Most of the money the students earn is spent on themselves. They can buy high-priced items like a pair of running shoes which can cost as much as 100 yuan-a month’s salary for an average worker. Few parents can afford such luxuries.
Some students find work to help them realize their dreams of career.
Qian Qian wants to become an actress. In her spare time she attends a class outside school that costs 80 yuan a month in tuition, an amount which her parents cannot afford to pay. So she found a job as a waitress in a coffee house to earn her tuition fee.
Some students get into business for other reasons besides the money.
Zou Yue, a female student, from a fairly wealthy family, took a job because, she said, "Business can cultivate a sense of competition, which is very important for us in the future."
A student who once sold cards said young people are encouraged to be independent.
"But how?" he asked. "You can never be independent unless you can support yourself financially."
He felt after-school work enhanced a young person’s social development, too.
Practical experience in the workforce has been stipulated by the State Commission of Education(11) as a compulsory programme. This is now closely related with economic benefits among high school students.
One student, sent by her school to work as a shop assistant at a temple fair, earned five yuan a day for a seven-hour shift behind the counter.
"I had a sore throat after working for a few days, but I had to hold on", she said.
"I wanted to earn the money and also prove that I was an able girl."
These temporary job stints(12) give high school students an insight into what work and incomes are all about.
A job at a State-owned cinema my only earn a worker 40 or 50 yuan a month. But a job with a self-employed trader, may earn the assistant 8 or 10 yuan a day. A writer may get about 20 yuan for an article in a newspaper or a magazine, but a clothes keeper in a swimming pool may earn at least 200 yuan a month.