The Student Job Market

Despite the desire to work during high school, many young people often find it challenging to find a job.

Having a job has become an expectation of teenagers. It used to be a struggle to balance school and work, but it is just as much of a problem finding a job willing to hire a teenager at all. Students who are especially good at time management are the most responsible and the most likely to be looking for a job.

The application process, no matter the age, is sometimes an unruly process. Even when finding a place willing to take a resume, it’s no guarantee that there would be an interview to follow, or in some cases, even a response.

“Once I got my license my parents made me pay for gas and all that came with it, and so I applied to all these places like restaurants and small businesses. They would reach out and say ‘I just got your application’ and then I never hear anything back,” NHS junior Maddie Britton said.

Between the rigorous processes of trying to complete a student's first resume, there is also the futile cycle of not being hired because of a teenager's lack of job experience. How do you get your first job if you haven’t had one yet? Sometimes babysitting your neighbor’s kids or your cousins is not enough to suffice. Especially in smaller, close knit, towns like Newtown, there are less places to apply to, or another classmate had already thought of it first.

 “I finally got a job, but I only work weekends because that is all they need me for. So there is very limited time because people already have taken the shifts and positions,” Britton said.

Even the students who have great time management, still aren’t available for some of the most important shifts during the week. If a store closes at 6:30, and a student is out of school and driving to their job by 3, a 3 hour shift is usually not wanted or looked for by employers. Most teenagers aren’t willing to give up their only free days and nights to work a couple of hours for minimum wage.

“I think that taking away your social time can have harmful effects on one’s mental health if they are doing school all week and working, and then being busy again during their supposed days off,” NHS junior Rusa Ellul said.

A majority of high school students work in leisure and hospitality jobs, which don't have a large portion of opportunities in smaller towns. In the 2000s, the percentage of 16-19 year olds that were employed was 54%. Now, as in 2025, this percentage has dropped to 35% of employed teenagers. 

“I don’t have time during the school year for a job,” NHS junior Skylar Urbina said.

During summer, the employment rate for teenagers can be as high as 42% with more opportunities for students to get hired as counselors and or start their employment as CITs.

“I like working over the summer, and it was my first job, so it seemed like a job opportunity that I would be able to figure out how to do, and plus I really like helping kids,” NHS junior Estelle Sterik said.

Teenagers usually get hired for employability and role modeling. Students have a lot of flexibility over summer, and many were former campers giving back, or still sharing the same passion as they did when they were younger. 

“Students have to balance a lot of homework, sports, and there’s really already a lack of time, and of course sleep. Camp counseling is a very introductory job that many people have as their first. It gives experience and a lot of skills you’ll need,” Urbina said.

The easiest way for a teenager to get a job is to know the right person. It’s found that most minors with jobs had their job fall into their lap at the perfect time. 

“When I got my job, I had been searching for one or two months already, and then I found the job I currently still work at and had been working at for the past year from a family friend. I had went in and applied and I had basically got in immediately. I did a small formal interview but that was about it,” NHS junior Nikki Kirsch said.