Day’Vion Smith photo by Nicole Centofanti
I am not someone who is afraid of working. I have been working since I was 15. Back then, I worked around 20 hours a week at McDonald’s. I worked about the same number of hours a week from the time I was in junior high until my last day at that McDonald’s.
Now that I am in college as a full-time student away from my family, I’ve realized I have to grow up and make smart decisions. Now, the money I make has to go to important things like tuition and groceries, which means I have to work a lot more than I used to.
To solve this problem, I got a part-time job at Wendy’s here in Bluffton, which transitioned into a full-time position, working 40 hours a week, so I can pay my bills and tuition.
The problem with being a full-time employee is the struggle of being able to find a balance of being a full-time student as well, which makes life stressful.
I work five days a week closing the store, which means I am working from 5 p.m. to 1 a.m. The only days I have off are Tuesdays and Thursdays because I have my radio show and The Witmarsum meeting. Due to this, I am still working on my days off.
This results in not being on campus much, which means I am missing out on part of the reason I chose to attend Bluffton — the college experience.
I don’t go to a lot of events on campus, and I have had to figure out how to balance my school life and work life. Since I have to do four hours a week in the Learning Resource Center, a requirement for the Discovery Program, I came to the conclusion that I need to do about 48 minutes a day Monday through Friday. Since I am putting 48 minutes a day in the LRC I can get the work that I got that day finished, so when it is due I will already have it done.
Even though I came up with a small way to help balance my work and school life, I’m not trying to get used to it because next semester I will be shortening my work schedule so I can actually enjoy going to college.
I learned that when you you’re a full-time student and full-time employee, you have to get things done right away, whether that’s a task at work or homework from school, so when your teacher or boss is asking for your work you have it done.
To those who are having to work like I am, keep working, because I believe that sometimes you have to struggle to succeed. This is a struggle that’s worth it.
Day’Vion Smith is convergent journalist for The Witmarsum, and his radio show airs at 6 p.m. Tuesdays and Thursdays on 96.1 The Wit. He is a freshman convergent media major from Toledo, Ohio.
