I (23F) have a job that is an excellent stepping stone to my career. The mission of the job itself is something I love, but the hours and pay are awful. After an entire month, all I can do is pay my share of the rent and utilities, I can’t even afford groceries and I can barely afford the gas it costs to drive 45 minutes to and from work. I knew this upfront but assumed (due to past experiences with working with similar industries) that there would be a lot of opportunities to gain additional hours and such, but this is not the case. I’ve even suggested opportunities for additional hours that I think would be great but they were never looked into.
I’ve applied to the Next Step of this career outside of the place I am currently employed and I am waiting to hear back from that. I have a really strong resume and cover letter so I am hoping that it helps. But I think regardless of how this turns out, I cannot afford to stay at my current job. Mentally or financially. It’s so draining to put in so much time and effort to be met with shit management and not even enough money left over to do something fun to relieve stress, not even enough money for gas just to go somewhere with free access like a park.
There are good internships available that I have considered applying to, I have a financial aid refund check coming in, and I may be able to work at a family member’s business if need be. I’m graduating with my Masters in 2024, so I’d like to think that this would give me the leg up but I know that is not how it is working anymore. I read a lot about how much people are struggling to get any type of job ever, even people with degrees not being able to get fast food or retail jobs, and I’m wondering if I need to just suck it up.