For decades the federal work-study program has allowed students to earn money by working part-time jobs to help pay for college expenses. Eligible students earn at least the federal minimum wage — currently $7.25 — in jobs that are typically, but not always, on campus and funded by the federal government and universities.
But with proposed budget cuts to the work-study program, and an average award of $2,649 per year — according to a 2016 Sallie Mae survey — work-study jobs may not be enough to meet students’ needs.
Families of rising college freshmen can consider the pros and cons of work-study jobs compared with other part-time positions to determine how to earn money during college.
[Learn the answers to frequently asked questions about federal work-study.]
Colleges determine how much students can earn, which positions students can apply to, how many hours they can work a week — no more than 20 — and what happens when a student earns the maximum amount. Rising freshmen can find the maximum amount of work-study aid available to them in their financial aid award letters. The amount of aid offered each year can vary.
“What they’ll do is say you have X number of hours,” says Joe Orsolini, president of College Aid Planners, a consulting organization in Illinois that helps families navigate paying for college. “You have $1,500 of work-study available and it’s incumbent upon you to find a job that’s going to fit that.”
Students will have to apply and interview for jobs like they would for any other position. And, unless schools allow work-study students to make arrangements for the money to be automatically applied to their tuition and fees, students will receive a paycheck to spend however they like.
[Discover how to make a work-study job pay off.]
Students may find t here are more types of jobs available off-campus.
“There are times when you may be able to find a position off campus — a part-time job off campus — that will give you a great experience to apply to your resume that you may not be able to find on campus, depending on what your education career desire is,” says Cheryl Combs, assistant director for the student employment services office at Missouri State University.
But on-campus jobs are more likely to accommodate students when they need time off of work to study for classes, experts say.
Chris Stacy, a rising senior at Missouri State, agrees. “I always know that I am able to take a break and focus on my studies if I need to,” he says. Stacy balances a part-time job doing mostly clerical work in the Center of Community Engagement office at his school, a job stocking shelves at Target and a full-time course load. In addition to helping him make connections and do some occasional work related to his major in digital arts, his on-campus job gives him flexibility that he doesn’t get at Target.
“If they need me to work and they have me scheduled, I need to make sure I’m there.”
Traditional part-time jobs don’t limit how much students can make a year, which means cash-strapped students can find higher paying jobs or work more hours to meet their needs.
However, earning too much money can cause students to lose out on financial aid. Students who are eligible for need-based aid will get less Pell Grant money if their expected family contribution — the amount of money students are expected to pay out of pocket — increases. Students can earn up to $6,420 for the 2017-2018 school year before an increase occurs.
Every dollar students earn over the $6,420 will add 50 cents to their expected family contribution. So, for example, if a student earns $7,420 this year, they’ll add $500 to their expected family contribution and potentially lose $500 worth of Pell Grant money. The EFC is calculated based on the information that parents and students provide on the Free Application for Federal Student Aid. Work-study earnings aren’t factored into the expected family contribution, which is one of the main reasons why work-study is a good way for students to earn extra cash, experts say.
[Learn how earning too much at your summer job may slash financial aid eligibility.]
To balance between earning too little and earning too much, experts encourage students to accept the work-study funding and consider taking on another part-time job to earn enough to meet other small needs, at least for the first couple of years of college.
“Anything beyond that second semester of sophomore year forward doesn’t impact your financial aid,” Orsolini says. The FAFSA accepts tax returns from two years prior to the filing date, he says. “Go for the money at that point, there’s no financial aid advantage for a work-study job.”
Working two jobs and balancing a full-time course load may be too much for some students to handle. Experts encourage students to work no more than 20 hours a week during the school year. But the FAFSA income limitations include the money that students earn during the summer. And, depending on the limitations of their work-study program, students may only work in those positions a few hours a week, which can leave time for other part-time jobs on or off campus.
Trying to fund your education? Get tips and more in the U.S. News Paying for College center.
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Choose Between a Federal Work-Study Job and a Part-time Job in College originally appeared on usnews.com
