A working class

Segregating academics, extracurriculars and student employment is the Editorial Board’s first mistake. They suggest that Princeton is a zero-sum game in which working comes at the expense of studying, socializing or other activities which occur outside of the classroom; if you work a job that requires any amount of time, that job is taking away from your development as a student or a friend. Naturally, Princeton students are often quite busy and working a job results in reduced flexibility, but the benefits of student employment usually outweigh this cost. I’ve found that some of my most meaningful relationships, especially those with non-student members of the Princeton community, come as the result of my work experience. Connecting with fellow employees and employers both personally and professionally is an important lifelong lesson that can be learned while in college.

Furthermore, if the goal of academics is to broaden and deepen our knowledge of the world around us, I can think of no better compliment to that goal than employment. Students learn many practical skills (software operation, facility maintenance, time management, etc.) as well as many less tangible abilities, such as teamwork, responsibility for others and self-sacrifice. While many of these qualities can also be developed through extracurriculars, it never hurts to be earning a little money on the side.

Working a job is virtually the only way to establish in one’s mind the connection between hard work and money that provides a foundation for a responsible adulthood. Those “wealthier” students — to use the words of the Board — who don’t have to work for money and therefore don’t learn this crucial lesson are the most at risk. Academic work is the sometimes the only industrious outlet which they have on campus. This one-dimensional existence can be corrosive to one’s sense of perspective and ultimately generate an utterly skewed set of values in an individual.

Contrast this with working students who recognize that their work earns real money that contributes directly to their top-class education. Even if a student’s contribution is relatively limited ($2,990 out of over $51,000), it still instills a small sense of autonomy and usefulness in his or her actions. More importantly, energy put into working a job on campus usually leads to concrete results; those working in Dining Services witness the fruits of their labors in the piles of clean dishes which they helped produce. Frist Box Office workers dispense tickets that allow countless numbers of students and community members to watch and support the various activities Princetonians put on around campus. In each of these instances, there is a tangible outcome to one’s efforts.

A reoccurring theme in the Board’s argumentation is the idea that working students are somehow missing out on other opportunities that Princeton offers. The Board fails to see that paying opportunities can be just as — if not more valuable than — other extracurriculars on campus. Some of the most well-adjusted and levelheaded individuals who I’ve met at Princeton are those who — either in high school or at the University — have had to earn their own money.

Before student employment at Princeton, I saw money as a kind of magical material given to me by my parents and relatives. Because of my work experience, I now understand that money shouldn’t come without hard work and dedication. This is a realization that will not only ground students while in college, but also provide a solid framework for their relationship with money for the rest of their life.

After considering all of the benefits of campus employment in terms of perspective, diversity of activity and raw earnings, it’s ludicrous to think that we should increase the financial aid budget by 5 to 10 percent so that we can foolishly shield undergraduates from real work. If the Board and the University are truly concerned with “egalitarian principles,” any increases in our financial aid budget should go directly to defraying the burden of tuition, room and board for deserving families. Not much comes for free in this world, a truth that the Board and all Princeton undergraduates can come to appreciate by putting in a good week’s work outside the classroom.

Nathan Mathabane is a geosciences major from Portland, Ore. He can be reached at nmathaba@princeton.edu.