HONOLULU (KHON2) — College life is as much about the jobs you take on as it is about the social and cultural exchanges you experience.
But finding flexible, part-time work can be difficult to work around university class schedules.
Here a few options that can help add money to your wallet while not interfering with you educational requirements.
On-Campus Opportunities for University of Hawaiʻi System
Student Employment via SECE (student employment and cooperative education)
Both UH Mānoa and UH Hilo offer on-campus positions. These includes employment like library assistant, peer tutor, lab aide and various administrative roles across their campuses.
These appear in the SECE portal and are accessible via your UH credentials. They include both general UH-funded roles and Federal Work-Study (FWS) positions, if you qualify.
UH Mānoa reports nearly 4,000 students currently employed through these programs.
You can click here to access UH Hilo’s student employment opportunities, here for UH Maui College and here for UH Manoa’s student employment opportunities.
Federal work-study program
If you’re eligible, then you can secure subsidized, part-time work on and off campus. These opportunities are based on your FAFSA financial aid information and often align with your major or community service background.
Click here to find out more.
On-campus or university-linked internships
Internship programs with the City & County of Honolulu
The City & County of Honolulu has the Poʻokela Fellows Internship Program. This particular one is for students with at least 60 credits, and Pathways (Police) Internship Program is for those with 85+ credits and have an interest in pursuing a job with the police after graduation.
Other departmental internships, like those in engineering, may even have opportunities to convert the internships into permanent city jobs.
You can click here for more information on these internships.
Off-campus and community-based jobs
Part-time positions via Mānoa Career Center (SECE database)
There are also a wide variety of off-campus jobs that are posted via the SECE on campus. These range from local businesses and nonprofits to large employers like Bank of the Orient, Disney World, Department of Health and First Hawaiian Bank.
Click here to find out more.
Indeed’s student-centric listings
Examples of available roles for Fall 2025 include:
- Math or language arts tutor at YMCA of Honolulu.
- Student assistant in trust administration at Bank of Hawaiʻi.
- Biology lab assistant at Chaminade University.
- Student worker, prison education program at Chaminade University.
- Math instructors and tutors.
Flexible gigs like delivery, pet sitting, etc.
These jobs are super flexible and offer a way to holoholo (explore) the islands.
- Platforms like DoorDash offer flexible delivery schedules, and you can work when you want.
- Also popular are pet sitting or dog walking jobs where some earn around $15/hour.
- Delivery Driver for places like Cookie Corner Hawaiʻi offer part-time, local delivery work.
- And Swagbucks, for remote micro-tasks, offers around $200/month in extra income.
So, as you embark on the fall semester, remember that the perfect part-time gig can really make your educational experience all the more fun.