Summer is the time to get down to business. Literally.

Almost three months of not having school, students have a lot of options to spend their time, and for some, that time is spent trying to earn money.

“It’s good to have some extra cash over the summer,” Lauren Rau, sophomore, said.  “Without school occupying your time, you can go out to dinner or go see a movie with friends without having to rely on parents, or babysitting.”

Rau is an employee at The Custard Station in downtown Kirkwood, where she makes and serves frozen custard. However, unlike a lot of students, Rau was offered her job from a family friend, avoiding the application process.

“It wasn’t hard for me, but for other people, just from what I’ve heard, it can be really challenging, especially when you’re younger,” Rau said.

According to the Missouri Department of Labor, no youth under the age of 14 can be employed, and teenagers who are 14 to 15 years of age are required to have work certificates before they are employed.

It may not just be inexperience, but also the current economic situation that can interfere with a teenager getting a summer job.

“I do [think it’s more difficult to find a job] probably because of the economy,” Nicky Steger, floor manager at Amigos said.

Fortunately, there are opportunities for students to land a job with Kirkwood’s businesses.

“Kirkwood’s full of opportunities as long as you get out and fill out applications,” Jeanna Janek, Mike Duffy’s manager, said.

Timing can also be a critical factor when filling out job applications.

“I had to look a little early,” Spencer Anderson-Proctor, junior and lifeguard at the Kirkwood pool, said. “I looked in the winter, but it wasn’t too hard to find [a job.]”

Some places not only have the benefit of a salary but can also be enjoyable. For students that find they have nothing to do during the summer, a job is always somewhere to go and something to do.

“[Lifeguarding is] just a really fun job,” Anderson-Proctor said. “I get to walk around in a swimsuit, it’s out in the sun, I get paid pretty well [and I get] free food.”

Kirkwood is not the only destination for finding a summer job. Though it may be convenient for some, others find that it is not the location, but the occupation that decides their summer jobs.

Mason Kramer, sophomore, was recently employed to tend to the horses of a local equestrian at Clayton Farms for the summer.

“[It’s] what I love to do, and I get paid, so that’s pretty nice,” Kramer said.

His work will be feeding, riding and cleaning the stalls for the horses for 9 dollars an hour.

“I’ve never had a job,”Kramer, said. “Me and my brother mow lawns around my neighborhood to make money and whatever, but this is the first one where I work for somebody.”

While summer jobs can be a good introduction to the working experience for teenagers to get a glimpse of what it is like to have an employer, be punctual and communicate with colleagues. It can also be a chance to get experience in a future career field.

Jobs may also help students make connections in the local area for more work opportunities.

“It’s in my interest group.  It’s something I plan on pursuing and so this is just a way for me to get my foot in the door,” Kramer said.  “Hopefully it won’t interfere with other things I plan on doing this summer, but it comes with the territory.”