” Given the current economic situation, some University of Akron students are postponing graduation in order to balance their work schedules and academic demands. According to a recent report released by the College Board, in 2009-2010, most students will pay an average of $7,000 a year for a four-year public college education, a 6.”
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Given the current economic situation, some University of Akron students are postponing graduation in order to balance their work schedules and academic demands.

According to a recent report released by the College Board, in 2009-2010, most students will pay an average of $7,000 a year for a four-year public college education, a 6.5 percent increase from last year.

Nearly 80 percent of these students work while pursuing their academic career, according to the American Council on Education.

For this reason, students are postponing graduation to accommodate their work schedules to pay for tuition and everyday living expenses.

Rachael Schory, a senior public relations student at UA, has been attending class for four years. On average, she takes 16 credit hours and works between 25 and 30 hours a week as a server at Grinders Above and Beyond, a restaurant in North Canton.

Because of the recession, it’s harder to make 20 percent tips, which makes it harder for me to pay my bills, she said.

Schory lives with her fiancé and three other roommates. She finds it difficult to pay for all her living expenses, which include additional debt, including her car payment and insurance, even though she works full time and is a full-time student.

During her time at UA, Schory scheduled her classes and planned on graduating in the fall of 2010. She was recently informed she needed an additional year of classes before she could graduate. This ruined her plan to get a second job during the summer to pay for the fall semester because she must take classes instead. Since Schory has to take 16 credit hours for an additional two semesters, she cannot apply to jobs where she intended to work.

I don’t want to have a job I can’t work at because I’m still busy with school, she said.

Many students would take more credit hours to graduate sooner but cannot handle the pressure of working to pay expenses and maintaining good grades. According to the American Council on Education, working more than part time while earning a college education seems to have a negative effect on grades.

Another UA senior, Joshua Jarzab, has experienced the hardships of postponing graduation in order to maintain a work schedule and decent grades. He has attended the university for four years and is working toward his associate degree in fire protection and an associate degree in emergency management. He takes an average of 14 credit hours a semester and works an average of 20 hours a week at Petco during the fall and spring.

If Jarzab did not have to work to pay for daily expenses, living expenses and tuition, he said he would attend summer classes to graduate sooner.

I feel like I should have accomplished more for myself by age 22. I have high standards for myself. If I didn’t have to work while I attended school, I would have more time for credit hours and studying, he said.

Right now, I would probably have my EMT, paramedic degree, and possibly be working for a private ambulance company. I would have what I want accomplished because I would be taking summer classes if it were up to me, he said.

Nevertheless, he would not sacrifice his job for better grades. He said it would be impossible for him to pay his daily expenses and all his debt if he did not work during school.

There are just not enough hours in a day, Jarzab said.

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