This week – National Student Employment Week – NIU will recognize those who work while attending college, a task often more difficult than it sounds.

“Some students have more than one job,” said Dottie Summers, NIU payroll clerk, who estimates that 3,500 NIU students have on-campus jobs. However, she often handles “up to 3,700 timecards” a semester and said this figure “does not include graduate students.”

University Food Services is the main campus employer of students, with NIU Libraries, the Office of Campus Recreation, and The Northern Star following respectively.

Other major on-campus employers are University Programming and Activities and the NIU Public Opinion Lab.

The Job Location and Development Office finds off-campus employment for students. Last year, the office provided job opportunities to 572 students.

Fast food franchises are the biggest employers, said Monique Zeno, coordinator of the Job Development Office. Office settings, such as telemarketing, also are popular, with Amoco being the largest hiring company.

Off- or on-campus, jobs relating to food are typical sources of income, which is the main reason for working, Zeno said. Students also choose to work “basically because working is fulfilling and helps the student feel important,” she said.

To promote the important role employment has in a student’s college experience, the Job Location and Development Office will hold a raffle each day of this week. The drawings will offer gifts contributed by student employers. By entering, students can win cash, gift certificates, t-shirts and other prizes.

To enter the drawing, students can fill out an entry form and an application at window 3 of the office in Swen Parson Hall. The application involves no obligation towards employment, but allows the office to have the student’s information on file.

The drawing, which Zeno called “a recruiting tool,” is open to students who have jobs or are unemployed.