Poor academic success for students in school-based work programs: How much work is too much

Introduction: School-to-work (STW) programs engage youth in work experience in order to provide a smooth transition from high school to work. Work-based learning programs are found in over 70% of public high schools. While studies have reported that working can have a negative impact on academic achievement, little is known about the STW program and STW students who are working multiple jobs.

Methods: In May 2003, over 8,000 teens aged 14-18 years old throughout Wisconsin were surveyed regarding their academic achievement and work experiences. In total, 6,470 students responded to the survey (81% response rate).

Results: Overall, 454 were in the STW program (7%) and 3,108 of the students did not work (48%). Of the students in the STW program 45% reported working multiple jobs. Students participating in the STW program had poorer academic success when compared to non-working students. In addition, the negative effects were amplified when a STW student was working multiple jobs. STW students with multiple jobs were almost four times more likely to NOT expect to graduate compared with non-working teens. Additionally, they were significantly less likely to have a GPA > 2.0 (OR=0.55; 95%CI=0.38-0.80) and more likely to cut class (OR=2.51; 95%CI=1.87-3.38).

Conclusion: Academic achievement is negatively effected by the STW program and especially among students holding additional jobs; therefore we need to reassess the needs of students and change policy for their benefit. As a part of the STW program, regulations on multiple jobs and hours worked should be introduced.