Hi all,
I'm 25, I graduated in 2023 with a degree in Computer Science. As you might imagine, that really hasn't panned out for me. I've been looking for work since I graduated but was officially laid off from my temporary position in May of 2025.
I am currently receiving unemployment benefits of $326 a week.
Thankfully my expenses are quite minimal. I pay my friends $200 a month for rent. I spend about $200 a month on groceries. I pay $117.35 a month on my student loans. I average about $700-800 total a month on my expenses.
I'd like to accept this position and get at least a little bit more money but the job would require a personal vehicle. My understanding currently is that I should be able to use a mail vehicle but if it breaks down I will be expected to use my car. In addition, I may be expected to commute to other areas. Both of these situations I'm not sure how often they happen, but often enough that I am expected to have reliable transportation.
I currently do not have a vehicle. I could borrow my friend's on occasion but I really don't want to rack up the miles on his car or anything. Is it a good idea to invest in buying a personal vehicle just for the sake of a part time job? The post office pays $20.38 an hour, but I'm really not sure how many hours I will be working since it's a relief, on-call position. If I was working full time I could effectively reimburse myself for a $4000 used car in 5 weeks, but I don't know how often I can expect to work more than one day a week.
I know a personal car would also, of course, be useful for many other reasons. I live in a smaller, more compact town so I haven't needed one thus far. And cars have a ton of further maintenance and ongoing costs. But obviously if I get a job, whether this one or another one, I'll probably need one again. Would it be better to seek out a car loan or something from a dealership instead of getting an old beater, if I do decide I want to pursue getting a car for this job?
Been unemployed for about a year. Received an offer for a part-time USPS mail carrier position but would need to acquire a vehicle.
byu/ViperZer0 inpersonalfinance
Posted by ViperZer0
8 Comments
Can you get any sense of how many hours you’ll work?
Without any reasonable estimation, spending $4k on a car really makes very little sense to me. You could be losing money with this job.
>I could borrow my friend’s on occasion but I really don’t want to rack up the miles on his car or anything.
Borrow it or rent it from him initially, then buy a car when you start getting paid.
Unless you live in an area with excellent public transportation, not having a vehicle will severely curtail the number of jobs available to you. I would definitely look into getting a used car. You may be able to get by on biking/borrowing vehicles at the start, but getting your own reliable transportation should be a primary financial goal of yours.
>The post office pays $20.38 an hour, but I’m really not sure how many hours I will be working since it’s a relief, on-call position.
…but I don’t know how often I can expect to work more than one day a week.
Talk to someone off the record to get a sense of what you can expect. A *lot* of post offices are short staffed and it’s just as likely that you’ll never work below 40 hours, but you’re “part time” so they have to legally tell you your hours aren’t guaranteed. My good friend joined the PO as a part timer and he got the same disclaimer, but they told him he’d realistically be working at least 8 hours/day, 6 days/week for the foreseeable future. He had to work for years to get to a place where he could work less than 50 hours/week.
I would just take the job and see how it pans out, if you need to borrow a car or even rent one here and there you might still come out ahead, or at least you’ll have an idea if it’s worth it to purchase something.
But right now you absolutely can’t afford it or risk it.
Note that USPS will pay mileage for a personally owned vehicle, it wouldn’t be just the hourly pay.
Is the position ARC or RCA?
Investing in a cheap $4K car without knowing how many hours you will work doesn’t make any sense to me. I wouldn’t even think about it. Plus, you have a degree in CS, that should be your #1 focus.
You have to spend your energy on finding a full-time job that pays good money even though if it requires you to move in another city since you coming from a small town. CS is one of the key sector these days.
My son finished his 4 years bachelor in electrical engineering during the COVID. It wasn’t easy but he finally got a job in his field. However, it was extremely far but he took the bus and cycling every day. He also applied at the government in a top secret agency at the same time as a programmer. This is what he did during his student’s stages. He went through check up, entrevues, polygraphs, psychologist, etc…during two years since it requires the highest level of security. I don’t even know what is doing. He got the job! He was in his 20s. As of today, he’s at the end of his 20s and he makes huge money !!! It’s crazy. He has a nice SUV, he’s married, he bought a house last year and his the father of a little one year old girl. In our area, the houses aren’t cheap! His wife is a teacher and she makes good money. They can save $2,000 net per month including activities, etc..
Why am I telling you this “story”?
THERE ARE A LOT OF OPPORTUNITIES OUT THERE THAT ARE WAITING FOR YOU. You’re only 25. BUT YOU NEED TO GIVE IT ALL. Then, in a few years, you’ll be PROUD of yourself. 💪 Good luck !
Buy a car you can afford as of today. It’s not a forever car. You need it to get you to your job. Once you know what you’ll be earning on a regular basis, and have job stability, then get a better car.
I was an RCA for awhile in Colorado. I would recommend against it. Hours are not reliable, you may not expect to work but get called in last minute. Delivering mail from a car is more difficult than you might think. Keep in mind mail trucks have the steering wheel on the right side. You get moved around to multiple routes so it can be difficult to really learn them. Unless someone was younger and planned to stay long enough to be full time permanent carrier eventually, (despite the jokes, I think full time carriers have it pretty good), I don’t think the assistant positions are worth it.