Working While Studying: Global Perspectives on Youth Work, Inequalities, and the Reconfiguration of Work and Life

Over the past decades, the number of pupils and students combining study and paid work has grown significantly. Driven by economic pressures, the expansion of higher education, and changing social norms, student (and pupils) employment has become a defining feature of contemporary educational experiences. It contributes to a growing overlap between education and employment.

This development reflects broader transformations in work-related norms. Young people are increasingly expected to combine multiple roles as learners, workers, active citizens, and eventually future parents within a “multi-active” society characterized by the coexistence of diverse commitments. Student employment responds both to rising financial constraints and to social expectations emphasizing autonomy, responsibility, and employability. At the same time, it is embedded in increasingly flexible labor markets, where students constitute an adaptable workforce often employed under atypical conditions.

Student employment forms, meanings, and consequences vary according to social background, gender, and migration status. While it may provide opportunities for autonomy and professional socialization, it can also generate fatigue, stress, and academic difficulties, thereby reinforcing existing social inequalities.

This phenomenon sheds light on changing employment statuses, social temporalities, and institutional regulations. It invites renewed reflection on the relationship between education and work, the transition from school to employment, and the recognition of skills acquired through early work experiences.

Contributions may address, among other topics: (1) shifting boundaries between work and education; (2) multi-activity and work–life configurations; (3) social inequalities; (4) working conditions; (5) impacts on academic, professional, and personal trajectories; and (6) public policies and institutional regulations.