How Would You Advise Your Daughter?

I work in Outplacement, helping people get jobs. Real work experience is very valuable these days, even if the job is "assistant". If she can manage the job and school, she will be way ahead of someone who gets the same degree and waited tables or something throughout school. Good luck to her!

One piece of advice I've heard about starting working a low level position in an office. Read everything you have access to. Read and listen and learn.

And personal contacts can be as or even more important than completing a degree in a tough job market. There are a lot of people graduating with degrees that can't land a job, because they don't know how to network. 75 - 80% of professional jobs are obtained through a personal connection.

Added: if she proves herself to be a valuable employee, the firm might let her arrange her schedule around a class here and there. It's been done.

I was brought up "school comes first." If you have to wash dishes to pay your bills while you focus on your education, that is what you do. Your daughter is not certain of her career path yet, so there's no telling what value any of these "contacts" would be. Also, it is not an internship. It is as a personal assistant. There's no glory in picking up dry cleaning, no matter who it is for.

I understand discouraging her from a job that pays poorly and has a longer commute, but I don't know that I think making contacts at a law firm should be a huge priority for someone working on their associates. Especially an "undecided."

I was a career secretary before I became a SAHM.
I was working for the Regional Sales manager of a high end investment firm in San Francisco. I had risen basically as far as I could with the skills and education I had at the time (AA degree and Series 7 registered.) I did all those romantic sounding tasks, meeting/event/travel planning, and I made "good" money but not enough to support myself.
Office work is just that, office "work." It's not really a career and nothing I would encourage my girls to pursue.
What degree is she working on? I always encourage my kids to look long term. It's better to take the bus, have no spending money and eat ramen if it means in the end you will get a degree with real meaning, ie skills that are actually valuable and in demand in the workplace.
If she is working on a degree with real employment potential I would encourage her to finish it. If she's just picking jobs based on a few dollars and hour difference then well, I guess it's up to her which one to take.

Has your daughter researched to find out if there is a chance that she can get a job in Human Resources. I have a friend with a degree in Human Resources and she's been looking for over a year. She said you really have to have a masters to get anywhere.

Some fields are more open: have more vacancies or opportunities for employment then others. I'd want to be sure that I could get a job with opportunity for advancement before I spent time and money getting a degree.

It's pretty easy to move classes IF they haven't started yet or it's the only day or two, she should go speak with her guidance counselor ASAP, and the professors of the department in which she is changing her classes for. Her getting the financial aid wouldn't matter so long as the credits are the same.

She can easily do online classes if she can't get them changed next term. My husband was in the same position, he had to take a semester off after several weeks b/c his work changed the hours on him. It kind of really sucked though. It sounds like a great opportunity 'name dropping' wise if she gets the job.

If she loses the job or she hates it and quits, she's out of college and work. Really though, being a personal assistant to high sounding people can give her networks and maybe even referrals. I very highly doubt she will learn much that would elevate her status. She would still be a long ways away from getting a career out of it without a degree. Some things to consider.

Wow, I guess it would be very hard to pass up an opportunity to work with Mr. Ashcroft!

How far into her semester is she? There is usually a window of time for getting partial refunds for tuition paid if she drops her classes before a certain deadline. Have her call her academic and financial aid advisors before doing anything.

What an awesome opportunity!!

Updated

Wow, I guess it would be very hard to pass up an opportunity to work with Mr. Ashcroft!

How far into her semester is she? There is usually a window of time for getting partial refunds for tuition paid if she drops her classes before a certain deadline. Have her call her academic and financial aid advisors before doing anything.

What an awesome opportunity!!