40 AACC students have part-time jobs on campus this semester that the federal government pays for.

Across campus, departments have advertised more than 80 jobs for office workers, library assistants, technology specialists, photographers, ad sales, cashiers and even a scoreboard operator for sports games.

“This is really high-quality job experience that they’re able to gain to add to [a] resume,” federal work-study coordinator Lacey Lopez said. “If they work in a certain department of their program, it gives them more experience into the field that ultimately they want to go into.” 

Still, department managers have said they are having a hard time filling positions.

Support Coordinator for English, academic literacies and communications Kristi Tuccillo said it took a long time to get a work-study student. 

Lopez said this could be because students are “getting back into the rhythm of being back on campus.”

“It was really hard to find students that wanted to come,” Tuccillo said. “It took me several months to find someone who was interested.”

Students who fill out the Free Application for Federal Student Aid—FAFSA—can qualify for the Federal Work-Study Program if they are taking at least six credits and are in good academic standing. 

Students learn about work-study positions at the College Central Network. Then they apply for work-study through the Office of Financial Aid. Each candidate then applies directly to the department offering the job.

Lopez said learning and working at the same location is convenient for students because it cuts down on travel time and scheduling conflicts and allows workers to “gain professional experience” without getting “overwhelmed” by a busy schedule.

First-year creative writing student Robert Rogers, who has a work-study position in the library, said the work environment and everyone in it is “nice” and “chill.”

First-year environmental science student Parinaaz Patel, who does circulation for the library, agreed, saying the workspace makes her feel “comfortable.”

Second-year business marketing and advertising student Jenny Robles echoed the sentiment, saying her position in AACC Athletics doesn’t feel like work.

“I just feel like you don’t see it as a job,” Robles said. “It’s like something fun in a way.”

Second-year transfer studies student Nick Marsh, who works in the sculpture studio, said his position gives him access to equipment he can use to improve his artistic skills.

“I really enjoy it,” Marsh said. “I’m getting paid to have access to the studio. I get to mess around with the machines and learn them, which furthers my own craft.”

Patel described the work-study program as an “entryway to looking for jobs” and a “gateway to knowledge.”