The pandemic is affecting more than just the health of Spring Hill College students, as it also takes a toll on the amount of federal work study jobs that are available to them. 

Junior Tess Doyle works in the mailroom for Spring Hill College. She’s noticed that this year, the mail room staff has gotten a lot smaller. “Last year it felt like there used to be a large group of us, but now there’s only about two of us in here at a time, which is difficult considering we’re getting the same, if not more amount of mail,” said Doyle. 

Doyle’s comment about the mailroom is not singular. Since students have been back, they’ve noticed a decrease in work study positions. Junior Grace Conjar, who works in Spring Hill College’s Admissions office made a similar comment. “Last year we had about 10 people working, and this year we only have 5.” 

Federal work study jobs offer part-time jobs for undergraduate students with financial need. The jobs help students pay for their education, promote community service work and can even relate to the student’s course of study. The lack of work study jobs causes more than just a problem of efficiency for offices like the mailroom. It can also impact a student’s ability to pay for his or her education. 

The blame for this significant cut is easy: Corona. “In the past students who have applied for work study positions didn’t have a problem with getting them, but this year I think the limited amount of jobs is because of the pandemic,” said Conjar.

The disappearing work study jobs are not just a Spring Hill problem. CNBC reported that over half a million students rely on Federal Work Study jobs but since the pandemic, several of these students are seeing them disappear. The reasons vary from school to school, but suspected reasons are budget constraints and the shift to virtual learning. 

The unfortunate job market extends beyond Spring Hill’s bubble. The New York Times called the economy “bizarre” as it has “strong job growth, but a terrible job market.” The Times reported that there was a 7 percent decrease in jobs from February to September, which is worse than the Great Recession of 2008. Major corporations like Disney and American Airlines are expecting to have a major layoff within this month.