Should Teens get part-time jobs during the school year or....

[Disney Doll]

I started working when I was 16. Worked part-time all through high school and nursing school in an ice cream store. I did fine in school, with working and playing sports as well.

Worked as a nurse while I continued college to get a BSN. Did fine with that too.

 

[Feralpeg]

I do not want my DD to hold down a regular job until she graduates from college. She graduates this week from high school. It is not about whether she could do it or not. I just don't think it is necessary. She does work on an irregular basis acting. That gives her some spending money. I'd rather she concentrate on school and have some time to be a kid. She will have to deal with a life of work soon enough. This is just my feelings for my daughter. What other people do with their kids is totally up to them and none of my business.

 

[Jenn Lynn]

A summer job is a terrific idea, and the best way to do it is to give the kid a marketable skill. Lifeguard training isn't terribly expensive and doesn't take a long time, and summer jobs as lifeguards in condo complexes are pretty nice.

This is what a lot of the kids in my HS did. They were lifeguards and taught swimming lessons at the local pool.

In our community the jobs my friends and I had were very flexible with our schedules. One of my friends only did one sport and basically stopped working during that sport and then started up again when the season was done.

I think summer jobs are perfectly fine.

 

[georgina]

I knew from an early age that I had to pay my own way through college. I worked summers and about 20 hours a week through my last 2 years of high school (mostly weekends, with one 3 or 4 hour shift during the week.) Sure it may have impacted my social life some, but there were not as many activities to get involved in at my HS 30 years ago. It did not affect my GPA and I recieved two academic scholarships to college. I think working depends on the child and the job; I wouldn't make one judgment for everybody.

 

[The Mystery Machine]

I worked while in school and got fine grades. Some kids are capable of doing well in school and having a part time job, others aren't. Also some jobs are more flexible than not. So it depends on the job and the kid.

I agree. DD just turned 15, she wants a job at "Border's" when she turns 16. I told her she has to maintain a B & up average.

 

[Stephanie218]

I coundn't imagine not having worked in high school. I started working at 16 and worked up to 25 hours a week during school, while keeping up with all my extra curriculars (band, orchestra, plays) and graduating with a 3.9. I just couldn't imagine having my parents pay for everything anymore. I wouldn't be able to get the clothes I wanted, or take vacations like I do now. I left for college with over $2000 in the bank, besides what I paid my parents for car insurance and what I had spend on clothes/activities in high school.

I actually found it harder to work in college than high school, just because my class schedule is so varied. I do some work for my dad's company online, but also found a job babysitting around 10 hours a week. I worked at Abercrombie in the fall, but spent more than I earned, so I decided it wasn't worth it. So I quit, but purchased $700 in gift cards before I quit at the employee rate of 30% off. Thus, prepaid for clothes for a fairly long time.

I know some kids aren't able to work during high school because of sports, but I don't see what they could be doing during the summer that's so productive that they couldn't work a few hours a week. It was honestly just really nice having my own money, and I'll appreciate it when I graduate college and have money in the bank.

On one extreme, a friend of mine graduated HS with a 4.0, and earned almost $50,000 a year owning her own petsitting business with her older brother. She went to college driving a year old Mercedes convertible, and later sold it for a profit, and now has over $100,000 in the bank that she's going to work on investing this summer while she interns at Lehman Brothers in NYC.

ETA: forgot about trips - I paid for my own way to Disney senior year as a senior trip with my boyfriend. Since then, we've also gone to Hawaii and California, paying our own way. I never would have been able to do that without working - I think my parents would have laughed if I asked them for $1,000 for a spring break trip to Hawaii.

 

[Tigger&Belle]

I do not want my teens getting regular jobs during the school year. I want them concentrating on their school work and participating in sports. My 15yo does babysit and earns good money doing that (my 18yo college DD did the same). He can accept babysitting jobs when he has time and turn then down when he has too much homework and the money is good (up to $10/hr, depending on the family), so he doesn't have to work a lot of hours to have some spending $ and save $.

My 18yo also used to mow our grass and got paid a little for that. Her 12yo brother now has that job and he might end up mowing neighbors grass, but will more likely end up umping youth baseball games, which would be a very flexible part-time schedule (I think the teen umps gets something like $50/2 hour game).

I do expect my older teens to work in the summer, but my DD was not so motivated, which meant that she had very little spending money this first year of college. In turn that meant that she was very motivated to find a job this summer.

My 15yo wants to find a job this summer, but most places don't hire 15yo's, so he'll probably volunteer and do babysitting.

 

[Nasi]

Last year, my DD aged 15 wanted to work. I was nervous because she is really into music, takes lessons on 2 instruments, was a cheerleader, and school must come first. she worked at the local amusement park over the summer. It seemed to work out well. She loved it and couldn't wait to go back this year. It is a little hard in May when school is still in session though with homework and concerts. She had to be very careful with requests to coordinate her schedule. She loved having her own money. Nancy

 

[auntpolly]

I coundn't imagine not having worked in high school. I started working at 16 and worked up to 25 hours a week during school,

Did you have a 36 hour day or something? I don't see how kids today could work all those hours and be in the band too. They really require a lot of hours from those kids!

