ERIC Number: EJ1471329
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2025-Jun
Pages: 26
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0162-3737
EISSN: EISSN-1935-1062
Available Date: 0000-00-00
Is Working in College Worth It? How Hours on the Job Affect Postsecondary Outcomes
Educational Evaluation and Policy Analysis, v47 n2 p329-354 2025
Many students work during college to offset rising costs, but significant time on the job affects postsecondary outcomes. Analyzing the High School Longitudinal Study (N = 4,418), this article estimates the effects of hours worked on grades, credits earned, persistence, stopping out (i.e., unenrolling for 5 months before reenrolling), and dropping out. The polynomial regression analysis shows that after adjusting for background characteristics, prior academic achievement, institution types, and family obligations, "traditional" undergraduate students begin seeing deleterious effects at 20 hours, which becomes even more severe for those working 28+ hours (and the worst for Pell Grant recipients working long hours). While some work was good for students, on average, financial and family circumstances help explain the curvilinear relationships.
Descriptors: Student Employment, Working Hours, Grades (Scholastic), College Credits, Academic Persistence, Stopouts, Dropouts, Undergraduate Students, Academic Achievement, Low Income Students, Student Loan Programs, Federal Aid, Grants, First Generation College Students
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Higher Education; Postsecondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Laws, Policies, & Programs: Pell Grant Program
Identifiers - Assessments and Surveys: High School Longitudinal Study of 2009 (NCES)
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A
Author Affiliations: 1Johns Hopkins University