College is expensive. If that simple reality sends you fumbling into the on-campus job market, you'll soon find out that jobs aren't hard to come by. But working for dorm crew or washing dishes in a House dining hall might not be what you had in mind. Research jobs are available as well, but for some, it might feel a bit too much like another class.

"Research jobs and creative computer jobs are probably considered the best," says Martha H. Homer, associate director of financial aid and director of student employment. "But some of our kids prefer a not very strenuous job."

Sound like you? Although Homer says jobs during which you can do your homework are scarce, students working on campus say such low-intensity jobs can be found.

And even if you can't get your course work done on the job, there are other surprisingly interesting and relaxing ways to make money.

Go Underground

If you're a first-year who hasn't fulfilled your language requirement, you'll soon be getting cozy with a tape recorder in the Boylston Language Lab. And down in the bowels of Boylston, you'll find a student who can provide you with the necessary audio or videotape. Or instead, you could be on the other side of the counter.

The crew of some 15 self-dubbed "labbies" who work at the lab each semester monitor the circulation of tapes and software, help students access material on the server, redub audio tapes, service computers and VCRs, water the plants and are responsible for cleaning the booths in the lab.

"The work itself requires organization and a working knowledge of the lab and its resources but is not inherently all that difficult," says Sarah E. Jackson '98, who worked at the lab for almost three years.

And while students estan estudiando el espanol, you too can get some study time in.

"There is plenty of time to get schoolwork and reading done," says Peter S. Manasantivongs '98, who began working at the lab last fall. "Unless a VCR or a computer breaks down, you can usually get much work done."

According to employees, the job also has a social aspect-"labbies" say they often end up talking to each other instead of completing their course work.

Jackson describes lab employees as "a quirky bunch" who provide a fun environment.

The starting salary for the Language Lab is $6.95 per hour, with raises each semester a students works. "Labbies" work an average of 10 to 15 hours per week; Connie Cristo, who directs the Lab, says she prefers a commitment of at least eight hours per week. The lab is scheduled to move to the sixth floor of Lamont during this academic year and "labbies" say they've heard rumors of an espresso bar.

Back to the Sandbox

Wishing you still had recess? Consider a job with one of the University's on campus child care centers and live vicariously.

"We're looking for a warm person who enjoys being with children and can get along with other adults too," says Melissa Chieppo, assistant director of Soldier's Field Park Children's Center at the Harvard Business School (HBS).