The new additions to Eddy Street to the Notre Dame community provide not only places to eat, shop and live near the University, but jobs as well.
While Notre Dame strives to provide on-campus jobs, some students find they prefer working off campus.
Cedric Strickland, a sophomore computer science major who worked at Hammes Bookstore on Eddy Street over the summer, found the job while living off-campus for a summer semester.
"I needed a job, and I liked the environment off campus better," he said. "I didn't want to be a student worker. I wanted a real job."
Senior Katrina Corcoran also found summer employment at Eddy Street.
"I was here over the summer for summer classes and saw that Kildare's was opening," Corcoran said. "I knew that working at an Irish pub would be a lot of fun, or ‘craic' as the Irish say, and, on the more practical side, more lucrative than continuing to work on campus. It is very convenient and adds balance to your life as an ND student."
When it comes to balancing school with work, though, on-campus jobs win out, Strickland said.
"Working at Kildare's is more intense than where I have previously worked [on campus] because you are constantly waiting on customers and helping out in the kitchen. Fridays before game days I normally go seven to eight hours without taking a break," Corcoran said.
Off-campus jobs can also be used as a supplement to on-campus jobs students already have.
In addition to being a waitress at Kildare's, Corcoran still works at the Center for the Study of Language.
Strickland said he also worked at The Huddle and Legends in addition to the bookstore on Eddy Street.
"I ended up having two jobs — I worked at Legends as well as the bookstore — and that meant balancing everything with coursework," Strickland said. "On campus is more flexible. Off campus would work around my school schedule, but they wouldn't work around Legends."
In spite of this, students still like working off campus.
"My favorite part has been meeting more people from the South Bend area," Corcoran said. "I feel like I am finally learning more about South Bend after being here for three years. I have also had the chance to meet [football] coach [Brian] Kelly, [former Irish football player Daniel] "Rudy" [Ruettiger] and [former Irish football player] Jim Flanagan while working at Kildare's."
