By Mark Muckenfuss

According to the Brookings Institution, “Students who work on campus for less than 15 hours a week, which is the limit for federally backed work-study, have higher graduation rates than those who work off-campus for more hours.”

Maddison Burton, Cal State Monterey Bay’s director of human resources and payroll services, said there are several advantages to having an on-campus job.  

“On-campus jobs provide students with a source of income to help cover expenses such as tuition, textbooks, housing and other living costs,” Burton said. “They are usually conveniently located within or near campus facilities, making it easier for students to balance work and academic commitments, and they provide students with valuable work experience and opportunities.”

Such jobs, she said, can bolster a resume as students move into the workplace. 

“Campus jobs demonstrate to potential employers that you have gained practical work experience while balancing academic responsibilities,” she said. 

Even if a job is not directly applicable to the career a student has in mind, it can still be beneficial. 

“Many campus jobs provide opportunities to develop transferable skills such as communication, teamwork, time management and problem-solving,” Burton said.

And, with programs such as the  Learning Alligned Employment Program, which is bringing $1.2 million in funding to the campus each year for 10 years to pay employers up to 80% of an intern’s salary, more such opportunities are becoming available. 

Molly Leach and Serenela Lopez are two of hundreds of students who work on the CSUMB campus. Both say their jobs provided valuable experience as well as financial benefits. And both are graduating May 18.

“It's been a great college experience and I’m sorry to leave it behind,” said Leach, a liberal studies major who just completed her teaching credential and will begin teaching sixth grade at Kammann Elementary School in Salinas.

Part of that experience was a job with Basic Needs, the CSUMB program that provides food, clothing and other services for students in need. 

“I wanted to have an on-campus job when I came to college,” Leach said. “I have always had a job and I really wanted to support myself and have something to do in my spare time. “

Her job at Basic Needs, she said, “helped me step out of my comfort zone and help people in ways I hadn’t before. Just knowing that someone wouldn’t be hungry anymore makes you feel good.”

She also felt good that people got to know her for her role with the agency. 

“People would say, ‘Hey, there’s the basic needs girl,'” she said. “It made me feel really good.”

Lopez, of Bakersfield, said she also feels that the people skills she developed working as a community service officer with the campus police department. In her role, she provided escorts for students walking the campus after hours, helped answer student questions about security on campus and even occasionally jump-started a car.

Also a liberal studies major, Lopez plans on teaching at the K-3 level. Working her campus job, particularly having to occasionally train other community service officers, has strengthened her leadership and communication skills.   

“I’m going to be the leader of a classroom,” she said. “Teachers work with other teachers. And I’ll have to deal with parents. I think this job helps in all those aspects.”

Having a campus job also was good financially, she said. 

“It was a higher-paying job than I could find off campus,” Lopez said, adding that the police department accommodated her needs as a student when it came to her hours. “They were making sure it worked around my school schedule.”

The income made her more self-sufficient. 

“My family didn’t have to help me out,” she said. 

Overall, it was a great experience.

"I’m going to miss the people and the job,” she said. “It’s been an awesome job.”