Many teenagers want to earn money and a great way is with a part-time job that they can do around their studies. There are a number of jobs for students and in this post we will explain the legal implications and where young people can find paid work that suits them.
The law on part-time work as a student:
It may surprise you to know that from 13 years old children can undertake some paid work, however, most employers will not employ young people until they are 16 years old. Young workers aged 16 to 17 are not entitled the national minimum wage but they must be paid at least £4.62 per hour. Children can only start full-time work once they’ve reached the minimum school leaving age – they can then work up to a maximum of 40 hours a week.
Many students might find that they are offered zero-hour contract, this is perfectly legal but it means that they have very few legal rights. They can do more or less hours each week, which many students like as they do more in the school holidays. Zero hours does give the students some advantages too as they can have time off as needed.
After doing exams students may choose to get a part time job or even an unpaid summer internship to develop their skillset and some valuable work experience that helps them in the future. The summer months are quite long after GCSE and A level exams as the exams finish in June and they are not back at school until Sept. Therefore a job is the perfect way to pass the time!
Getting your first part-time job straight after doing GCSE’s at the end of the academic year is somewhat challenging. There are many advantages of jobs for students as universities will look at the skills they provide favourably. Universities require well-rounded students with life skills alongside their academic achievements. My sixteen-year-old was encouraged to get a job for a few hours after finishing her exams, as the summer is a long one and she needed the money to keep up the post GCSE lavish entertainment that she expected! We also believe that part-time jobs provide good life lessons and help young people learn financial literacy.
How To Get Your First Job As a Teenager
As a teenager looking for a first job it can be a bit daunting, but there is one thing you need to remember: by applying for jobs at a young age you are already demonstrating one of the key values an employer looks for, that of work ethic.
Not only that, if you are employed as part of an apprenticeship scheme then an employer gets some benefit from employing you, and if you work for a large company they may even see training you as an investment!
Often a good way of finding that first post is if you know other people who work in retail or waitressing they can put you forward or at least let you know when companies are recruiting. Both of my teenagers got their first part-time roles through their uncle working in retail. When you have no experience it can help to have that personal introduction. Many jobs for students are advertised on shop windows and on their websites so keep checking.
Jobs for Students
There are many benefits to getting a job when you are a student and many local businesses and shopping outlets will be happy to take on students.
Firstly is the financial reward obviously! Many teens start developing expensive designer tastes or they want the latest phone, by earning their own money they will start to appreciate the value of money and understand that you have to work in order to have access to luxury goods.
Having a job teaches independence and resilience these are vital skills that young people need to adopt ready for life in the real world.
Part-time work can help develop time management skills as students will need to keep on top of their studies but also manage the expectations of an employer. Having work experience looks great on University applications as it gives you real-life experience and considering some courses are so competitive it can give you the edge over someone else as it demonstrates hard work. Likewise, if your teenager has decided that they don’t want to go to university having a part-time job provides them with employment opportunities that can help them get a full-time position. That weekend job can help them gain experience ready for full-time positions and sets them apart from other applicants and school leavers.
Finally, jobs for students teach budgeting in preparation for Uni living, managing your money is a skill that needs to be taught and this gives teenagers that experience. College students can make excellent employees.
Tips for getting a first part-time job while studying
- Find something suitable and ease in gently – many teenagers will look for work in retail or the service sector to start with. Waitressing or food service jobs are typical first roles. Our daughter took a three day waitressing role at an event to see if she enjoyed it. She didn’t! but she learnt a lot in those three days!
- Go into the retail stores in town and ask for any vacancies and jobs for students. Many employers are looking for casual workers, especially during school holidays and at the end of the school year even if you don’t have any related experience.
- Visit any career fairs that are taking place locally. They often are held in hotels so keep an eye out.
- Have copies of your passport and National Insurance number as these will be required, you usually need to show ID when being set up on payroll and also to prove that you have the right to work.
- Ensure that you have a bank account that your wages can be paid into.
- You will likely be asked for a reference, a teacher or club leader, sports coach is always a great choice and let them know that you have put them down in advance.
- Create a CV that you can upload or print out and hand out.
- Alternatively, if you have some big ideas you could set yourself up making and selling something or providing a service like a virtual assistant. You don’t have to work for someone else!
How To Write A CV As A Teenager
Some jobs require you to complete an online or paper application as part of the hiring process, but most will require a Curriculum Vitae (CV). Don’t be put off by this, as the majority of jobs you apply for throughout your adult life will follow the same process. By nailing down your approach to CV writing you will be setting yourself up for future as well as an immediate success.
The main thing to remember is that a CV needs to stand out. For a large corporation, this may be difficult as large companies generally expect a professionally formatted document. But if you are applying for a creative position, feel free to experiment and express yourself. As a rule, an insurance company looking for an assistant is unlikely to be impressed by a CV written on pink paper covered in rainbows and unicorns, whereas a creative arts company is likely to be equally unimpressed by a plainly formatted A4 document using Times New Roman throughout.
