3 TOP COMPANIES FOR COLLEGE STUDENTS (UPDATED FOR 2025)

Congratulations to the graduates of 2025!

You’ve put your high school years behind you and its time to further your education through college or trade school. You’ll need time to attend class AND study, but you’ll also need money. It’s a balancing act that can be tricky.

Choosing the right school for you is important, but choosing the right employer while you are engaged in higher learning is equally important.

It can be the difference between owing a manageable amount of money after graduation and being absolutely crushed by debt.

College and trade schools are expensive plus you have the added costs of food and transportation, and you need to have extra cash for a little bit of fun too!

What can you do to maximize your pay, decrease your future debt and still have time to study?

Choose your employer wisely

Not all employers are created equal.

Generally, large corporations and chain restaurants have deeper pockets than your local “mom and pop” establishments; however, if transportation is an issue, you may be limited in your choices and you may have to work closer to home or school regardless of the pay and benefits or lack thereof.

Hopefully that isn’t the case, and you have the freedom to work at the best (most lucrative) job for you.

So, what should your two criteria be when it comes time to choose an employer?

1. Flexibility

Experts say that for each hour of class you need to set aside 2-3 hours for study, so an employer who offers flexible scheduling is very important.

Aim for working 20 hours per week because working any longer than that will be detrimental to your health and your grades.

Fortunately, employers that offer tuition assistance to college students realize that they have to work with your schedule if they want to retain employees.

2. Avoid Toxicity

Unfortunately, even if the employer offers great pay and benefits, some individual managers or work environments are absolutely soul-sucking.

Ask around, follow social media and visit the employer if possible. Do you hear negative things about the place (other than normal grousing)?

If there is high turnover, that is a bad sign, and you might be better off choosing another place to work.

Sure, every job has negative components, I’m talking about the places that crush your soul deliberately.

Avoid those, if possible. A little bit of investigative work beforehand can save you a lot of heartache later.

Runner’s Up

While they didn’t make our top three, the following companies also offer perks and tuition assistance so you might want to check them out:

Target, Walmart, Starbucks, Amazon and Home Depot.

Our Pick #3

Our third choice for the best part-time work is being a permanent package handler for Fedex (not casual).

Our research indicates that this position pays between $16-$18/per hour and you are paid weekly.  They also offer medical insurance and a 401(k)

It is a physical job that involves lifting and carrying heavy packages, so while you can forego paying for a gym membership, you do have a higher chance of back injuries.

Previously, Fedex offers $1500 per calendar year tuition reimbursement through Guild Education*.  However, they recently dropped that program and offers their own tuition reimbursement program.  You can study at any college, trade, vocational or technical school and will be reimbursed $5,250, annually with exclusive discounts for Robert Morris University in Pittsburgh

Our Pick #2

Chipotle beats out Fedex on our list because in addition to health benefits and tuition you get…

FREE FOOD!

Other perks of working for Chipotle are quarterly bonuses, 401(k) savings plan, vacation and sick time, gym membership, medical, dental and vision insurance.

Depending upon your area it looks like the hourly wage is about $15-$17/hr which is estimated to be approximately 9% above the national average.  Recently, Chipotle began offering to pay for 100% of your tuition through Guild Education* that offers 300 programs from 20+ different institutions of higher learning including master’s degrees!

Free college AND queso? What’s not to love??? The customers of course!

Working in fast food is a customer-facing job that can be extremely stressful. It’s fast-paced and tiring with the potential of dealing with cuts, burns and less-than-polite patrons.

In January of 2025, East Huntingdon Township supervisors announced that Chipotle will be opening a new location in the vicinity of Get-Go and McDonald’s near Countyside shopping center.  However, there is no timeline set for when construction will start or a projected opening date.

Our Pick #1

Our top choice for the best part-time job for college students is UPS as a package handler.

If you work 20 hours per week you will receive $5,250 yearly tuition assistance at the college of your choice plus medical benefits. If flexibility is important to you, UPS offers a variety of shifts: 8:30 am - 3:00 p.m., 4:30-p.m. - 10:00 p.m., 10:00 p.m. - 4 a.m. or 3:00 a.m. to 7:00 a.m.

It is a very physical job so you won’t need a gym membership and there is NO customer interaction and you don’t have to handle cash.

To reduce package theft, you will be watched via camera, so you must be comfortable with constant surveillance.

Your job will be standing at the bottom of a chute that feeds you a variety of boxes that you and another team member will stack in the back of a semi-truck.

You will be continuously bending and stacking packages, some of them are very heavy, but you do not have to deal with customers, think too hard or handle cash.

UPS “hubs” are spaced evenly around the country so there is a good chance one is close to your home or school.

Pay ranges between $15.00-$19.00/hr depending on the location. UPS is able to offer such good benefits because as a part-time package handler you are part of the Teamsters Union and will be eligible for a pension.

Of course, with the heavy lifting you are at greater risk of being injured and you will be very busy around the Christmas holidays which may negatively impact studying for finals. That is something to be aware of when deciding where to apply for work.

So, with the higher wage, the higher tuition reimbursement, medical benefits, union protection and not having to deal with the public makes UPS our top choice for college students seeking part-time work. Of course, in the end the choice is up to you and dependent upon your own circumstances.

Good Luck!

*Guild Education is a company that you need to explore before accepting any positions with companies that partner with it. It seems you are limited in which schools you can attend, so please ask questions and proceed carefully.