Working While at Barnard: Tips for Low-Income Students
As I was trying to think about what I should write about this week, I asked myself broadly what I loved about going to Barnard. I thought about my classes, friends, and advisers. I thought about New York City. Oddly enough, I started thinking about my time as a working student at Barnard. I have a love-dislike (hate felt too strong of a word!) relationship with my jobs. It can be overwhelming to work to support yourself, your family, and your education while taking classes, joining extracurriculars, and trying to have fun. There have definitely been times when I resented having to work; resented my economic status, as well as the expensive costs of higher education in the United States.
On the other hand, my jobs have also brought me a lot of real excitement and fulfillment as well. Barnard tries hard to support low income students, especially as an institution with a mission to include peoples of backgrounds that were not historically supported within institutions of higher level academia. And even though I have had to work every semester, Barnard offers many support systems like Beyond Barnard (our career center), pre-major advisors, etc. to help you find jobs that are actually within your field of interest. As a result of this, my jobs are actually within my fields of interest. For example, I’ve tutored local low income youth, worked with environmental conservation organizations, and served as a Writing Fellow--all of which fall under my career interests. I find my jobs to be some of the most rewarding and fulfilling parts of college, and they have provided me with experiences that have shaped me as a person quite deeply. My jobs give me space to do something I love, gain valuable work experience, and learn more about what I am actually passionate about. As a result, I've gained respect and love for my jobs on campus.
That being said, there’s not a ton of conversation in the student body about the effects of laboring while in college. The majority of students do not identify as low income, and so many don’t realize how hard some of us have to work just to be at Barnard. Many don’t realize that me having a job takes up a lot of time I could be using to study or hang out with friends. When I first came to school, I felt a little lost navigating that aspect of the Barnard social and academic culture. And not only was that difficult to navigate, but I also found it quite confusing to navigate BarnardWorks and Handshake (two employment platforms that are VERY useful once one understands how to use them!). And the final step of actually getting the job can be difficult as well, which can be really stressful if you need some sort of income as soon as possible after coming to Barnard.
With all this in mind, here are some tips, derived from my own experience! That being said, every single student’s experience will vary, and I do not mean to create one narrative for FLI students. My situation is very different from other FLI students, and we all approach our FLI identity differently. Even so, I hope this is helpful for any FLI prospective students out there looking for some support and solidarity!
TIP #1: Develop a relationship with your advisor!
I would highly recommend reaching out to your advisor and asking them to keep you updated with new job or internship opportunities! This was huge for me as it made my job/internship experiences not only things that could support me financially, but parts of my career exploration. You first meet with your advisor in the beginning of the year, so it’s a perfect time to get the ball rolling. Because advising groups are so small, it will be easy for your advisor to remember you, your interests, and your needs. My advisor helped me get on specific mailing lists that consistently send out job or internship opportunities, and also sends me personal emails when she finds job opportunities that are within my interest.
TIP #2: Get familiar with Beyond Barnard!
Beyond Barnard is incredible! They offer a myriad of opportunities for career and academic development, including workshops, career advising, and network experiences. For example, you can schedule meetings with Peer Career advisors to get resume and cover letter help. Their advisors can help connect you with Barnard alums, fostering strong mentor-mentee relationships. Beyond Barnard can also help you find internships and externships. And to support low income students at Barnard, there is funding available to help compensate you for your work with the Beyond Barnard Internship Program or the GroWing the Arts Internship Program. Beyond Barnard also hosts various career fairs, allowing students to speak with various organization representatives and network. Some of my friends found their jobs this way and were hired quickly thanks to the direct face-to-face contact with employers, so I would highly recommend attending these career fairs!
Beyond Barnard can also help you navigate Handshake and BarnardWorks. It’s super easy to make an appointment with them; go to Handshake, login using your Barnard email and click on “Career Center” in the top right corner. Then you can click “Appointments” on the left of the page and then create appointments with Peer Career Advisors or other Career Advisors and experts. If you do this within the first week of school, or even before coming to school, it might make things a lot less stressful for you during the semester!
In general, be on the lookout for emails from Beyond Barnard--the emails are chock full of opportunities and helpful information!
TIP #3: Get familiar with financial aid!
At the beginning of the year, I met with my financial aid advisor to understand my aid better. Depending on what your aid package is, different opportunities will be available to you. If you better know your aid, you will better know your opportunities. Beyond that, it also just made me feel a lot more relaxed about my financial aid after someone explained it to me a little more. I didn’t know some of the vocabulary used, what grant money really meant, or if it was worth it for me to apply for scholarships. My financial advisor helped me figure these things out, helping me feel like I knew what I was doing when I made future financially related decisions!
TIP #4: Use BarnardWorks
At the beginning of the year, I applied to many different job positions. While this took a lot of time, it was really worth it, as it gave me options and freedom to choose what I was most interested in. If you go to BarnardWorks, you can find the jobs available to you based on your financial aid package. You can also see the job description, pay, mission of the organization and other important information.
I would recommend emailing the company or organization beforehand, as sometimes Barnard Works does not update regularly. It might also give you a feel of the organization, which may be helpful when writing your resume and cover letter. Being proactive by emailing the organization beforehand might save you a lot of time and effort!
Handshake is another incredible way to find jobs and career opportunities. You can find jobs within your interest and needs efficiently by using filters regarding location, paid vs. non-paid, full time vs. part time, industries, major interests, and work authorization (which could be very important for international students or students with non-American citizenship!). Furthermore, you can easily bookmark jobs as you scroll through, helping you keep track of everything. Like BarnardWorks, you can see a detailed description of the job details and organization’s intentions and impacts.
TIP #5: Follow your interests and explore your curiosities!
As a low income student, you still deserve to enjoy all aspects of your college experience, even if it’s a job. Only work a job that you feel passionate about and that you enjoy--otherwise it’s a waste of your time. I promise that there are amazing working opportunities out there waiting for you. You might as well make something you have to do something that is really rewarding and still super fun. I find my working experiences to be like a breath of fresh air. They take me out of the sometimes stressful bubble of school and remind me that I’m a person capable of working to make tangible change both in and outside of Barnard’s campus.