Friday, March 13, 1998
Work-study gives students flexibility, experience
FINANCE: Bruins battle time difficulties but need cash to make
ends meet
By Ann Hawkey and Lawrence Ferchaw
Daily Bruin Contributors
When grants, loans and scholarships do not provide the whole
solution, UCLA students must look for employment to meet their
financial needs.
"I have no money, my parents have no money, and nobody wants to
give me money. So, I have to work," said Jane Lee, a second year
student who works part time at the UCLA Medical Center.
She is not alone. Students on work-study number over 3,000, and
the Associated Students of UCLA (ASUCLA) employs at least another
1,500. However, these figures do not reflect the total number of
students working both on and off campus.
Many students use these jobs to cover different costs of school,
including registration fees, books and commuting costs.
"I have financial aid, but most of my tuition is paid for by
scholarships," said Baudelia Chavez, a third year student. "The
only thing that’s not paid for is my books, and that’s why I
work."
Chavez works 15 to 20 hours each week as a senior student
supervisor at ASUCLA’s Campus Corner. Next quarter she will also
use her paychecks to help pay rent at home.
Although on-campus jobs may pay less and not provide as much
relevant experience for future careers, some students see great
benefits to working for ASUCLA or other school organizations. Many
cited flexibility as a good reason to work on campus.
"If I have a test, I can go in late," said Laura Moller. "Other
places don’t allow this."
Moller works at BookZone in the UCLA Store. She said she enjoys
the benefits of working for ASUCLA because it allows her to
coordinate her work schedule around her classes, allowing her to
focus on academics.
Work-study employees find academics to be not only a priority,
but a necessity. Students must meet a minimum grade point average,
as established by their college, to remain in the program.
Awards of work study funds are determined by financial need.
Students work to earn the $1,800 available a year through a variety
of jobs both on and off campus. They have their choice of jobs that
have been designated as work-study.
In a special program within work study, students involved in
community service jobs can earn up to $5,000 each year. This can
include tutoring, and volunteering to aid in medical clinics.
Student employees often need to find ways to balance work and
studying, ensuring that academics take priority. Scheduling work
around classes, and even budgeting time specifically for studying
are some ways students maximize the time they have available.
This can mean making large sacrifices and giving up personal
time in order to fund their education.
"If I want to volunteer for things, I can’t because of my work
schedule," said Chavez. "I have to worry about work first."
Some students give up more than extracurricular activities.
Working through school can mean an entirely different
lifestyle.
"I had to give up basically all of my recreation," said Maggi
Michel, a senior transfer student. "I don’t have time for casual
friends or catching movies."
Michel, a part-time student, has held the same full-time job for
over two years to support herself and pay her registration fees.
During this time, she has maintained a 3.92 grade point average,
and also spent 6 months as the Daily Bruin’s assistant director of
electronic media. She is now an editor and contributor to Bang!, an
anthology put together by the English department.
Michel credits much of her success to her time management
skills. Each quarter, she plans out when her deadlines will fall
and schedules in advance what she needs to do to meet these
deadlines. Also, she does not waste any free time.
"Whenever I’ve got 15 to 20 minutes, if I can get to a computer,
I can get stuff done," said Michel.
Time management does have its limits. After six months of
juggling work, school and her position at the Bruin, Michel needed
to give something up. She decided to leave her job at the
Bruin.
Many working students report a similar lack of time to do all
that they need to do.
"It would be crazy to say it doesn’t put a strain on their
time," said Jennifer Brydges, a counselor in the career center, of
working students. "I really admire the majority of them."
One way students can conserve time is to study while working.
Some students’ jobs allow them to do both.
As a resident assistant (RA), one of Hieu Ho’s responsibilities
includes being in his room on certain nights each week for
residents to come to him for counseling. Often, he can use this
time to do schoolwork when he is not busy working with
residents.
Though she cannot study while on the clock, Michel often uses
classroom experience. The focus of her major on cultural studies
gives her the opportunity to apply what she has learned to her job
at an international company.
"The material I was studying was relevant to them," said Michel.
"I’ve had the opportunity to do several interesting projects."
This chance to bring school experiences into the workplace,
along with convenience and relevance to studies play large roles in
student jobs, but students consider other factors as well. Personal
rewards often accompany student jobs.
"You challenge yourself [as an RA] by taking responsibility for
helping out eighty-some people," said Ho.
Along with working as an RA in Sproul Hall, Ho also works part
time as an administrative assistant for JobTrak, a job search
service. He does this to help pay his registration fees, while his
job as an RA pays for his housing and food.
Some students see personal rewards in the future applications of
their current jobs. Often when they look for jobs, students hope
for one in which they can learn skills for future jobs.
"They want to kill two birds with one stone," said Brydges.
"They want to get the experience they need and to pay for
school."