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  Photos by NICOLE MILLER/Daily Bruin Eric Chin works as a lab consultant at the CLICC, the College Library Instructional Computing Commons.

By Marcelle Richards

Daily Bruin Senior Staff

As the school year rolls in and the money rolls out, finding a job is a necessity that makes its way to the top of many Bruins’ to-do lists.

Getting a job doesn’t have to be a headache if one knows where to look. Going to the Career Center, Human Resources, or strolling around campus can reveal the possibilities.

For freshmen and transfer students living in on-campus housing without a car, employment at UCLA comes with the perks of flexible hours and a student-friendly workplace, say many current employees.

“I like the proximity,” said Carina Yuen, Kerckhoff Coffeehouse senior student supervisor who enjoys the bustling hot spot.

Though Yuen, a fourth-year psychology student, was initially attracted to an on-campus job because of its convenience, she has since discovered another reason to stay.

“What I found after I started working here, it’s really nice to have a second home,” she said. “On such a big campus it’s really nice to have a place where you know everyone and everyone knows you.”

  NICOLE MILLER/Daily Bruin Employees at Kerckhoff Coffeehouse may choose their work hours. Kerckhoff Coffeehouse is among the stores and campus eateries run by the Associated Students of UCLA. Like most ASUCLA positions, with the exception of managerial or lab assistant positions, workers have a starting pay of $6.50 per hour.

With no prior work experience, Yuen like all incoming employees, was hired not so much on skill, but work ethic.

“I didn’t know how to work a register, but we train our workers,” she said, “We don’t just throw you in there.”

After two years as an employee, she now holds the highest student position available.

Yuen, who began her search her freshman year with a service-related job in mind, said she found her match at the Human Resources Center.

Tucked away on the second floor of Kerckhoff, the Human Resources Center posts ASUCLA positions outside its door and provides the paperwork necessary to apply for a job. The office acts as a liaison between the student and each employer to streamline the process.

Also available through ASUCLA are jobs at The UCLA Store at Ackerman Union in merchandise and food service.

Higher-paying jobs include lab assistants for computer workshops and supervisor positions for the more seasoned employee, many of which are just a click of the mouse away.

“The best thing would be to use our Web site,” said Career Center Associate Director Albert Aubin.

Students must type in their social security number to access job listings and internships. To date, more than 200 positions are available through the center.

Independent stores in Ackerman, like Pulse, the campus copy house, offer other options for student employment.

Pulse Manager Mike Weber said employers at the shop and student workers have a mutually beneficial relationship.

“The benefits to us employing students is they know the campus and they’re available on short notice,” Weber said. “The benefit to students is the flexibility; they can work between classes.”

ASUCLA employees are given a consistent schedule for the quarter which works around their academic schedule, an advantage Yuen said is uncommon off UCLA grounds. During finals, students may reschedule if necessary.

But ASUCLA is only one place to look for campus employment.

For some, the quest begins with a Free Application for Federal Student Aid. Departments at UCLA sponsor work-study programs to aid eligible students.

Provided all deadlines are met, up to $2,000 may be awarded. Money received from work-study does not count toward determining financial need for the following school year, as would an income form a non-work-study job.

Positions that offer higher starting salary rates include the Emergency Medical Services and Community Service Officer program, starting at $8.32 and $8.42 an hour, respectively.

Emergency Medical Technicians are students trained to respond to emergency calls received by university police and are the first to respond to a scene. Trainees spend the first weeks undergoing a series of hypothetical situations and reenactment with other EMTs.

While many students enter with intents to gain experience in the medical field, skills gained from interacting with patients carry over beyond the workplace, said Kirk Burgamy, an EMT who graduated with a degree in physiological science last spring.

“It’s a great experience,” said Burgamy, who joined the program in his third year. “If I had known about it sooner I would have applied sooner.”

Though ambulances racing down the streets of Westwood are a common sight, many students don’t realize such a position is open to undergraduate students, he said.

Neighboring the EMTs in the UCPD station are Community Service Officers, trained as the “eyes and ears” of the police. CSOs are trained by senior officers in a variety of sessions which span from campus escorts to residence hall patrols. The program emphasizes a non-intervention policy, though students attend a radio class and are equipped and trained to use pepper spray.

For those still caught in the muck of an overabundance of job choices, the Career Center can help narrow down decisions.

“It’s never too early to use the Career Center,” Aubin said. “You don’t have to know what you want to do before you come to us.”

Employees at the center say they often find that students seem indecisive about a job because they undervalue their previous work experience.

“One of the things I try to get them to realize is that all work experience has value,” Aubin said. “It’s how to translate that to a resume, that’s how we can be helpful.”