So if you are anywhere close to having the same struggles of a college student as me, you undoubtedly have trouble with money each year. Fall semester rolls around, financial aid barely pays tuition and there are still books and rent, food and other miscellaneous items necessary for the average college student.
What’s worse than the constant struggle for money is actually finding a job to supply the money needed for a college student to survive. With the national average of $19,200 of debt that is owed from a college graduate due to financial aid, having a job throughout your undergraduate years is not too bad an idea to subdue this expense.
During my four years here at Sam Houston State, I’ve had a total of three jobs, each not lasting more than a year, two of which weren’t even in the great city of Huntsville. Currently I’m working at a restaurant trying to make money off college kids like myself who don’t tip very well. Not a very lucrative opportunity, I guarantee you.
In light of a not so great source of dough, let’s explore all avenues of the Huntsville job market together shall we?
Here’s the big question: “How easy is it to get a job in Huntsville?”
If you’re not too picky, you could easily score a job flipping burgers at some fast food restaurant for minimum wage, but let’s have a little more ambition than that. Finding a job in Huntsville is almost the equivalent of finding a needle in a haystack. While it is hard to come across a decent job that pays well it’s not impossible.
First, you have to know where to go. Sam Houston offers an outstanding program to help students in need of a job. Career Services normally has two booths set up in the LSC a few times during the semester, shoveling out flyers for job openings on or around campus. Hell, they’re the reason I’ve just applied for a job at the University Hotel, so management, if you’re reading this: “Pick me! Pick me!”
Last, you really need to have a good grasp on when to apply for a job. From past experiences the best time is during the summer when school attendance is low. Another great time is during Christmas break and spring break because this is usually when employers have a hard time keeping employees due to graduation.
Most important, you really just have to have luck, impeccable timing and a drive to land that job. Because while you’re trying to land that job at Chili’s, there are at least 30 people right behind you who are just as good as you.
So to any job-bound college students out there, good luck, because I’ll be right behind you in the job hunt.