Why On-Campus Student Employees Need To Be Treated Better

Many college students are now working on campus for the summer. Some may say that working on campus is a great way to build your resume and connections: You can network with fellow students and understand the ins and outs of the college system. 

However, colleges should also improve their work environment for students. Being a student often entails multiple stressors, such as deadlines and other personal affairs. But there has been a lack of mental health support for student employees. 

When my placement got terminated, I had to rush to my college tutoring shift the next day. I was already traumatized from what happened the day before. But while I was tutoring the student, they mentioned a lot of topics that were traumatic to me. Throughout the session, I experienced multiple flashbacks of the termination. 

When I brought this up to my advisor, they did not seem to care. 

“Yeah. Can’t you just ask the student for some space?” They asked me. 

The reality is that asking a student for some time and space doesn’t fully solve the problem. After the session, I still felt traumatized. But no one was available to listen to my concerns. 

The situation is not unique because similar things have happened in other departments. 

One time, I was helping a student with their documents in the Career Services department. When I asked the student if they understood what they needed to edit, they lashed out at me.

Then, when I asked them another question, they lashed out at me again. 

I brought this situation up to my supervisor too, to which she then replied: “Yeah, students are like that.” 

I felt upset as soon as she said that because it didn’t seem like she cared about her employees’ well-being. After all, we’re servants to the students. So shouldn’t we make them happy?

Throughout the next week, I checked my inbox and saw that I received an email from her. She notified us that a student entered the space and exhibited aggressive behavior, which they managed to de-escalate. Then, she mentioned that they will start to reinforce the code of conduct. 

This email baffled me because I believed they should have enforced the code of conduct earlier. 

Student employees have to navigate a grey area between being a student and an employee at the college. If the college has a large enrollment of students every year, the student is treated like a number. Plus, colleges are big organizations, which means employees, despite their good paychecks, are also treated like numbers. 

So as a student employee, you suffer the worst of both worlds. 

Your managers know you’re in school, but they need your help. Therefore, they’ll try to schedule you anywhere they need staff — after all, you’re a student who’s expected to work with them. 

But because of that, your mental health becomes neglected. 

You’re expected to complete your assignments and provide good customer service to students who treat you terribly. Besides, you may be assigned the grunt work as well.

You’ll find that students tend to utilize more on-campus services during midterm and final exam season. 

So even though you’re studying for your exam, you’ll still be expected to come to work to answer other students’ concerns. And on top of that, you’re still treated like a robot. 

Since around one-third of students experience poor mental health, student employees need to be supported more. 

During exam difficulties, managers need to check in with their student employees more often and provide appropriate referrals. Student employees are human too; they suffer through the same stressors as other students. And they may also suffer from other vicarious-related trauma from listening to other students’ concerns. 

When a student employee experiences difficulty within a course or an internship, the college needs to support the individual. This can be through frequent check-ins, meetings, and referrals to the counselor if needed. 

Moreover, students should also have a day off. It’s not always good to come to work in a stressful environment. Student employees deserve a paid day off to relax and rejuvenate during or after exam season. 

With these changes, students will feel more supported throughout their academic journey. After all, everyone needs a work-life balance and a good employee support system. But this is especially important for student employees, juggling school, stress, red tape, and managing aggressive behavior. 

So to colleges, universities, and other post-secondary student affairs professionals, please change your structure and support the students more.

Featured image via Tima Miroshnichenko on Pexels