Full time work v being a student

[Rhyfelwyr]

What is best?

I read on a student forum that many people there were worried about going into full time work and were getting really upset about it and thinking how they will have no free time and can't imagine doing the 37.5 hour week.

IIRC only 2/3 of students in the UK work while at Uni/college (term time that is) and those that do only average at 14 hrs a week.

But while I worked at Uni I was full time for most of it. I didn't have much free time with studies but before I worked at Uni I had too much free time.

Now I'm just working at full time and I think I have tons of time on my hands. For example the other night I got back from work and watched Beverly Hill Cops, and that was nice.

It's much better working than being a student IMO, cause work gives your day some structure (even if I'm still in fast food and not a professional job so I get messed up shifts). Plus once you've done your shift that's you and you don't take work home with you.

Unless I become a cop, then I will become obsessed with work and lose my family over it and keep those regrets for the rest of my life. But to cope with it I just bury my head in more work and alcohol and be the maverick that gets caught up in the gritty underworld. But I will develop some catchphrases and quirky mannerisms and go on all sorts of misadventures that make for good entertainment.

Thoughts?

[johnhughthom]

37.5 hour week? I wish...

I think quite a few people are in for a shock.

[naut]

It's much better working than being a student IMO, cause work gives your day some structure (even if I'm still in fast food and not a professional job so I get messed up shifts). Plus once you've done your shift that's you and you don't take work home with you.
My view is that if you need work to provide you with structure/tasks then you either lack imagination or initiative. That isn't to say that people who work are lacking in those attributes, but it often seems to be the case in those who cannot survive without work.

I'm just finishing up my degrees, I had 12 hours a week (minus about 2-4 that I didn't go to), I basically did no Uni work at home. So in total I had plenty of personal time, but no spare or free time. Always had something to do, whether it be painting, writing, doing odd jobs, going out, cooking, etc.

The biggest change I feel is no longer being able to do what I want whenever I want. Work can in some ways like being a child again, doing what you are told to do. Of course that isn't the case in many jobs, as there are many jobs out there with independence. :shrug:


I think quite a few people are in for a shock.
Yep.

[classical_hero]

37.5 hour week? I wish...

I think quite a few people are in for a shock.How many hours do you do?

[Rhyfelwyr]

37.5 hour week? I wish...

I think quite a few people are in for a shock.

Well it's the standard working week.

I've done nearly half that in a day though and didn't find it too bad...


My view is that if you need work to provide you with structure/tasks then you either lack imagination or initiative.

Don't deny it, I don't know what to do with myself when I'm not working.

[Hooahguy]

Wow, only 37.5 hours a week? I was putting in at least 42 hours a week just this summer.
Well, I was before my employer let me go. Stupid economy, at least I lasted 2 months.

[Rhyfelwyr]

Wow, only 37.5 hours a week? I was putting in at least 42 hours a week just this summer.
Well, I was before my employer let me go. Stupid economy, at least I lasted 2 months.

Yeah, a whopping 4.5 hours difference there, lol. That's the stereotypical working week with 8 hours Mon-Thu and finishing early Friday. It's what my parents do, its what most people I know that work professionally do. It's probably what I will do.

Right now I do more than that most of the time (on a rota) and IMO it's a walk in the park.

[Hooahguy]

Yeah, a whopping 4.5 hours difference there, lol. That's the stereotypical working week with 8 hours Mon-Thu and finishing early Friday. It's what my parents do, its what most people I know that work professionally do. It's probably what I will do.

Right now I do more than that most of the time (on a rota) and IMO it's a walk in the park.
The difference is that you are talking about Uni students. Im not in Uni.

[gaelic cowboy]

Well it depends on your subject though does it not, Arts and Humanities tend not too have huge class time allowing more time to work or messing around whichever takes your fancy.

I had to give up the job for me last year of Mechanical, we used be in for 9 an stay till 9 or 10 regular, when the push was on twas often 12 or 1 at night, doing anything from projects to drawings or reports etc etc.

[Strike For The South]

I took 15 hours, worled full time and still had enough leisure left over to numb my feelings with alcohol

[naut]

I took 15 hours, worled full time and still had enough leisure left over to numb my feelings with alcohol
Why don't you numb your feelings with alcohol, at work?

[B-Wing]

I graduated from college (in the US) two years ago. I only worked full-time (40+ hours) during the summers and I only had a part-time job during a couple semesters. I much preferred not working while I was taking classes, but I also didn't spend much money back then. I would hang out with friends nearly every night, at one of our apartments. Of course, I knew plenty of other people who went out to the bars as often as possible, and I have no idea how they afforded it. A long night of social drinking at a bar can easily cost you a hundred dollars. Compared with spending twelve bucks on a 24 pack and getting hammered in a setting where you can actually hear each other talk, that's madness.

Having said that, my parents were able to provide me a generous allowance, and I wasn't paying for my own education, so any money I earned went to savings or frivolous spending. If you have to work just to feed yourself, then obviously you'll want to make as much money as you can. But if you're in college and working full-time is all that keeps you from getting bored, you're probably not doing it right. :beam: College is the best time to meet and make friends, experiment with adult substances, and live day-to-day (mostly) care-free.

If you need to work during college, I'd recommend keeping it to a minimum, and use your free time to broaden and improve your social life.

[Ice]

Don't leave school. School is good and work is bad. I'm learning that working from 7:30 to 5:30 every day isn't fun at all. The thought of 7:30 to 7 and 8-4 on Saturdays during busy season makes me kind of sick. The only upside is I'm making a nice chunk of change, but everything else sucks.