Editor’s Note: This story has been updated from its original version.

The bell trills at 4:15 p.m, signaling the end of the school day. 

Barely having enough time to say goodbye to friends, you rush out of class to your car. You need to be at work at 4:30 p.m. sharp. Your boss was already annoyed that you were late the last time. 

Pushing your way through the crowded main hallway of Coppell High School, a feeling of dread sets in. 

Right before leaving the building, you glance up at the digital clock in big, red numbers and start to worry.  

What if there’s a lot of traffic in the parking lot?

How will I make it to my shift on time?

What time will I be home today? 

You reach your job in the nick of time, and after a long, grueling shift you arrive home at 9 p.m. After taking some time to yourself to shower, eat dinner and browse social media, you finally start studying and completing homework. By then, it’s 10 p.m. Your eyes start drooping, and you begin to lose focus. There’s simply too much to do. 

“I can’t keep doing this,” you think to yourself.  

Finally, you give in and head to bed. Tomorrow is another day of work, work and more work.

Part-time jobs are an integral part of many high school students’ lives, increasing since the start of the pandemic. Students can take on jobs to earn extra money while boosting their resume.

Getting a job is one matter, but working it into your routine is another, especially while balancing it with other responsibilities in their life such as homework, studying and extracurriculars.

According to CHS students who work part-time jobs, younger employees hired for part-time jobs are more easily pressured into working late or inconvenient hours. They feel they are risking their job if they don’t comply with everything managers ask of them or because there might be a lingering presumption by supervisors that student employees are more naive and easier to influence. 

Work is viewed as valuable experience. Maintaining a good relationship with managers and colleagues also allows more success in future endeavors for students. When a students’ job becomes valuable career experience, it can be easy to prioritize work over all other duties. 

According to CHS students who work part-time jobs, students who work fewer days and hours than full-time employees are likely to feel more obligated to agree when managers ask them to take on more hours. 

While full-time employees can offer more time, students cannot provide the same amount of time. So, if a student is asked to work an hour or two longer, they feel that the least they can do is agree since they aren’t able to do more anyways.

If a student cannot advocate for themselves with a simple “no,” work can become overwhelming, often spilling over into other obligations such as homework and extracurricular activities.

Quitting due to high stress is not an easy option, either – being hired for jobs that have satisfactory pay and have convenient work hours is hard for students with less experience and more time commitments than full-time employees.

New hires are also expected to go through a lengthy training process which students aim to avoid by changing jobs. A training process includes weeks of shadowing and instruction from supervisors and more experienced employees. While it is a necessary part of starting a new job, quitting a job to find a better one might prove to be a nuisance to go through the “new hire” process all over again.

Additionally, CHS students say working jobs to gain resume and real-world experience feel pressured to stay at a job for a certain amount of time in order for the experience to count. The added pressure of a college resume encourages students to want to have a job that illustrates their dedication.

Students should not endure grueling hours that seep past midnight just to pad their resume or score a little extra pocket money. 

Even if most students don’t work into the later hours of the night, the time they must dedicate to other responsibilities such as homework and other activities after they return home impacts their ability to do high-quality work and balance a well-rounded sleep schedule.

Working long hours as a high school student can lead to academic and behavioral issues. Working a job is not “good experience” if it detracts from your other priorities or commitments as a student and young adult.

Teenagers can feel trapped in their job, but a gentle reminder that a student’s priority should be school, regardless if it is considered valuable career experience.

The difference lies in the reasons a student is working an extra job. For students who are working in order to earn more money and are in a financially constricting situation, it is understandable that they feel pressure to remain in a workplace environment. However, do not allow yourself to be taken advantage of by managers. 

For all students who choose to work a job for extra reasons, there are three options.

Try speaking with a supervisor alone. Outline what you want to change in your situation, such as better or shorter hours. 

Students should be comfortable in their workplace where they can speak to supervisors alone and feel respected – but for students afraid to discuss problems with their supervisors alone, doing so with a group of like minded employees can not only bring courage, but garner more understanding from supervisors. 

There is strength in numbers. Advocating for yourself with a group of similar employees who voice the same concerns can bring to light a larger problem that supervisors are more likely to be alerted by.  

If your supervisors reject your requests, take it to the higher ups at your workplace. Your supervisors likely are not the only ones in charge. Higher authorities, such as store owners or managers, may be more receptive to your concerns. 

If no changes are made after escalation, it’s time to consider quitting your job. You need to ask yourself a few questions and recognize your worth.

Are your needs being respected at your workplace? Are you finding it difficult to balance your job with all your other responsibilities, whether academic or extracurricular? 

Truthfully, would quitting your job allow you to move on to bigger and better things? 

If you answer yes to any, the answer is clear. Quitting your job does not mean you have to quit working or miss out on a valuable experience. Leaving a job that is holding you back can help you find a better work environment – one that gives you more opportunities to succeed while respecting your many, many other duties as a high school student.

Taking any proactive steps in your workplace as a student is not easy. You may feel intimidated to go beyond what you or your supervisors may consider your “limits.”

But, if that is what must be done to honor your boundaries between work and the rest of your life, we encourage you to do so.

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