School Work. Two Words.

About a month ago, I published a BG article on why you should get an on-campus job. However, I failed to explain why I am such a staunch supporter of finding employment within your college. Truth be told, my on-campus job experience has been a bigger influence on my professional career than both of my majors combined. Plus, I got paid.

It all started when I was a wish-washy college freshman, dabbling in Creative Writing 101 classes and wondering how to minor in philosophy without it cramping my style too much. My dad is a firm believer in tough love, and since I’d moved to San Francisco (one of the most expensive places to live in the world), without any inkling of a specific career path, he periodically reminded me that I would need to start pitching in for living expenses.

I racked my brains for interesting jobs, subtly trying to ignore the thought of collecting applications from fast-food joints and the local shopping mall. I didn’t really see anything wrong with working at these kinds of places; I just didn’t see anything particularly interesting about them. Plus, I’d probably have to commute. And wear a hot dog hat.

And then it hit me. In the form of my über-resourceful RA, like an angel sent down to the pit of joblessness. He suggested I check out the campus career center to find an on-campus part-time job. I didn’t know they offered these kinds of services, and I thought the career center was only for post-college career searches. Wrong.

Before I knew it, I was browsing job postings for administrative assistants in every type of department across campus. Mail delivery positions that let you drive that cool golf cart thing around during lunchtime. Assistant Web masters for different on-campus program Web sites. Writers for the university public relations office. Wait a minute… I could actually write for the official school news publication and get paid to do it? I always knew I could switch my major to journalism and take a stab at the school paper, but this was unexpected. Long story short: I applied and was accepted as a student writer for SF State News at San Francisco State University.

As a student writer, I worked with full-time staff writers on articles about cool things that were happening around campus that we wanted to promote. My first assignment was to interview a student who was a former Raiderette (cheerleader for the Raiders) and had recently gained some press coverage over her plans to tour with Cirque du Soleil. My teeth chattered as I walked in the San Francisco fog to the interview. Not because cheerleaders intimidate me, or anything (okay, cheerleaders intimidate me a little bit), but I was responsible for representing her in the article. Plus, she was older than me. How was I supposed to command authority as an 18-year old with a messenger bag and a hoodie? As bumpy and awkward as my first interviews were, my on-campus job threw me into real-world experiences that I never could have gained in the classroom. I slowly grew into my role as a budding professional, and eventually got to know faces in departments all across campus.

By my senior year, I was a seasoned student writer, working at the office through each semester, summers and winters. Having slowly been given more responsibilities and bigger projects, I had moved on to magazine features, Web site copywriting, and major proofreading projects (like making sure the 8,000 graduating senior’s names were spelled correctly in the university commencement program. Eek!). I hardly stopped to consider that I was actually gaining an incredible amount of professional experience while earning a college degree. Despite the obvious resume builder this was, I also learned a great deal about the logistic side of how the college campuses work, and I used that knowledge to pitch a few story ideas of my own regarding clubs and activities which I supported on campus.

Over the years, I had met other on-campus student workers who were as loyal to their offices and departments as I was to mine. It astonished me how many employment opportunities my campus offered to students, whether full-time or part-time.

Unfortunately, many colleges are beginning to shrink their budgets from wherever they can, and student employment is one area currently being hit. Regardless if this means the job search has simply gotten more competitive, I can’t stress enough the incredible value of finding an on-campus job while in college.

While I outlined many instant benefits of securing an on-campus job in my original article, which you can read here, the long-term, real-world knowledge you can gain is not to be overlooked.

I could talk all day about the awesome things I learned as an on-campus part-time university employee, but I’m curious to learn about others’ experiences. Have you had an on-campus job, internship or volunteer experience that taught you something you couldn’t have learned in the classroom? Please share!