Part-Time Job Opportunities for High Schoolers

By: Isabelle Zhang

As we are diving into the first semester of the school year, many students are probably wondering, “Hm! How can I pay for all my boba and dining expenses??” This will lead most students to the daunting idea of finding a part-time job. This article serves as a guide for any sophomore, junior, or senior looking for a potential source of income! 

The first step in this job search process is to have a work permit, a CHSPE certification, or a HiSET certification. Without one of these, it’s difficult for employers to trust you.

The next step is to check in with yourself and your capacity. Having a part-time job is a responsibility and a dedication, so you cannot quit on a whim. 

Lastly, make a professional resume to send to employers! 

Now that the prerequisites are met, here are some popular part-time job opportunities among high schoolers! 

1. Tutor 

There are many paths you can take as a tutor. 

The most common path is to tutor at a tutoring center such as Kumon, Mathnasium, or Genius Kids. At these locations, you can be a tutor in math, english, or foreign languages. 

Pros: 

• Standardized employment process from interview to submitting paperworks
• Training is provided 
• More information about work experiences can be found on Reddit  

Cons: 

• Minimum wage 
• Inflexible hours 
• No freedom to choose the kids you work with 

Another path is to tutor privately. To find clients to tutor privately, you can explore sites such as Wyzant, Tutor.com, and Superprof.com. All of these options are easy to set-up, and they offer a wide client pool. As an alternative, you can tutor the younger siblings of your friends, or respond to someone’s Instagram story asking for a tutor. 

As a side note, Mathnasium of Newark is urgently hiring! 

Pros:

• You set the hourly wage (for instance, the kids I tutor privately pay $20-40 dollars per hour based on their ages and needs) 
• You decide the curriculum based on their parents’ and students’ requests 
• Flexible hours 

Cons: 

• This is an unofficial job, unless you use sites such as Wyzant, Tutor.com, or Superprof.com
• You must interact with parents extensively 

2. Fast food worker 

Recently, California passed a law that forced many fast food places to raise the minimum wage to $20 per hour. Every fast food restaurant is affected by this law, except for places that primarily sell bread. However, working in fast food means a lot of pressure from grumpy customers, (some) callous managers, and mean coworkers. Obviously, this is exaggerated, but the customer anger is real. 

Pros:

• Relatively high pay
• Freedom to work up to 30 hours per week 
• Free employee meals LOL 
• High chance at least one of your coworkers will be from Ohlone College

Cons: 

• High pressure 
• Working at a location with drive-through might kill your mental 
• You’re responsible for cleaning the bathrooms

3. Olive Garden on Mowry

According to my friend who works at Olive Garden on Mowry Ave, they are urgently hiring for every position. At that location specifically, all the team members are friendly and in their low 20s. The manager is really friendly as well. Though it does get busy on weekends, interacting with so many customers and seeing the diversity in Fremont is a super cool experience. 

Pros: 

• Friendly work environment 
• Abundant interactions with customers, manager, and coworkers 
• Flexible hours 
• Freedom to work up to 30 hours per week
• Good location! It’s right next to City Sports and Starbucks. 
• Free breadsticks !! like c’mon you gotta work there jus for these free breadsticks ykwim

Cons: 

• Minimum wage 
• Rush hour is pretty stressful 

4. Barista / Bobarista 

Most, if not all, of us buy drinks on a weekly basis. This thought might motivate some of us to become a barista or bobarista! Some examples are Suju’s Coffee, Starbucks, the hundreds of boba stores around the Bay Area, etc. Since Starbucks falls under the Fast Food Minimum Wage law, they’ve received hundreds of applications. For a fact, the locations at Jarvis Avenue and Civic Center Drive are not hiring. 

Pros: 

• If you like free drinks, this is the perfect job for you! 
• If your friends like free drinks, this is the perfect job for you!! 
• If your family likes free drinks, bro, this is the best job for you!!! 
• Flexible hours 
• Freedom to work hours up to 40 hours per week 

Cons: 

• Minimum wage, except Starbucks 
• Lots and LOTS of recipes to remember 
• Rush hour at coffee shops at 7am and 12pm get pretty stressful 
• Many customers have horrible attitudes 

5. Retail associate 

Working in retail can help you develop customer service skills and learn about inventory management. Some possible positions you can take are cashier, sales associate, or stock clerk, from clothing shops to electronics stores. 

If you live in Pleasanton, I know that a Nike store in Downtown Pleasanton is urgently hiring. 

Pros: 

• Flexible work hours
• There are hundreds of retail stores around us
• Employee discounts at shops you love, such as Adidas, Nike, Lululemon, etc. 

Cons: 

• You’re paid for your labor, instead of your intellect 
• Some customers are not ideal 

6. Mini Cat Town in Great Mall 

Mini Cat Town, as the name suggests, is a cat cafe in Great Mall in Milpitas! According to another friend of mine, they are soon opening applications again for this winter! If you love working with cats, such as feeding, playing, and caring for them, please apply! If you would like to adopt a cat, visit their website for more information! 

If you don’t want to commit but love the idea of working with cats, they are looking for volunteers as well! There’s more information on their website!

Pros:

• If you love cat, this job wouldn’t feel like a job at all
• Friendly workers
• Lovely cats 

Cons: 

• You are very likely to run into your opps, cuz everyone be goin’ to Great Mall 
• Great Mall might be far from your house 

Besides the ones listed above, other options include the following:

• Lifeguard 
• Grocery bagger 
• Petsitter 
• Freelance graphic designer
• Start a small business on Etsy, Shopify, or Amazon

These are some of the most common part-time jobs taken by high school students! Whether or not you have a job, the most important thing is that you use your time in a way that’s meaningful to you. And though some jobs may seem meaningless, ultimately, you will be able to interact with other people of your age, and expand your connections.

Mini Cat Town