Unravelling the interplay of employment and academic success

This study investigates the relationship between student employment and academic performance using survey data from two public universities in the United States – one located on the West Coast and one in the Southeast. Unlike prior research that often conceptualises student employment as a singular variable, this study introduces a differentiated framework by disaggregating work into four categories: total hours, on-campus, off-campus, and self-employment. Employing ordinary least squares regression on a sample of 358 undergraduate and graduate business students, the analysis reveals that only on-campus employment is significantly and positively associated with final course grades. Neither total work hours nor off-campus and self-employment exhibit significant associations with academic outcomes. These findings complicate the assumption that employment uniformly detracts from student success and suggest that structured, campus-based employment can enhance academic performance. Regional disparities were also observed, with students in the Southeastern institution working more hours and earning lower grades than their West Coast counterparts. The results underscore the importance of institutional support for academically integrated employment and suggest that expanding on-campus work-study programmes or aligning employment opportunities with academic disciplines may improve educational outcomes, particularly for students balancing financial necessity with academic goals.