Many students choose to work during college, whether to give a boost to their savings, make an extra little spending cash, or afford their education! Finding a job as a college student can be tricky, so it’s important to know what you should do (and where you should look) to increase your chances of getting hired.
Here are some must-know tips for how to find a job while you are in college!
Flickr user Alper Çuğun
How to Find a Job in College
1. Start Your Search With Your School
Before anything else, you should look into your school for potential job opportunities. Many colleges and universities have jobs set aside for their students. While these will likely be set aside for work-study students first, not all of them will be. It may be worth checking out your school’s website to see available positions.
For additional opportunities, students can also head to their college’s career center. These parts of the school often have partnerships with nearby organizations that hire college students, including ones that haven’t graduated yet.
2. Searching Locally vs Searching Online
If your school doesn’t have any available positions either on campus or through their career center, your next options are to search locally or search for remote positions. There are, however, benefits and downsides to each.
Local businesses and organizations are often used to working with college students. They’ll be aware that you have a college schedule and be willing to work within that schedule. They will also understand that you will likely be unavailable during finals week and be heading home frequently, either for weekends or over breaks. Though spots will be limited – they can only hire so many college students before positions are full!
Remote and online work is another option for college students. There are plenty of positions that have fully gone online in recent years and offer flexible schedules. Some will not quite fit into your college schedule, but there are a few out there to apply to! You may also want to consider freelancing if you have a skill that could be sold online, such as artwork, writing, or video editing.
3. Be Honest About Your Schedule Upfront
Although you may want to hide the fact you’re a college student from prospective employers thinking it will only hurt your application, don’t. You don’t want to put your college education at risk due to an inflexible schedule, miss classes, or potentially lose your job if it comes to light. Most employers will understand that you have classes you need to attend and exams you have to study for. Especially when it comes to most local employers, they will work with you!
4. Create Class Schedules With A Job in Mind
If you are planning on working during college, it’s important to also give thought to your class schedule and the room you leave open for work. Although weekend work can be available, most jobs will also want you to work a couple of weekdays. As such, a course schedule that has classes in the morning and in the evening may not be best suited for a job. You might be able to squeeze a few hours of work in between those classes, but will it really be worth it? And will your employer want you for those hours?
Scheduling your classes into blocks makes it much easier to do shift work with your position. If you plan all your classes together, you leave plenty of room for homework, studying, and your job!
5. Consider an Internship
Internships aren’t all unpaid – there are plenty of opportunities that pay! And your college may just be able to partner you with potential internships that fit your job/career goals. You can also reach out to companies and organizations that fit your career and major goals, and ask them about internships. Some will even craft a position if you ask!
6. Work With the Career Center to Craft Your Resume
Even if your college career center doesn’t have any jobs available, that doesn’t mean the center won’t do anything for you! Career centers help prepare students for the workforce by polishing resumes, offering mock interviews, and giving general application tips. It may be worth it to schedule a meeting with them to go over your approach to finding a job so they can streamline it for you! It’s also great information and practice for when you graduate college and are looking to start your career.
Finding a job during college isn’t for everyone, but some students want or need that extra cash. Knowing how to look for a position is half the battle though. From your school to online, there are plenty of places to start your search! If you’re struggling to find a position at all, be sure to schedule a meeting with your college’s career center.
If you want to find a job or internship while you’re in college that fits your career goals, be sure to check out College Raptor’s Career Finder. The resource has a ton of information about job growth, required majors, salaries, and more. Use it for free here!
