High school students  typically juggle school, work, and a social life. Some are better at the juggling act than others, but the pressures of it all seem to be weighing on teens more now than ever, taking a toll on stress levels and mental health.

“It honestly just makes me tired, and homework isn’t a huge problem because most teachers are understanding but any time I get behind, I just catch up when I get a little break,” said senior Lauren Eubanks. “The biggest challenges I would say I face are mostly making time for myself and my friends, which is important to me.” 

These high school students have jobs for various reasons: many of them have cars, phones and other things to pay off; some are forced to work by their parents and/or necessity; some just work for fun and like to have their own money.

Younger students in 9th and 10th grade usually don’t work as many hours as the upperclassmen. The students that work the longer hours have a harder time managing their time and school work. They also are better at it than most people. These jobs improve students grades and responsible behaviors

Some common ways people lessen their workload were to:

• Keep a calendar or planner
• Protect time for self care and sleep
• “Chunk” your schoolwork to make study sessions more manageable
• Be clear with your manager or boss about your school responsibilities

With the high expectations of many teachers, juggling classes and the amount of work given in some courses is really challenging for some students who have jobs.

“I would go to the library right after school and go to work straight from there; I would bring my work clothes with me,” said junior Emely Olmedo. “I knew I wouldn’t have time at home, but sitting down somewhere like that, I knew I would be able to get it (my schoolwork) done and wouldn’t have to worry about it after work.”