The Importance Of Earning While Learning

Improved Essays
Earning while learning may be the key to students one day being handed their diploma. (NEWS)
A part-time job, seen to some students as something forced upon them by parents, is seen to many others as the key to learning time management and the driving force behind their academic success thus far. (CONTEXT) Jeff Atwood, an Oklahoma State University graduate, worked 30 hour weeks at a landscaping business in order to complete his degree.
“I had no financial support from mom and dad, I had just married my girlfriend of 3 years and I needed to be able to support us both,” Atwood said. “I would not have been able to graduate without that job.” (IMPACT)
Students who work a modest number of hours per week are far more likely than other students
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“I’ve left it up to them and haven’t forced them to do one or the other, but maybe I should.”
Other parents can’t afford to give their children that same choice. Eliot Bush, a senior at OSU, was told he had to get a job as soon as his feet hit Stillwater pavement freshman year.
“It wasn’t an option for me, If I wanted to go to OSU I was going to have to earn it,” Bush said.
Bush started off working 10-15 hours a week to see if he could balance both school and work. He quickly escalated to 25 hours a week and has done this every week since his sophomore year.
“A job not only helped me pay my way through college, it taught me how to get through college in general,” Bush said. “It’ll teach you how to buck up and organize your life and your priorities quick."
Bush’s work ethic and determination earned him a summer internship in Washington D.C. Bush said the values he’s used thus far to get him through the last three years are the same values that he believes are going to take him anywhere he wants to go after
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Frazier held a job in high school and all through college.
“I have had a job since the day I became old enough to legally drive myself there,” Frazier said. “Work is second nature to me, It’s not a burden or a hassle, It’s just life.”
Frazier said listening to her friends complain when their parents hadn’t sent them their $1,000 for the month yet made her want to “literally gag.” She said the same goes for people who complain about their bad grades being due to not having enough time for school because they also work part-time.
“I definitely believe having a job as a student has given me a leg up in college and in the future,” Frazier said. “Kids that have been coddled their whole lives and have had everything handed to them are in for a kick to the face when they finally fly the nest.”
Frazier said having a job while simultaneously earning a degree has taught her how to be responsible and set time aside for school so that there’s no question if assignments will get done before class the next day.
“My parents couldn’t afford everything I needed and I’m happy to help myself,” Frazier

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