What is most important to you:
- Something you will enjoy?
- Something that will help you gain experience for your future career?
- Flexibility - a job where the employer helps you fit your work around other obligations?
- Working with friends?
- New Skills?
- Convenience?
Consider:
- Your hobbies/interests
- What you would like to do later on
- The kind of flexibility you are looking for
- Do you only want to work at certain times of the day?
- Do you only want to work on certain days of the week?
- Do you only want to work a certain number of hours each week?
- Where your friends work
- What you would like to learn to do
- Where you would like to work and how you will travel there
Activity - Write a Dossier about yourself based on the Model Dossiers
A dossier based on some or all of the answers to the questions above should help you decide what best suits your needs, and might also help when you have to build a curriculum vitae(CV) when you start job hunting. For more about CV's, click here.
Here are two sample dossiers, based on some real life experiences of NSW school students.
George
I've just finished Year 10 at a big city multi-campus high school and want to look for a job for the holidays, and hopefully continue part-time next year.
I'm changing schools as well, because my school finished at Year 10, and I've moved to a senior campus. They are a bit more flexible, and you can leave early if you don't have a class in the afternoon. I'll have to wait and see what my timetable is like.
The subjects I've chosen for Year 11 include Computer Applications, Modern History and Maths (as well as English, of course - that's compulsory!) I want to work in I.T in the future - maybe go to uni first and do a computer engineering course. Games design would be perfect! I'm not really sure yet though.
In my spare time I like to play computer games (d'oh!) and do kung fu. Kung Fu training is on Tuesday and Thursday nights, and sometimes there are competitions on Saturday afternoons or evenings.
I don't care much what sort of job I have. I'm mainly looking for some money to save for a car and driving lessons. Though I am not so keen on working in a fast food place, and would prefer retail if that came up.
Obviously I can't work Tuesday or Thursday evenings, and if I have shifts on Saturday, I might have to occasionally ask to drop or change a shift.
There aren't any late night buses where I work, and Mum says she thinks the trains are a bit unsafe late at night, so she will pick me up from work if it's in the evenings. Not too late though, as she has to get up early for her work. It'll be a bit of a juggle, but I hope I can find somewhere they can take all that into account.
So far I've been an average student, not getting really top marks, but not struggling either. The computer industry is pretty competitive so I don't want to fall behind. Therefore, during term time I want to limit work to about 10 hours a week - maybe one shift during the week and one on the weekend.
Pia
I'm going into Year 12 and have my HSC this year. I haven't worked before.
I've always played lots of sport, and used to do swimming training, before the early morning starts got too boring. I was never going to win an Olympic medal!
After I finish school I'd like to work in some area of fitness or sports, maybe study sports event management at uni and also be a fitness trainer?
I live in a country town of about 10 000 people. I noticed in the local paper that the organisation which has the contract running the local pool is looking for people over 17 to train as swimming instructors.
After talking it over with Mum and Dad, they said "Go for it!" - as long as it doesn't interfere with my school work. It would be a great way to earn a bit of cash in the holidays and on weekends, because that's when most of the kids' swimming lessons are. Sunday morning is really popular. There are a few early evening sessions too, so we will see what they need.
I really hope to get the chance to do this; it could help with my future career, and will look good on a CV no matter what, especially seeing as I want to work in something to do with sport long term. So it's a bit of a career step, really. It will also be a great way of earning money when I go on to uni or TAFE.
I can ride my bike to the pool, so daytime and holiday work is perfect. And seeing as there's no effective public transport in my town, it means I wouldn't have to rely on mum or dad picking me up and all that.