Managing time and extracurricular activities in high school troubles students at NC. Rigorous courses require significant time on their own, but adding the demand of a job creates substantial stress in a student’s life.  

Jobs call for responsibility and maturity, both of which junior David Berger possess in order to maintain two jobs simultaneously. Berger works as a part-time dishwasher  at BurgerFi and a swim instructor for children at Aqua Tots. “Having a job in high school sucks…it’s awful,” says Berger. Occupations call for availability, which Berger struggles to manage with the AP and honors classes he pushes himself to pass each semester. He enjoys the incentive of having two jobs, but finds himself constantly fatigued with the amount of time he spends working. “More money is great, but less free time and being tired everyday I work is bad,” he says.

For junior Ciera Staton, a waitress at Steak n’ Shake, education remains the top priority while keeping a job. “I manage by telling my boss I can only work like 4 days a week, 5 max,” she said. Staton believes organizing time and planning out how to conquer assignments in a short amount of time leads her to success.

“Your teacher gave you an assignment that day that takes a long time to complete; so you have to stay up late to get it done. That’s the hard part: no sleep,” says Staton.  

Contrary to other employed NC students, senior Avery Cobb, who works at Arby’s, finds managing time effortless. He sees preserving a job as simple: “It’s easy to have a job in high school, I can deal with it.”

The primary cause of issues in employed student’s lives varies depending on the person, but the lack of energy continues to affect a large amount of the NC population.

Certain students at NC find a job too stressful to attempt during the school year. Senior Alex Bearden waits until summer break to look for employment due to the busy schedule he tolerates daily.

“I don’t have a job because it’s too stressful to try and balance a job, going to the gym regularly, hanging out with my girlfriend, and hanging out with my friends all at the same time,” Bearden said.

Overall, jobs generate stress in NC student’s lives. Luckily, management skills or waiting until summer makes coping with employment in high school bearable.