Working while in college is common, but it can affect student success in different ways. Many students may balance work and school comfortably with some even benefiting academically from the experience. For others, work may involve irregular hours that conflict with course availability, require long commutes, limit day care options, and physically or emotionally drain the student.
- Most students work while attending college. (Q29)
- Three-quarters of respondents at 2-year institutions indicated that they work for pay, as did 69 percent of 4-year respondents.
- Respondents at 2-year institutions who worked were more likely to report working 40 or more hours while attending college. (Q130)
- More than a third of respondents at 2-year institutions who work for pay report working 40 or more hours a week. Only 19 percent of 4-year respondents who work for pay report that they work 40 or more hours.
Q29: Do you work for pay?
Most students work while attending college. (Q29, Q34)
- Three-quarters of respondents at 2-year institutions indicated that they work for pay, as did 69 percent of 4-year respondents.
Q129: Do you consider yourself a student who works or a worker that goes to school? (of respondents who reported they work for pay)
Among respondents with jobs, students attending 4-year institutions were more likely to identify as students first and workers second. (Q129)
- Of those respondents at 4-year institutions who work for pay while attending college, 79 percent consider themselves a student who works and 21 percent consider themselves a worker that goes to school.
- Respondents attending 2-year institutions who work for pay see themselves differently; only 54 percent consider themselves a student who works and 46 percent consider themselves a worker that goes to school.
Q130: During the school year, about how many hours do you spend in a typical 7-day week working for pay? (of respondents who reported they work for pay)
Respondents with jobs who attend 2-year institutions were more likely report working 40 or more hours while attending college. (Q130)
- Eighty-two percent of respondents at 4-year institutions who work for pay report working fewer than 40 hours with 42 percent working between 20-39 hours and 40 percent working less then 20 hours. Only 19 percent of 4-year respondents report that they work 40 or more hours.
- In contrast, more than a third of respondents at 2-year institutions who work for pay report they work 40 or more hours a week (39 percent). Only 21 percent of 2-year respondents report that they work fewer than 20 hours a week.
Q131-134: If your work hours have changed in the past year, what was the main reason? (of respondents who reported they work for pay)*
When students have to change their work hours, it can affect the amount of money they make and/or the availability of courses that fit into their schedule. (Q131-134)
- Regardless of school sector attended, students who work for pay often report that their work hours change during the year. Seventy-three percent of students attending at 2-year institutions and 78 percent at 4-year schools saw their work hours change in the past year.
- For these students, the main reason cited for a change in work hours was to accommodate a shift in their course requirements. A higher percentage of respondents at 4-year institutions (57 percent) adjusted work schedules to meet their class schedules, compared to 2-year respondents (48 percent).
- Around a third of respondents at 2-year and 4-year institutions reported that their hours changed because they needed to make more money to pay expenses. Fewer than one in five respondents saw hours change because their employer changed their work schedule.
Busy students juggling work and/or family obligations need more flexible course schedules. Many colleges use student feedback to ensure that courses – especially gateway courses – are available at early and/or late hours that better accommodate student work routines.
