Throughout college, students tend to struggle with money whether they have a job or not. If you’re considering tackling a job in college, by all means, be my guest. The hardest part of getting a job is deciding what you’ll apply for. I am here to tell you that after my fair share of part-time jobs, going for a restaurant in your college town is the best way to go. I worked at a retail store for a month and quit because of several reasons, and now, I am happy to say that I have been working at a restaurant for a little over a month now. The switch was well worth it and definitely a change that I needed to make. Here’s why:

First of all, and most importantly, for college students we need flexible schedules so that when things come up, our employers are able to make a quick switch and can be understanding that our schoolwork comes first. It’s what we are most passionate about, and it’s what we are trying to accomplish. At my old retail job, they did not understand the reasoning behind that. Throughout my employment at that establishment, they were not respecting my rehearsal schedule or my class schedule on a regular basis. What really bothered me was that I explained that I needed Black Friday off to see my family for Thanksgiving because I am still young and being with my family during the holiday season is still very important to me. Basically, my manager told me that she wanted me to work Black Friday and that they wouldn’t have hired me if they had known this beforehand. After she said that, it felt like I wasn’t an asset to the company, I was looked down upon, and my relationship with her changed. Two days later, I told the respectable manager who originally hired me, that I needed to quit because of how I felt. With my restaurant job, they completely understand that I need to focus on my schoolwork and know that I sometimes need breaks from work to enjoy my social life.

With restaurant jobs, you get a lot of discounted food or sometimes free food. I have a 65 percent discount at my restaurant, and a lot of the time I buy food when I work because it’s a lot cheaper than buying groceries. It saves on time at home and is great for when you are on the go. The whole “food deal” is extremely useful for busybodies like myself. At my retail job, I only got a 25 percent discount on clothing and with that discount, the clothes were still too expensive for me to pay for.

In the food industry, you tend to make a lot more money than you would in retail due to tips. Unfortunately, at my current job, I do not get tips. Back at my first restaurant job, I did acquire tips, and it helped me with my paycheck in the long run as well as having a good hourly pay as a tableside chef. My customers didn't know that they were supposed to tip me, but with my bubbly personality that helped my income. Big paychecks equal a happy college student.

A lot of the work in the restaurant business deals with intense physical movement. Surprisingly, all that labor can act as a workout by lifting heavy boxes, running to and from the kitchen, and even when you’re doing work to close or open your store. When I was working retail, we had a lot of boxes to open and other activities, but it was not nearly as fast-paced as the food industry. I remained behind the counter a lot of the time, and it wasn’t very interesting for me. At my job now, I am constantly moving and by the end of my shift, I feel like I’ve been at the gym.

One of my favorite things about the food industry is the fact that I learn a lot about food in general and it definitely helps my growth as a young adult. At my first food industry job, I learned how to make guacamole, and from there it expanded my knowledge. I now know how to make practically anything from teriyaki salmon to banana bread from scratch, and on top of that, I can easily follow anything with a recipe. It’s a valuable skill to have for meals that I plan to make in my future adulthood.

I will say that working in retail was fun. Regardless, both part-time gigs are very enjoyable and you find that you meet a wide variety of different people that are friendly and easy to work with. But for me, the food industry has won my heart. I love working for a restaurant throughout college because it is much more helpful in my personal lifestyle than working in retail would be. It is an experience that I will never forget and something that I will encourage to those young ones looking to get their first part-time job.