An invisible group
Working students on campus
Working students on campus
By Jessica Pharm
It’s seven o’clock on a Monday morning, and the alarm buzzes to noisily remind you that not only do you have a full day
of classes (including a major exam), but also a six-hour work shift today. For many working class students, this daily
scenario is nothing knew; in fact, it’s a never-ending struggle to balance both work and school.
Getting a degree at UW-Madison is a great honor, and one that unfortunately keeps getting more expensive with each
passing year. Tuition for Wisconsin residents is $4156.88 for the fall semester — a $372.60 increase from Spring 2009. With
tuition rates climbing, many students are finding it harder to finance their education, let alone afford to pay for rent, books,
and daily living expenses.
Working students have the dual burden of having to worry about school and other financial dilemmas — from
professors who assign books ranging from $80 to $100 each, to tuition increases instead of scholarships and grants, and
It’s seven o’clock on a Monday morning, and the alarm buzzes to noisily remind you that not only do you have a full day
of classes (including a major exam), but also a six-hour work shift today. For many working class students, this daily
scenario is nothing knew; in fact, it’s a never-ending struggle to balance both work and school.
Getting a degree at UW-Madison is a great honor, and one that unfortunately keeps getting more expensive with each
passing year. Tuition for Wisconsin residents is $4156.88 for the fall semester — a $372.60 increase from Spring 2009. With
tuition rates climbing, many students are finding it harder to finance their education, let alone afford to pay for rent, books,
and daily living expenses.
Working students have the dual burden of having to worry about school and other financial dilemmas — from
professors who assign books ranging from $80 to $100 each, to tuition increases instead of scholarships and grants, and
the rapid gentrification taking place downtown that forces students to live farther away from campus. These are all a growing concern. However, it
is important to understand which groups make up the working students and what their needs are.
University of Wisconsin-Madison defines “working students” as mostly first generation, low-income, women and minority groups. According
to UW-Madison retention data, first generation students are 21 percent of the freshman class and 33 percent of transfer students. This gets more
complicated when one looks at subgroups like race, and income. Nonetheless, there are programs on campus that work with students to get help
with finding jobs and developing career skills needed to be successful.
The Recruitment Initiative for Student Employees or RISE for short, was a part of UW-Madison’s Plan 2008, to serve as a resource for diverse
students seeking employment opportunities within the university. Sheltrese McCoy is the program coordinator, a position she has held since May
2009.
McCoy works with most freshmen and sophomores, many of whom come from various financial needs.
“Many of the students in the program are here on grants and scholarships. They have significant financial need to help pay for college and
typically need a job to take care of all the other expenses not being covered outside of their academic scholarships.”
Aside from the need to teach students how to balance work and classes, McCoy also sees the need for students to learn how to prepare for
the professional world once they graduate.
“Students also need help with writing cover letters, resumes, and preparing for job interviews. Without this, most students won’t have the
skills needed to succeed in the work place.”
RISE seeks to develop the student career skills holistically by offering mock interviews, professional development seminars and workshops
designed to help working class students. “Going to college is expensive and time consuming, but we want students to know that there is help out
there,” said McCoy.
Despite help from programs on campus, the expenses of attending college can be overwhelming at times.
Catherine Morgan, the support services coordinator at the Campus Women’s Center feels the rising price of college is putting working students in
a financial bind.
One of her main concerns is the price of books. On campus, University Book Store and Underground Textbook Exchange holds a monopoly
over the sale of books and many students are unable to find other places to buy their books for less. “The prices of the books are high and I feel
the university needs to address this. They should lower the prices of the books and stop using new ones every year,” said Morgan. “Most of the
time when I return a book I can’t get any money for them, because the professors aren’t requesting them for the next school year.”
Aside from the cost of books and tuition, the living situation also affects student’s finances. The high price of living downtown near campus
has forced many students to live away usually resulting in longer commutes for classes.
“I live on the east side of Madison, because it’s cheaper than living on campus. The price of living and the quality is not good for the prices they
are charging,” said Morgan.
Living on campus usually means living in an upkeep apartment with little space and high prices for rent. For students who have cars, that is
another expense, with landlords charging anywhere from $50 to $100 a month for parking.
