(U-WIRE) YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio — Wake up. Shower and throw on clothes. Class at 8 a.m. The lit paper on break. Class until 2 p.m. Go home and change. Start project. Work from 4 to 9 p.m. Come home. Eat. Study for tomorrow’s psych test. 2 a.m. Ready for bed. Wait. Forgot to read astronomy chapters.
Some students work to put themselves through school, try to maintain good grades, have some sort of social life, and still can’t get it all done.
Several professors say students should budget their time accordingly when it comes to school and work. Dr. Scott Leonard, director of English composition, said students should not be trying to do it all, and parents should be more supportive.
“Do not, when children come to college, expect them to work 30 to 40 hours off-campus,” Leonard said. “This is a full-time job. [Students] need to value these four years and read. This is all the job a person needs now.”
Leonard said he also believes students are too anxious to get work experience and parents are too anxious for them to get work experience. He said students don’t read enough; this is either because parents are not cutting a check for their children’s education or because students opt to work, thinking the experience will benefit them in the long run.
Leonard is not the only Youngstown State University professor who said he feels students should not work while in school if they don’t have to. Dr. Fred Owens, professor of communications, agreed that if parents are able to pay for their children’s education, they should.
“YSU students are extremely task-oriented,” Owens said. “They are ‘can-do’ people. They are remarkably energetic and well focused. Many of them come from blue-collar families, not wealth and privilege.”
“The reality is many traditional YSU students not only take responsibility for their educations but for paying for it,” Owens said.
Owens said he does not believe students shouldn’t work, but students need to be smart when choosing a job and organizing their time if they need to.
He also said if students are going to work, they should be doing it for the right reason. That is, to pay for school, not a lifestyle.
Owens said he is concerned that students commit to a lifestyle of a new car, new clothes and spring break.
This requires some students to work multiple jobs, not leaving much time for reading or studying.
Owens said making a decision to work this much for these things is ultimately unwise, because the greatest asset a student has at his or her command is time.
Some students said they wonder how these professors believe it is possible for them to find a way to set aside time to read when they are doing projects, writing papers, studying for tests and working because their parents will not pay for school.
One student said he works sometimes more than he should but does not feel guilty about it.
“It’s a really hard life, said sophomore Brian Necastro. “It’s unfair and almost impossible. I work to put myself through school and sometimes there just isn’t enough time in the day to read those chapters or type that paper at the lab because it’s closed when I get off work. And, yes, sometimes I do work extra just so I could have a nice car or some clothes, but I think I’m entitled to that because I work. I don’t think that means I manage my time badly.”
Owens said there is a way to make time, even if you have to work.
“Each of us needs to do an audit of how we use our resources. To put more time into a job that doesn’t teach us or is not related to our education is a dangerous choice. If our jobs don’t allow us to make time, some sophisticated learning becomes threatened,” Owens said.
Owens suggested loans. He said he believes education will change students’ lives and it doesn’t matter how much you borrow; the value of education will outweigh any number.
