We're all broke college kids looking for a job that'll pay us well enough that we can pay the bills and have a little fun. The problem is those are hard to come by when you also have a school schedule that's four to five days long. Not many places are willing to work with a schedule like that. So, the question is: how do we find a convenient and flexible job? Your best bet is to work on your campus.
My current on-campus job is actually my first real job. I had done a lot of theater work in high school that didn't pay me but gave me a lot of excellent skills. The job that hired me saw what my skills were from an unpaid position and were willing to give me a shot. I'm now a student supervisor at this job. So, if one of your fears is not finding a job in college because you've never had one before, your campus is willing to give you a shot on your skills from other activities.
When it comes to flexibility, on-campus jobs are your best bet because they have the philosophy of you're a student first. They're willing to find times during the day you can work even if you have a few classes that day. There's a better chance you can get time off if you have a huge research paper or exam you need to study for. It makes life a lot less stressful knowing that you can also get from class to work or work to class quickly. If you're already on campus for work, it will only take you 15 minutes top to get somewhere else. The amount of times I've gone to class still in my uniform is too high to count because I knew I could work a shift that would end 30 minutes before my class. It's just really convenient.
Another great thing about working on campus is all of your coworkers are your peers. There aren't any awkward age differences and everyone is ultimately in the same boat. At least in my case, my coworkers have become some of my closest friends. There's something so great about coming to work and knowing you get to work with people you like and trust.
Working on campus gets you a lot of opportunities to be more in touch with what is going on at your college. I've seen a lot of cool events and learned about a lot of clubs on campus because of my job. You just get to know a lot more people from all walks of life when you work for your school
Does working on campus have its downsides? Sure. Sometimes it's hard to have to help and be professional when your customers and clients are your professors or people you just can't stand. It's a struggle some days to keep your professionalism when it's your peers not being so polite when you're doing your best.