As someone looking for a first job, you may struggle at first to work out what to say about your previous experience. Think about your hobbies, any organisations you belong to (Scouts/Guides, cadets, Duke of Edinburgh Award), any student bodies you may have belonged to in your educational institution, and anything you have done that suggests you have experience in achieving things. An employer will look at the experiences you put in your CV, so be prepared to answer questions on them.
Basically, an employer is looking to find reasons why they should employ you over someone else; if you have belonged to multiple student bodies, organised events, or belonged to an organisation that is known for discipline and training, you may find you actually stand out over someone who has a year or two in employment. Employers are looking for potential as well as experience.
The following resources will help you with structuring and producing your first CV. If you are using Microsoft Office, then starting with a CV template might be the best way to begin. You can find a whole host of CV templates online simply google ‘CV template’ for inspiration.
Where To Look For A Job As A Student
There’s a handful of places I suggest looking when searching for your first part-time job. We have shared the most common ways that current students will find suitable job postings.
Jobs Boards
The method most people use these days to find a job is to look through online jobs boards. Websites such as;
A jobs board is basically an online market for employers and potential employees to find each other, through applying for specific jobs.
The sort of information you can expect to find include location, salary/wage, hours, and type of work. A lot of job posts will indicate they have the essential experience required for an applicant to have in order to apply; ignore this, but don’t get your hopes up either.
Applying with a strong CV and cover letter (a letter introducing yourself and briefly explaining your interest in their company) may end up winning a potential employer over, but if you do this, in your covering letter make it clear you understand you are applying while aware that you don’t meet their specified requirements, otherwise you risk looking like you haven’t read the job specification!
Use these online application opportunities to your advantage. Research the types of jobs available in your area, look at the wage ranges so you know what to ask for, and see what sort of jobs are recurring over time. This may indicate they have a big turnover of staff, which could be an advantage as they will be more willing to employ someone without experience, but could also mean staff are overworked or mistreated. Don’t be too put off if you don’t receive any positive replies from applying through these sites; a job that goes on a board like this will likely have a lot of competition. But never say never.
Walk the High Street
As we have said, many first jobs are in retail, it is important not to be too fussy, remember this is not going to be a long term job with lots of career opportunities so it doesn’t matter. You are just looking for a supportive part time position where you earn some cash.
Student Services
If you are already at university, student services often have a job board where local vacancies are advertised directly to university students. There will also be a large number of paid jobs at the university, some will be regular and include working in the Student Union or coffee shops onsite. Other roles and campus jobs are ad hoc and can include showing potential students around on open days or applicant days acting as brand ambassadors for the university.
Local Newspapers are Good for Jobs for Students
This may seem a bit old fashioned, and to be honest, it is, but local newspapers are still a good place to look for job opportunities for teenagers. Most local papers have a Classified adverts section, which is where you will find positions that local employers are struggling to fill.
Most will have a phone number, e-mail address, or postal address. If someone is seeking employees in a local newspaper, then they will more than likely be happy to receive a call to talk about the job. Not only will this put you at the front of their mind, but you may get valuable insight into what they are looking for from an applicant, or they may even refer you to other employers looking for new staff if you are lucky!
Social Media
Social media is going to be one of your biggest friends while conducting a job search as a teenager. The power of being able to share a status telling people you are looking for a job and have this shared by multiple people in your area has huge potential to help you land your first job.
A single Facebook post, tweet, or LinkedIn post can travel around the world before you realise.
Be careful though, there are a few potential pitfalls. A generic ‘looking for work’ post is unlikely to directly help too much, as it may appear that you are unsure of what you want to do. There are though often local job boards for communities and many will be actively looking for jobs for students.
On the other hand, it may help you if someone sees this and puts you in touch with a potential employer, so don’t write it off. Similarly, a post from a parent or friend has the same issues. Some employers may be put off an applicant if they feel their parents had to help them find a job, as it shows a potential lack of initiative.
We hope this helps students find jobs that are suitable for them whilst continuing their studies. It is important that students remember that their primary purpose though is education and learning! Make sure they can manage a busy schedule and that they don’t distract them from studying. The workplace can be a great learning experience as we all need more than just academic qualifications.
One Response
This is where we’re at now – my son is looking for a part-time job, not just for the money but to stop himself getting too bored! He hasn’t found one yet, but he’ll keep looking! I suspect the fact that he isn’t yet 16 puts him at a slight disadvantage.
I had a paper round from 13-17, worked in a dress shop on Saturdays from when I finished GCSEs until I went to uni and the local shop on Sundays for the same period of time. I did extra in both shops in the holidays. I worked in McDonalds from 19-23. I wasn’t afraid of hard work!