Campus jobs relieve stress

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Caitlin Severson, WSC Support Services employee, enjoys the flexibility and learning that working on campus has given her. (Photo by Sarah Hill.)
Caitlin Severson, WSC Support Services employee, enjoys the flexibility and learning that working on campus has given her. (Photo by Sarah Hill)

Having a job as a student offers not only financial stability but work experience and opportunities. Working on campus can be convenient, flexible and rewarding.

Wade Ashton, student employment manager at BYU, believes all students who want a job on campus can find one if they are willing to be persistent and open minded. The missionary age change had an effect on student employment, one that will continue to be felt over the coming year.

“Certainly there has been some impact from both fewer freshmen coming in as well as additional jobs coming because of the expansion of the MTC,” Ashton said. “Between this April and next April, we’re expecting an addition of about 1,000 jobs.”

This week there were 214 individual job postings, and Ashton estimates there are at least 500 unfilled positions because many of these postings have multiple positions open.

The Student Employment office, in room 2024 of the Wilkinson Student Center, has a job board as well as kiosks set up for students to search in the office. Studentjobs.byu.edu is the website for employers to post positions. When applying online, students should separate themselves and demonstrate that they want the job.

“If I see a student did not follow instructions to an application process, I won’t even look at them further,” Ashton said. “If they can’t be bothered enough to complete my questionnaire, why do I even want to interview that person?”

Employers are encouraged to use the website, but they are not required to. Talking to friends who work on campus can make the difference. Ashton says networking is often ignored but is not overrated.

“People get jobs all the time because they know people,” Ashton said.

Students who are ready for a job and know where they want to work should consider cold-calling potential work places.  Ashton suggests talking to departments directly by walking in, dressed nicely, with a résumé in hand.

“I haven’t come across a student who hasn’t found a job doing that,” Ashton said. “As an employer it’s pretty impressive having students walk in, cold-calling basically. It shows a lot of tenacity. Some students have been hired almost on the spot.”

Caitlin Severson, a senior from Bentonville, Ark., studying exercise and wellness, found a job on campus by being open to jobs she didn’t think she was qualified for.

“Don’t limit yourself,” Severson said. “Apply for as many jobs as you can even if you don’t feel like you have the exact qualifications.”

Some students worry about balancing work with school, church, friends, relationships and the many other matters demanding their time. Erika Hoffmeier, a senior from Damascus, Md., studying human development, thinks working on campus has helped her time management and even boosted her social life.

“I’m pretty good at balancing it out,” Hoffmeier said. “I’ve met so many people working on campus, so my social life is thriving.”

Cory Hill, a senior from Stockton, Calif., studying Japanese, has worked in grounds crew for three years, and he says it gave him a greater appreciation for all the work it takes to maintain the beautiful BYU campus.

“The best part about working on campus is the flexibility with classes because we’re students before we’re workers,” Hill said.

If students are open minded to all types of jobs, the opportunities are here at BYU. Ashton explained if students are open minded they will find employment.

“Students who want to find a job can,” Ashton said, “if they are willing to cast a broad net instead of limiting themselves.”

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