There are many benefits to having a job as a teenager. From building independence to having a steady income stream, holding down a career in high school will not only aid you financially but having a job can improve your work ethic, preparing teens for future jobs as adults.

Working as a teen can help build communication and money management skills. The work experience gained from being employed during adolescence can prove beneficial as you learn how to interact with coworkers and improve your time management skills. 

Although holding down a job was once an almost universal experience, studies have shown that teenagers today are less likely than any generation before them to have a job. Business Insider’s Rachel Premack says, “Teen employment has been steadily decreasing since 1979, with a steeper decrease yet since 2000. In 1995, two-thirds of teens got summer jobs, according to data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Around 43% did in 2016.”  

As competitiveness increases in college admissions, teens find balancing school and work life more and more difficult. With copious amounts of homework and endless extracurriculars, many teens see jobs as time-consuming and unnecessary. 

But a job can provide more benefits than just a paycheck. Teenagers with jobs learn more valuable life lessons and develop a better work ethic than teens without jobs.