For some students, a normal day is all work and no play

By Caelyn Walton-Macaulay ‘20

At a school where the academic workload is heavy and days can go on forever, some students take on the additional challenge of working a job. While this endeavor presents unique opportunities to enter the workforce and develop connections, it can put a lot of strain on students who must also keep up with schoolwork.

Up until recently, I worked at the Target in Beaverton. I quite enjoyed my job, because it gave me a sense of purpose. Plus, you know, I was getting paid. However, I worked anywhere between four and 20 hours a week, and that made it really difficult for me to be able to balance the heavy course load from school on top of all of my other commitments. 

After school, I used to go to “The Addams Family” rehearsals for two to four hours, depending on the stage the production was in. Outside of school, I play double bass in a city youth orchestra on weekends, and I attended bi-weekly private lessons during the week.

So when I started working in early December, my schedule filled right up to the brim. I had essentially no time in between all of my commitments, and it became overwhelming. I knew I would have to give something up to stay sane, so I stopped going to lessons because that seemed like the most logical choice.

My lessons teacher charged $50 per hour, and though I only saw him every other Wednesday, it wasn’t a cheap endeavor. So, faced with the option of earning my own money or spending my parents’, I chose the former. I didn't enjoy making that decision, because I love learning how to be a better musician, but like I said, I felt like it had to be done if I were to keep up with all of my other commitments.

I am not the only student who has had trouble balancing a job with other commitments. I spoke to four students with jobs across campus who have experienced the same struggles.

One student, who asked to remain anonymous, works at a grocery store in his neighborhood. 

“I worked as a courtesy clerk… for a summer, and then worked a little bit during the school year,” he told me. Around November of his sophomore year, the student decided to take a break from working.

“It was my first year at Catlin, sophomore year, and I had kind of a difficult time adjusting, and I also played basketball during the winter, and so working was just not really gonna happen.” He decided to stop working for the rest of that school year, to allow himself time to balance everything. 

The next year, he applied at the same store, this time to be a barista at the Starbucks inside the store. Recalling how he struggled to balance his workload the previous year, the student said, “I… started doing this thing where I… would work one shift a month to still have a job, and during the summer I would work full time.” This allowed him to more easily balance the heavy workload and extracurriculars like basketball. 

“Now that basketball is over, I’m going to start working twelve to twenty hours a week,” he added.

I asked him what strategies he used to keep everything on track. He told me “time management… and communication” with his teachers and his supervisor were most important.

Another student, Hannah Ellis, has worked at Ben and Jerry’s since her freshman year. She said her motivation for wanting to work was “to stay busy.” 

“I only work on the weekends,” Ellis said. “Most of the time, my hours are pretty flexible during the year… but it can be pretty challenging sometimes,” she said, referencing the difficulty of balancing a job with schoolwork and extracurricular activities.

To make the most of the time she has, Ellis sometimes does homework during her shifts, as the ice cream shop is not very busy during the winter. 

Ellis said “knowing your limits” is key to being able to balance a heavy workload. She “used to work six-hour shifts every weekend,” which included several duties like cake decorating. 

“I asked my boss if I could only do cake decorating, because it was getting to be too much.” 

Her boss agreed to limit her work to cake decorating. “I wasn’t super overwhelmed. I was just like, ‘This is getting to be a little bit too much,’ so I knew that it would make it easier.”

“I like my job,” Ellis added. “I think it’s a good use of my time. I don’t feel like I’m wasting time, because when it’s not busy, I can get other stuff done.”

Second-semester senior Phoebe Frank said her light school schedule makes it “pretty easy to manage” her overall workload. “I just try to get all my work done during free periods.”

However, she acknowledges that “if I had a busy schedule, I would 100% not be able to manage it.”

“I don’t think Catlin very well accommodates students who have to work,” Frank added.

So is there anything that Catlin Gabel School (CGS) can do to ease the pressure that students with jobs experience?

Ellis thinks not. “Catlin’s just an academically rigorous school, and it’s just the way it is with homework and stuff. I think that the only problem with balancing is there’s a lot of homework, and I don’t really see them changing that.”

I agree with Ellis: part of CGS’ reputation is the rigorous coursework and homework load, and changing that to accommodate a select few students seems unfair and unnecessary. 

I, personally, am not sure that the school has a responsibility to accommodate students with jobs, but I can second what students said about balancing school and work: time management and communication are key to maintaining a healthy workload balance, and knowing your limits makes a world of difference.