Many college students consider school a full-time job. Even if it feels similarly straining, college produces the opposite results for your wallet. Working a part-time job could benefit you in more ways than just your wallet.

Having a job outside of school is a major part of maturing as a person. I have met college students near graduating who have never had a job for more than a week. This will leave a person with little work ethic and little real-world experience for when they go to get a job with their degree.

It is common to get a job during high school, but some more fortunate students get to forgo this important milestone. And once in college, starting to work for the first time is even more daunting. With a much heftier workload, college students getting their first job will have a lot on their plate.

Students missing out on the burden of work could be skipping integral life lessons, which can include working with a team, leadership experiences and overall lessons in work ethic.

“I am glad that my parents made me get a job when I was younger,” said Alex Harris, a 20-year-old computer science major at Rutgers. “I definitely think working from a young age has given me a lot of confidence in myself and my work ethic that I then carry over to school.”

A good alternative to students who feel as if they are too busy for work during the school year is a summer job. Almost every entry-level job hires students at the beginning of the summer until the end of summer.

“I’m really busy between sports and school during the school year, so I have little time for a job. But every summer I am a camp counselor at my local camp. I think it’s really important to get money in my pocket when I can and get work experience,” said Michael Schimbeno, a 20-year-old business major at Marist University.

At the end of the day, working a job in your youth is an important part of maturing. Even if you are fortunate enough not to need one, everyone should experience what it is like to work an entry-level job. The benefits far outweigh what it puts in your pockets. There are many lessons to learn from working that you can carry with you the rest of your life.