Danny Rothenberg
managing editor

Money or grades?

Get a job, gain work experience and have one of the most vital necessities in your life: money. Study hard, get into a better college. It’s a hard decision but you need to have experience outside of school for the real world, and money is more important than getting an A on an Algebra 2 test that you will never use again in your life.

There are two sides to this though and the idea that school is more important than getting a job at this point in a student’s life is relevant too. High school is a stressful time and that is largely because of the amount of work that is put on students. From homework to essays to college apps and more, piling a job on top of that is a lot to deal with.

For jobs like working at a restaurant, employees need to work on weekdays and nights, taking time away from homework and other activities. When you don’t have that much time as it is, if you have a job, you lose time for things that keep you happy like watching TV, playing video games, exercising and even going out with your friends. School work is also important and can set you up for getting into a good college and eventually that will set you up even more for life.

While there are tons of reasons why school and grades can be seen as more important, those reasons do have pitfalls. While students do have much going on throughout their high school careers that could keep them from wanting to get a job, millions of students have done it before and have done it successfully. In addition, as students need things in their daily life that they enjoy, if someone finds a job that they like then that’s a great way to get the best of both worlds.

When it comes down to it, everyone eventually is going to get a job, and that’s what everyone is working toward while in school. If you’re going to get a job then work experience is important no matter what you are doing. When you graduate college that shouldn’t be the first time you work because then you won’t be fully prepared for what is to come in your career. Not only are you getting experience but you are also making money. Money is important and it’s never a bad thing to get it whether you need it at the moment or not. Having a job also can give you a boss who you can use as a reference for future jobs and having a job is also a resume booster.

It is hard to say just work and don’t focus on school. That’s why there needs to be a medium. Finding a part-time job can be the answer as you gain work experience and can still get all of your school stuff done.