here or there, but I worked summers for some cash. Additionally, most of these students have cars which means gas, insurance, etc. My son does not have a car because that is also a bill that I cannot afford to pay.</p>
<p>Scary since colleges expect that students contribute something toward their college educations. Some percentage are also involved in Greek life and that could run 1-2k+, I guess. Others have car expenses. I know that my son has to pay $1500 per year for the Greek life he has chosen. I certainly don’t have a spare $2k to just hand him.</p>
<p>I don’t think this is a new trend because of the economy at all. I remember thinking this back when my kids were in high school and few of their friends had jobs. One mom actually told me that “they’ll have plenty of time for that after college.” They felt they should enjoy their freedom while they were young and still gave their late teen and early twenties kids spending money. Not in this household. After my kids moved out and we looked for kids to do odd jobs around the house, we found that few would want to mow a lawn for $25. They didn’t need the money. Few of those kids cope very well with their finances now.</p>
<p>Hmmm, I thought it was a lousy economy thing. You just jolted my memory. One mother told me that her kids don’t have to work this summer. They are twins going to college this fall. I don’t get it, as they are not rich.</p>
<p>*They felt they should enjoy their freedom while they were young *</p>
<p>That’s why we see some kids posting that they don’t want to take their W/S offerings. They view their college life as one where they will go to class, do their homework…and then have oodles of time for fun…and they don’t want some stinkin’ job that might require them to be somewhere when something fun is happening elsewhere.</p>
<p>D and friends are all working. It seems as if hiring is down here, but most have gone back to the jobs they had last summer. D says she most likely would not have gotten hired this year had she not worked last year and they really like her.</p>
</p>