JON HELGASON/Arizona Summer Wildcat Chemical engineering senior Brian Constance gains experience working in his field of study in the Arizona Health Sciences Center last semester. Students who work more than 25 hours per week often find their grades suffer.

Jobs can provide students with useful experience, or have a detrimental effect on schoolwork

Many freshmen quickly realize that a typical load of 12 to 15 units is nowhere near as demanding as a full plate of high school classes. Boredom can easily set in when college students have all that extra time on their hands.

At the same time, between paying for textbooks and other necessities, bank accounts can dwindle to a point where dinner means eating ramen noodles every night.

Fortunately, a plethora of student jobs are available on and around campus, and aside from the welcome paycheck, students who choose wisely can often gain valuable experience.

ãWork experience helps on a resume,ä said Marie Rozenblit, director of Career Services. ãItâs a great experience for them to gain some quality experience prior to graduation.ä

But experts warn that spending too much time at a job and not enough time focusing on schoolwork can cause grades to drop.

A recent study conducted by the state Public Interest Research Groupsâ Higher Education Project found that 42 percent of students who worked at least 25 hours a week said their grades suffered as a result.

Campus work-study jobs limit students to 30 hours a week during the year, but student financial aid director John Nametz said most students in his office work only 12-15 hours each week.

ãWe rely on students to help run the organization to a huge degree,ä said Nametz, whose office employs about 35 student workers.

In general, student-employees who work on-campus are paid less than their counterparts off-campus, Nametz said, but students with specialized computer skills or who work their way up to supervisory positions can still earn $8-$10 an hour.

Students starting out in clerical positions, however, typically make slightly more than the federal minimum wage of $5.15 per hour, Nametz said. Clerical positions are most abundant on-campus, according to the Career Services Web site.

Although the pay at a job on campus can be less than what is offered in the private sector, Rozenblit said that on-campus jobs are more conducive to academic success because campus departments are more willing to work around studentsâ course schedules.

About $16 million of the overall UA budget is set aside to pay student workers, and only $2 million of that is limited to work-study students, Nametz said. And of the 2,200 - 2,400 UA students offered federal work-study programs each year, only about 800 of them actually accept, leaving about $14 million available for students just interested in working on campus.

Visual communication junior Karelia Moore is one of the students who has a work-study job.

Moore, who tutors elementary school children through a program in the College of Education said the lessons she has learned working have actually helped her improve her schoolwork.

ãIf I stay busy, I most likely stay on task,ä Moore said.

Students who work, especially on-campus, actually do better in classes than students who donât work at all, Nametz said.

Rozenblit warned first-year students, however, that they might want to put off getting a job until they become more acclimated to university life.

ãIf they donât have to work, they should use the first semester to adjust and do well in school,ä she said.

Students interested in working should check out the Career Services Web site at http://www.career.arizona.edu/. On and off-campus job listings are posted regularly at CatTracks on that site.

Nametz also recommends that they prepare a resume and drop by the offices of departments they are interested in working for.