 

[Tigger&Belle]

I agree. DD just turned 15, she wants a job at "Border's" when she turns 16. I told her she has to maintain a B & up average.

Does your Borders hire at 16? Ours hires at 18 since they have adult magazines and they don't want to worry about which employees are stocking the different magazines (at least that's what my DD was told when she tried to get a job there a couple years ago). I figured it was a company wide policy (which of course could be that was changed).

 

[The Mystery Machine]

Does your Borders hire at 16? Ours hires at 18 since they have adult magazines and they don't want to worry about which employees are stocking the different magazines (at least that's what my DD was told when she tried to get a job there a couple years ago). I figured it was a company wide policy (which of course could be that was changed).

Nope we haven't looked into it. That stinks. I will have to tell her. She won't be happy about that.
Thanks for the info!!!!

As far as SPORTS....my girls DO NOT do "sports". They need to fill their "college card" with something else.
My older dd is having a time with this. She is in Band right now.

My younger dd probably won't. She is into Academic's and already has a 1st place win in a writing competition at the tender age of 9. She can't wait to join all the "writing" things.

 

[Lynn CC]

DS is 19 just finished his frehman year in college. He won't get a job until he's done with college. He's double majoring and will be attending language schools every summer to learn Chinese and Japanese.
He's in for next summer, we are keeping our fingers crossed that someone who is admitted decides not to go for this summer, he's next on the waiting list!!
This program doesn't allow them to hold a job while attending so it looks like we will be supporting him until he's around 30 LOL

 

[The Mystery Machine]

Wow...do tell. What are language schools? DD wants to learn Japanese.

 

[Tigger&Belle]

Did you have a 36 hour day or something? I don't see how kids today could work all those hours and be in the band too. They really require a lot of hours from those kids!

And I can't imagine working long hours if a child is in sports. My 12yo son plays select baseball and between practices and games he plays 16 hours a week. That doesn't count travel time and half the games are an hour away. I'm assuming that he'll be playing even more in high school, not to mention that his homework load will be greater. I can picture him umping a couple games a week or doing a little babysitting or lawn mowing (ie, flexible schedule), but I can't imagine him working a regular job. Not and keep up his studies and play a sport, especially a demanding one. I also want him to have some fun as a teen--not too much free time for the wrong kind of fun, but there's plenty of time to be stressed and have too many things to do and I don't want to add that too much when my kids are teens (but they do have chores, etc and don't have the "easy life"). Balance is important.

 

[Tigger&Belle]

Nope we haven't looked into it. That stinks. I will have to tell her. She won't be happy about that.
Thanks for the info!!!!

Maybe it's different there or maybe they've changed their policy. It does make sense from their perspective, but my DD was frustrated when she wanted to get a job there. I tried to find it on their website, but I don't see anything about ages. Maybe you can casually ask the next time you are in.

 

[Lynn CC]

Wow...do tell. What are language schools? DD wants to learn Japanese.

www.middlebury.edu

Just click on language schools on the middle of the page and you can learn all about the program. It's very hard to get into, but it's such a great language program! Let me know what you think.

 

[DVC Sadie]

We were required to work in the summers while in high school but not allowed during the school year. While I worked as a receptionist in my fathers business it still allowed me to save some money plus taught me how to work.

We still went on family vacations during the summer so it would have been difficult to find a job anywhere else that would give us such a flexible schedule.

 

[NMAmy]

I'm kind of torn on this issue. When I was a kid, my dad said absolutely no jobs until we graduated (except for babysitting--which I did a lot.) He grew up during the Depression and had to work to help support his family from the time he was 12. My grandfather died when Dad was 17; he then put himself through college and moved back home and put his younger brother and sister through college.

Since dd (15) does do sports and choir and has AP classes, it makes it a little difficult during the school year for her to work. She has worked at the Boys & Girls Club, reffing basketball games and really enjoyed it. It's extremely part-time which works out well but still allows her to experience having a job. She's spending the summer in New Mexico with her dad and he's lined up a part-time job at a vet's office for her--helping to take care of boarded dogs, etc. I think it's ok during the summer but I don't really want her to have the obligations during the school year.

 

[The Mystery Machine]

www.middlebury.edu

Just click on language schools on the middle of the page and you can learn all about the program. It's very hard to get into, but it's such a great language program! Let me know what you think.

Thanks! Just when I think I know the college stuff, another thing is revealed. Sounds wonderful!
How cool for your son.

My dd is only a Freshman in High School, she is learning Spanish but wants to learn more languages. So I am starting to take it seriously.

 

[antmaril]

My son (19) is a freshman in college. While in high school, he ONLY worked in the summer. We told him his job was to get good grades. He graduated 4th in his class, (Summa Cum Laude), was President of the National Honor Society and had a 4.2 GPA. He kept his end of the bargain and so did we. Now he's in college and again he will work only in the summer. He is going to take a class this summer as well. We do not want work to interfere with his studies. So far this is working for us. Every family is different.