Many students now work part-time while attending university. Do you think part-time work is harmful or beneficial to university students?
Nowadays, more and more students choose to work part-time while attending school. The pros and cons of working part-time usually depend on the type of work which student is doing, time range of work, student’s course load, as well as the characteristic of student. However, in my opinion, working part-time is generally more advantageous than harmful, especially to university students.
One common understanding is that working can let students accumulate working experiences. Students are able to learn more hands on skills, which they couldn't acquire such experience through regular academic study. One statistics shows that students who work part-time tend to be more responsible than students who never work. Hence students who work part-time will acquire more skills as well as have a greater sense of responsibility.
Working part-time can also alleviate financial burden of the student's family, especially when tuition fees and miscellaneous fees in university are much higher than those in high school. One of my friends was working as a part-time bank teller when she studied accountant in the university. She managed to pay for all tuition fees without asking any money from her parents. Unanimously working part-time is a very effective way to deal with financial problems, especially for students who are in need of financial aids.
Students could apply the knowledge they have learned in university to their work, thus they are able to reinforce their understanding of the theories and have a further comprehensive grasp of the subject they have done. From my personal experience, I used to work as a part-time wine test assistant whose duty was to test the impurities and quality of the wine. Such work experience absolutely helped me reinforce all the Chemistry conceptions I had learnt from school. Thus it would be invaluable if a student could find a work related to the field of study.
In addition, student could acquire a more colorful social life and a much wider networking through work. It may thus help the student build one's confidence and so he is unlikely to have mental health problems. It is also very important and helpful for university student to have a positive and vibrant social life as that enables the student to relieve stress effectively. Students can also be better prepared for their future, especially when high pressure is very common in working environment nowadays.
There is no doubt that working too much would affect the student's academic performance as one had to put a significant amount of time on working. However, if student could manage one’s time in between work and study very well, it would be absolutely advantageous for the student to work part-time while attending university.