You are a second-year business student at Aurora University and in two years you will be graduating with an accounting major. You are trying to decide where to work during the summer and you currently have two choices: work full-time on the assembly line at a manufacturing company or work part-time in the accounting department of a candy factory. You are planning on staying at the company that you choose and work next summer as well. You will be able to work for 12 weeks during the summer.

The manufacturing company will pay you $380 per week, and you will get a 7% raise next summer. If you work in the accounting department, you would be able to work 20 hours per week at $8.75 per hour. You think that this experience may qualify you for a full-time accounting position next summer which will pay up to $550 per week.

In your mind, you see two benefits of working part-time. If you only work part-time, you could take two accounting courses that cost $225 per hour for each four-hour course, and you could reduce your studying workload during the fall and summer. You could also work in the universitys accounting department during the 15 week fall term and make $50 per week.

For this scenario, ignore the time value of money and remember that your main priority is to make as much money as possible between now and the end of the next summer.

• What would you do?
• What nonquantitative factors should you consider?
• Would your decision be different if you considered the time value of money for the cash that you would receive during the current year and next year?
• What alternative does this favor and why?