UNAIR NEWS – Students should manage their finance well and wisely, especially when they go to another town for studies. Development Economics lecturer at Universitas Airlangga, Martha Ranggi Primanthi SE MIDEC Ph.D. shared smart financial management tips as working opportunities for students are abundant nowadays.

“For students, finding a job ideally should expand their portfolio so it can be included in the resume when they’re graduated,” she said on Sunday, August 14, 2022.

Research Assistant

For instance, students can participate as a research assistant. Apart from the remuneration, students may get various benefits from participating in the lecturer’s research.

“For example, I have an economic background, I may get economic data as a perk,” Martha said.

The data is an exclusive privilege for students as not everyone can access the data. If students participate in the lecturer’s research, they can proceed with it for the thesis. “It becomes the non-financial perk of a research assistant,” she stated.

The other benefit is the students were listed in the research publications. “It’s another added value when our name was written in the publication,” she continued.

Tutor or Teaching Assistant

There is still a big opportunity for students who have passions outside the research. The third-year students can work as a tutor or teaching assistants at the campus.

Apart from the financial benefit, students could get knowledge and teaching skills. “Teaching is a passion. If students want to pursue teaching, it’s [being a tutor] the right direction,” she said.

Entrepreneur

Nowadays, entrepreneurship opportunity is wide open for students. One of Martha’s students works as a merchant in an online marketplace.

“Students find jobs that allow them to improve their portfolio or resume,” she added.

In the end, being a student is like a double-edged sword. It has good sides, companies will gladly hire undergraduate students as interns though they have not graduated yet.

“On the other hand, students are frequently underutilized. They often asked to work on something outside their capacity,” Martha said.

Students should strategically find a financially beneficial side hustle, be wisely selective, and prioritize their academic responsibilities. “Don’t put your main focus on work, it will get your thesis and graduation delayed,” she ended the interview.

Author: Sandi Prabowo

Editor  :  Binti Q Masruroh