‘It’s not just double duty, it’s triple duty’: Student-parents prepare to juggle college, work and childcare this fall – Market Watch
The pandemic amplified the challenges student-parents face in earning a degree
Syeedah White is used to juggling.
Even in the days before many parents were forced to balance taking conference calls from home with overseeing their children’s schooling, her schedule was packed.
The 21-year-old would wake up at around 6 a.m. to get her five-year-old daughter ready for school, drop her off at 7:45 a.m. and then head to Bowie State University in Bowie, Maryland, where she’s a student, majoring in psychology. After attending classes until 1:30 or 2 p.m., White would head to her retail job, where she’d work until about 9:30 p.m.
“I would save time for homework on my days off,” she said. “The only leisure time I had would be on campus in between classes.”
Striking a balance between taking care of her daughter, attending school and working has become even more complicated for White over the past few months — and that’s likely to continue. In the spring, she had to step back from a leadership position at her job so she’d have time to help her daughter with remote assignments. As the fall looms with her daughter’s education continuing online, White is planning on taking a break from work at least for a month or so.