Answer: Research shows that, in the long run, those who start working in high school earn up to 10% to 15% more than those who didn’t dip a toe in the job market until after college graduation.

Questions:

• Have you had/plan to have a job while you are in high school?
  • If so, what you have you learned about the world of work in that role? 
• Why do you think having a job in high school has such a big impact on your future earnings? 
• Aside from the money, what are other benefits of having a part-time job? 

Click here for the ready-to-go slides for this Question of the Day that you can use in your classroom.

Behind the numbers (Humble Dollar):

According to Karen Burns, writing for The Seattle Times, “Research shows that, in the long run, those who start working in high school earn up to 10% to 15% more than those who didn’t dip a toe in the job market until after college graduation.” On top of that, earning money early in life makes you realize that those dollars don’t come easily and shouldn’t be squandered.

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NGPF's Career Unit will help your students land that first job with lots of skill-building lessons and activities. 

About the Author

Tim Ranzetta

Tim's saving habits started at seven when a neighbor with a broken hip gave him a dog walking job. Her recovery, which took almost a year, resulted in Tim getting to know the bank tellers quite well (and accumulating a savings account balance of over $300!). His recent entrepreneurial adventures have included driving a shredding truck, analyzing executive compensation packages for Fortune 500 companies and helping families make better college financing decisions. After volunteering in 2010 to create and teach a personal finance program at Eastside College Prep in East Palo Alto, Tim saw firsthand the impact of an engaging and activity-based curriculum, which inspired him to start a new non-profit, Next Gen Personal Finance.