Many students benefit from having a part-time job while attending high school, but grades of other students may suffer, simply because they can’t handle the responsibility of having a job while also being enrolled in high school.

According to Jillian Benson and Heather Hanson, two of the counselors here at Wheat Ridge High School, “Sometimes kids will prioritize work over their school work and their grades will suffer. It also depends on when they’re working, if they’re working like one weekday and weekends or if they’re working 9-12 on weekdays.” According to Benson and Hanson  it entirely depends on the student and whether or not they prioritize their job or their school work. It’s not just if the student is responsible, it also depends on the times they’re working through weekdays. Students must find a balance instead of prioritizing their job in order to succeed.

It’s not all an insufferable experience though balancing a job and attending school at the same time. For instance, some students may gain responsibility from working a job, some may learn how to manage their money better or some will realize how important their academics are and therefore focus on school more.

“It was really difficult to find a balance between the two when after school you would go to work and prioritize that over school,” says senior, Jordan Gustavus. According to Gustavus, it is significantly harder to maintain homework and grades while focusing on jobs after school.

All in all, it would be much more beneficial for high school students to focus on their studies rather than a job unless they have the ability to balance both adequately.