Dear hardworking college student,

Your hard work is appreciated and doesn’t go unnoticed! If you’re anything like me, asking your parents for “walk around” money or money for gas is completely out of the question. You wouldn’t even dream of it. And hey, there’s nothing wrong with that, they want you to learn to be responsible and learn to appreciate money—especially since it’s not handed to you. By working in college, you’re setting goals, you’re buying your own things and you’re preparing yourself for life outside of college—when mom and dad aren’t only just a phone-call away.

All those nights you’ve stayed up extra late trying to make deadlines and finish papers will be worth it. Because one, now you have money in your pocket and two, those bags under your eyes the next day aren’t cute, but you not only got the work done, now you can afford that late night pizza after Thursday night out, (since you requested it off first). It’s always nice to have some extra money in your pocket. Now you can buy those shoes you’ve been eyeing for months. You can work towards goals of a totally awesome spring break trip. Instead of borrowing your friend’s textbook for Economics homework, you can buy your own and resell it next year! If someone wants to go into the city, you can afford to spend a little money for a fun time—on your day off of course.

Working while in school gives you something to look forward to—your paycheck! Whether you get paid, weekly, bi-weekly, or you’re a waiter/bartender are get to take home your tips at the end of the night, nothing is better than seeing/counting the dollars you’ve worked so hard for. Not only do you have money to spend but you also are learning money management—which a lot of your peers probably don’t have. They get their hands on $20 and it immediately goes towards some “Bush lattes” or that new crop top on Tobi. But you know that you only have this money until your next paycheck, so you manage your earnings based on what you need for the week—gas, bills, groceries, spending money, etc. Not a lot of college students know what that’s like and that skill will help you when you graduate and actually need to manage money through bills, mortgage, loan payments and other scary adult things.

You’ve missed out on a couple of crazy nights with your roommates because you were stuck at work for an extra couple hours and fomo (fear of missing out) hit hard. And it always stinks when you know you're stuck working the weekend while they're planning fun trips to Boston or to the beach. You have no idea what they’re talking about the next day when they recapped on their night. But like always, the next weekend rolls around and the old jokes have diminished and you can finally join in the festivities after a long week of being bossed around by not only your professors but also all your managers at work. So this first sip of your mixed drink or ‘not so cheap’ beer will be the best thing to touch your lips all week.

Earning money to lower your student loan debt will teach you the responsibilities that come with being an adult. Working at job that relates to your major will give you experience in the field—this is something that stands out to future employers and places you ahead of the competition! Even basic, part time jobs create useful skill sets—like sticking to a tight schedule, balancing “life,” learning how to deal with stressful or uncomfortable situations at work and responding respectfully to a boss or manager.

Whether you work in your field, at a restaurant, in retail, fast food, or in an office, whatever you’re doing to put yourself through college—give yourself a pat on the back, you deserve it. Not only are you learning the fundamentals of whatever your college major might be, you’re also learning how to balance a social life, your school work and your financial work. You are successful and you’re only learning how to be more successful once you’re out of school.

So even though it’s never fun to miss out on a night out with your friends, it will all pay off in the long run. Keep your head up and keep working hard as you are!

Sincerely,

A fellow student working while also in college