INGRID BULMER / Staff Jodie Waalderbos looks out her dorm room window as she studies for a psychology exam at Halifax's Mount Saint Vincent University on Wednesday.

Summer job hunt is on
Once exams end, university students focus on finding a steady income

By BILL POWER / Staff Reporter

Few will have time to sing the summertime blues.

The school of hard knocks - a world of minimum wage jobs and increased living expenses - starts Friday for thousands of university students across Nova Scotia.

Most have completed studies and are heading out into the workforce for the next four months.

But some have friends who've been forced to bail out of post-secondary institutions due to mounting financial pressure.

Lockeport native Devin Peterson, 19, will work in a fish plant this summer and considers himself lucky, since he'll escape the minimum wage trap.

"You've got to put in a lot of hours to make any amount of money over the summer working at minimum wage," the Mount Saint Vincent University student said Wednesday.

"A lot of students return to jobs they've previously had in hopes of earning more," said Julia Pesthill, 20, of Halifax, also a Mount student. She'll work for two months at day camps operated by Halifax Regional Municipality, but she's hungry for other jobs.

Students in co-operative work-study programs are under a lot of pressure to find jobs in selected fields, said Jessica West, another Mount student.

"It's especially difficult for people from small communities. Their costs go way up if they have to live away to get work."

Ms. West, 19, will work on campus this summer contacting students expecting to attend the university in the fall.

The students agreed the end of the school year begins a summer of financial worries, since they need jobs that will make a big dent in the roughly $15,000 cost of a year of studies - tuition, residence and expenses.

"They're under a lot of pressure," said Ms. Pesthill.

Still, job counsellors at some universities say many students are finding work in their desired fields.

"The jobs are there, but the students are working harder than ever before to find them," said Christine Frigault, co-ordinator of the Mount's career planning centre.

Learning how to find a job that complements a resume is a major part of the university experience, she said.

"Most university students understand that only 10 or 20 per cent of jobs are advertised.

"Getting a university education and accessing these good summer jobs . . . goes hand in hand."

Most students with an eye on the bottom line will try to steer clear of minimum wage jobs.

Often, specialized studies such as those in science and research provide opportunities to boost the paycheque when it comes to summer jobs.

Laura Addicott, manager of Dalhousie University's student employment centre, said the job market is good for those students.

"After a year or two at university students have skills to offer and are interested in obtaining experience," said Ms. Addicott.

"They do not need to take the minimum wage jobs."