With all these problems, it’s a wonder how working students manage to survive on a limited budget, exasperated by the high cost of rent,
books, and other living expenses. McCoy believes the university needs to reach out to working students about the services it provides for them.
“There are programs on campus such as PEOPLE, Ceo, and L&S Career Services that can help students with jobs, and professional
development workshops, but the problem is that many students are not aware of these programs until it’s too late,” said McCoy. “If the university
make these services more visible, it can greatly help working students not to feel overwhelmed.”
The needs of the working students are not going to be met overnight; however, it is important that the needs of the working students are not
swept under the rug by the university. For this to occur, students need to be more vocal about their concerns and demand the university to pay
attention.
For more information about RISE, please contact Sheltrese McCoy at smccoy@ohr.wisc.edu. For more information about the Campus Women
Center Support Services, contact Catherine Morgan at cwc.supportservices@gmail.com.
Jessica Pharm is a Working Class Student Union Communications Intern and a senior at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
is important to understand which groups make up the working students and what their needs are.
University of Wisconsin-Madison defines “working students” as mostly first generation, low-income, women and minority groups. According
to UW-Madison retention data, first generation students are 21 percent of the freshman class and 33 percent of transfer students. This gets more
complicated when one looks at subgroups like race, and income. Nonetheless, there are programs on campus that work with students to get help
with finding jobs and developing career skills needed to be successful.
The Recruitment Initiative for Student Employees or RISE for short, was a part of UW-Madison’s Plan 2008, to serve as a resource for diverse
students seeking employment opportunities within the university. Sheltrese McCoy is the program coordinator, a position she has held since May
2009.
McCoy works with most freshmen and sophomores, many of whom come from various financial needs.
“Many of the students in the program are here on grants and scholarships. They have significant financial need to help pay for college and
typically need a job to take care of all the other expenses not being covered outside of their academic scholarships.”
Aside from the need to teach students how to balance work and classes, McCoy also sees the need for students to learn how to prepare for
the professional world once they graduate.
“Students also need help with writing cover letters, resumes, and preparing for job interviews. Without this, most students won’t have the
skills needed to succeed in the work place.”
RISE seeks to develop the student career skills holistically by offering mock interviews, professional development seminars and workshops
designed to help working class students. “Going to college is expensive and time consuming, but we want students to know that there is help out
there,” said McCoy.
Despite help from programs on campus, the expenses of attending college can be overwhelming at times.
Catherine Morgan, the support services coordinator at the Campus Women’s Center feels the rising price of college is putting working students in
a financial bind.
One of her main concerns is the price of books. On campus, University Book Store and Underground Textbook Exchange holds a monopoly
over the sale of books and many students are unable to find other places to buy their books for less. “The prices of the books are high and I feel
the university needs to address this. They should lower the prices of the books and stop using new ones every year,” said Morgan. “Most of the
time when I return a book I can’t get any money for them, because the professors aren’t requesting them for the next school year.”
Aside from the cost of books and tuition, the living situation also affects student’s finances. The high price of living downtown near campus
has forced many students to live away usually resulting in longer commutes for classes.
“I live on the east side of Madison, because it’s cheaper than living on campus. The price of living and the quality is not good for the prices they
are charging,” said Morgan.
Living on campus usually means living in an upkeep apartment with little space and high prices for rent. For students who have cars, that is
another expense, with landlords charging anywhere from $50 to $100 a month for parking.
With all these problems, it’s a wonder how working students manage to survive on a limited budget, exasperated by the high cost of rent,
books, and other living expenses. McCoy believes the university needs to reach out to working students about the services it provides for them.
“There are programs on campus such as PEOPLE, Ceo, and L&S Career Services that can help students with jobs, and professional
development workshops, but the problem is that many students are not aware of these programs until it’s too late,” said McCoy. “If the university
make these services more visible, it can greatly help working students not to feel overwhelmed.”
The needs of the working students are not going to be met overnight; however, it is important that the needs of the working students are not
swept under the rug by the university. For this to occur, students need to be more vocal about their concerns and demand the university to pay
attention.
For more information about RISE, please contact Sheltrese McCoy at smccoy@ohr.wisc.edu. For more information about the Campus Women
Center Support Services, contact Catherine Morgan at cwc.supportservices@gmail.com.
Jessica Pharm is a Working Class Student Union Communications Intern and a senior at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
