World Work Games

[Thomasina Norse]

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Being a student is not living in the real world for the vast majority of students. They live primarily within the confines of the school community, and in many ways the school community is designed to be like training wheels for teenagers who are being adults.

Sure, but those are not especially pertinent to a student working in the cafeteria or in many student jobs on campus, with respect to expectations of the job. *College* is different from non-academic settings, but student jobs are not all that different from the kinds of jobs the students could get if they went off campus.

I had two friends who worked at the athletic center. Their job (together) was to check people in and out, even though checking in/out was swiping your own entry card. They just sat there and did homework. The athletic department, you see, had too many work study students and so they had tons of them doing pointless work.

Having worked in both academic libraries (as a library assistant) and in special libraries (as a research librarian), the differences are minute and have more to do with the nature of the work assigned than the type of institution. I was as professional while working as a circ clerk at Law School Library as I was as a research librarian at Giant Corporate Firm. The differences were less in the type of patron I served than in the fact that I used an ILS to check out books more at one position than at the other.

I remember the other library assistants, all of whom were graduate or undergraduate students, were as professional as I was. We all took the job seriously, because it was work-study and we needed it to live. I was the only one in library school, but we were all full-time students who intended to list this position on our respective resumes. I resent the implication (in general) that student jobs are somehow less real.

agree about the rigor. i oversaw some undergraduate students in a university library and actually did try to hold them to regular work standards (although with scheduling exceptions) since the job actually produced something and was looked at a little askance by other staff. a lot of student positions seem to be staffing a front desk with a lot of down time.

In my grad program there were only two students in my cohort who had never worked before getting their masters and they really struggled. In my opinion, the university should have made that part of the requirement because so many of the lectures and assignments focused on past work experience that one of the professors had to craft an assignment specifically for them. I remember even struggling in some of the classes because I had only taught and not worked on the administrative side, and some of the discussions just went over my head.

As a freshman girl, I haaated working the hot food line on mashed potato night. Senior Boys would make the worst dirty jokes/innuendo about gravy boats. (It was bad) and the older ladies that ran the joint just thought they were so sweet, paying extra attention to all of us.

We fought over working the dish room. (That was by far the filthiest job I have ever had, but it was so satisfying. To see the product of all of our work at the end of a shift.)

Since there is a lot of difference working in the on campus bookstore, for example, and working for a privately owned bookstore down town, or working for the cafeteria compared to working at a chain elsewhere.

Going to call shenanigans on that, having gone from ranch work to white collar pretty much constantly through undergrad and knowing quite a few people who did cannery, forestry, or factory work who went on to white collar jobs. A lot of them were great summer or shift work for students.

One of those things that depend on the hiring manger/company. My SIL applied for a job after graduating. The feedback from the first company was that it is better to have no experience than the wrong type of experience (meaning unless it was directly or indirectly related to her field of study do not add it to your resume). My former manager on the other hand really appreciated variety of different experience and was more likely to hire someone like that. So who knows what works.

I had a student job as a programmer that eventually turned into a full-time position when I graduated. We were able to give student workers actually important tasks to work on and had enough time and flexibility to mentor them and help them gain new skills.

I think it depends, both on the job and on the role the former student is aiming for, and an interviewer would do well to look closely and with an open mind. Cafeteria jobs for students are getting rare with dining services getting outsourced, and in any event, this is unlikely to be an application to work in some other institutional kitchen.

My previous experience involved editing campus publications such as the yearbook, student handbook, and a number of other student publications. My work on those student publications included supervising employees. Looking back now on my experiences as a student editor, I believe the experience I acquired then was at least as valuable as experience I acquired years later in senior positions with major publishers.

But presumably the resume covered what tasks they did. If they had a job like Alexis brothers description then I could see problems. but It sounds like the LW had examples of work in her department (maybe admin or research depending on the department). Those skills are very transferable.

I had someone say something similar to me when I was looking for a job post-grad school & after I had been adjunct faculty for 2 years. I had only had on-campus jobs as a grad student and instructor. I guess all my previous experience working my way through school meant nothing.

I agree with Alison that the wording the interviewer was not the greatest, but I do understand the sentiment. I worked the entire time I was in college and held three separate jobs during that time, I still had a bit of a shock to the system when I started teaching afterward. I had never been taught to write a professional email, or how to dress in a more corporate setting (my first school required very formal outfits) and my college version of professional clothes did not really cut it.

Then when I moved from teaching to working in an office setting, I had another adjustment to go through. It took time for both me and my boss to onboard me because I was simultaneously learning the duties of the role while also learning how to be an office worker. I had to learn the work jargon, the org chart, office politics, rules of the office and the unspoken rules etc.

There can be different levels of formality and professionalism required when pretty much everyone you serve either is a student or a person who chooses to work on a place constantly inundated by new waves of students.

Campuses have power structures and reward dynamics that exist nowhere else outside academia. Jobs on campus occasionally look the same as an analogous job off campus, but often look like a funhouse-mirror version of the job due to all the weird incentives.

The Hiatt Career Center's World of Work (WOW) fellowship supports undergraduates who pursue unpaid summer internships. This year, around $200,000 is available for you to take on unpaid internships, gain skills, and still get paid. The competitive program helps reduce financial obstacles so you can follow your interests, explore career fields, and gain new skills!

While the number of awards may vary on any given year, there are multiple different types to help eliminate financial burdens for students. Applicants will be considered for all appropriate sources of funding.

Work should be substantive and can take place in the private sector, governmental, research, or non-profit organizations with a focus on improving education, awareness raising, human and institutional capacity on climate change mitigation, adaptation, impact reduction, or early warning.

Alexander P. Heckler/Governor Ann Richards Internship Fund is awarded to students who aim to pursue a professional career in public service and are interning in or around Washington, DC.

The fund is named for and honors the memory of Ann Richards, former Texas governor and Brandeis University visiting professor and board member. Richards spent much of her life as a dedicated public servant advocating for progressive values.

The fund is named in memory of Anna Umanskaya '10 who passed away in 2021 and who was deeply touched by her connections working with the elderly and immigrant populations during and after her time as a Brandeis student. Read more about Anna's story.

Louis D. Brandeis Social Justice WOW Fellowship is a prestigious grant that supports undergraduates at organizations that address issues of social justice. Whether through tech support, marketing, financial analytics, education, direct service, or grassroots campaigning, there are many ways to champion social justice in the World of Work.

The Legacy Fund also sponsors internships with premier social justice organizations. These organizations have reserved a slot exclusively for Brandeis students. Follow the links below and submit your application through Handshake (you do not need to fill out a separate WOW application) before March 1, 2024.

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