Supporting your Studies Abroad: Work and Study to fund your MS in US education

Have you got admission into an MS degree program in the US but are wondering what options are available to fund your studies? You’ve come to the right place! 

There are many ways to ease the burden of tuition fees and fund your higher education. These include scholarships and grants, educational loans and crowdfunding. Some students also choose to seek support from family. Others choose more affordable study destinations. 

In this article, we talk about an option that many students choose and prefer: to support their studies through work or part-time jobs. 

The ability to work part-time and fund your own education can build confidence and equip you with important life skills. It can also help you build important social skills, assimilate into the local culture and build important networks. This is why many students, who are looking for funding and haven’t received scholarships, choose this option for funding their education.

Rules and Regulations

Visa guidelines for international students only allow you to work 20 hours a week and only on campus. You can work 20 hours a week while classes are in session and up to 40 hours when the university is not in session. It’s important to keep this in mind when making your application and considering costs. 

Jobs are not that hard to come by and depend on what you’re looking for. If you’re looking for industry specific jobs, how easy or hard these are to find will depend on the popularity of the industry and number of jobs in general. 

Let’s have a look at some of the popular part-time jobs pursued by Indian students pursuing their Masters on US campuses. 

Types of Jobs

Library Monitor

As a library monitor, you monitor the library environment and ensure that people are following the rules and the environment is quiet. This is an ideal job for students looking for some quiet time on the job, to focus on their studies. 

Teaching Assistant

Those looking for a future in teaching and academics are best served applying for teaching assistantships. “Teaching fellows” are typically graduate students and are tasked with such roles as handing out and collecting college assignments. On the other hand, teaching assistants” have less formal responsibilities. This job lets you network with faculty and prepares you for a career in academia. 

Tour Guide

A campus tour guide’s job is to show people around a campus and familiarize them with its historicity, social and cultural value. Many US campuses are quite large and old and are home to historic buildings. This makes them important tourist spots for those from outside the campus. The job requires you to report directly to the Admissions Department of your college. It is well suited to those who have a friendly, outgoing personality and can engage well with people. 

Peer Tutor

The educational resource centre at US universities often have formal positions for tutoring. As a tutor, you can mentor other students. Colleges that place a lot of importance on athletic programs usually recruit tutors to work with athletes who don’t get enough time to devote to their studies. This is a great job for those looking at careers that require outstanding leadership and people facing skills. It also helps you network and make friends on campus. 

Academic Department Assistant

A clerical job involving paperwork sorting and filing, these jobs are usually issued by individual school departments. Departments generally give priority to students within the field and an academic department assistant job is an excellent opportunity to network within your field. Like the teaching assistantship, this is an ideal job for those looking to work in academia. 

Campus Tech Support

If you are looking for a job in a technical field and are good with computers, this is the job for you. All US universities offer tech support to libraries, classrooms, and laboratories so it becomes an important job position to hold. In addition, the job requires you to be on call only during emergencies, which gives you the time to study. Every university’s computer call centre announces postings for tech support. 

Production Assistant

If you’re looking at a career in management, production or the arts, this is the perfect work and study job for you. American universities are known for the importance they place on extra-curricular activities like dances, concerts, comedy shows, and plays. Your job lets you provide technical, administrative and other support at these events. 

University Bookstore Assistant

As a university bookstore assistant, you help provide support to the campus bookstore, through administrative, clerical and/or technical tasks. You can contact the bookstore manager directly to inquire about job openings.

Research Study Assistant

A research assistant conducts research and assists professors with a particular subject. They also work with other researchers who require research assistants on their projects. This is a particularly useful job for those looking to step into a PhD after their Masters, as it gives you the hands-on experience of conducting research work while building ideas for a thesis. 

Babysitter

University employees, including professors and administrative staff, usually favour college students as babysitters. Check with the student employment office for openings available. Babysitters earn between $10-$15 per hour and your work hours and days will vary based on requirement. This is an excellent source of income for those who are good with kids. Make sure you are comfortable and equipped to handle the age of kids you will babysit. 

Barista

The next best thing to studying in a cafeteria is making additional income by working in your university cafe!. If you love coffee yourself, work as a barista and you will learn a lot about coffee, espresso, tea, and other drinks, in addition to employee discounts to satisfy coffee cravings! If you’re at university to study a course in hospitality, entrepreneurship or simply love coffee, this is the job for you!

Catering Assistant and Food Runners

Like a barista, you will work at university restaurants. These jobs are well suited for those students who are pursuing hospitality courses and catering. 

Sales Job

This is a great job for those looking to network, culturally assimilate or build on their articulation and people skills. In addition, this is also a great job, if you’re pursuing a degree in marketing or sales in the US. Students can work as sales assistants at the campus grocery store, bookstores, clothing stores, etc.

To learn more about how to fund your studies abroad, feel free to contact our student support team. 

Don’t forget to check or contact the individual university websites and departments for the latest information on tuition fees, scholarships, and deadlines for the same, as these are updated all the time. 

All the best!