Part-Time Employment in High School and Its Effect on Academic Achievement

Abstract

Part-time employment during high school has grown dramatically. High school students are twice as likely to be working part-time as they were in 1950. Despite the fact that many adolescents work between the ages of 12 and 17, little empirical evidence exists about the impact of part-time employment on academic performance. In the present research, the nationally representative sample of 10th graders, the First Follow-Up of the National Educational Longitudinal Study of 1988 (NELS-88), was used to examine the effects of part-time work during the school year on academic achievement, as measured by the standardized achievement scores and high school grades earned in 4 subject areas: English, mathematics, science, and social studies. The findings of the study point to a small negative effect of employment on both measures of achievement when socioeconomic status, gender, and previous achievement were controlled. The study helps to illuminate an important question and has implications for parents, educators, and counselors.