It's 2 a.m., and Suresh Nagaraj is huddled next to a space heater to keep warm.
His only companions are a few other students, a security guard and his laptop. He drinks hot chocolate to stay awake, but he nods off occasionally during the loneliest parts of the night.
Nagaraj works the graveyard shift at Van Pelt Library, and the all-night job is anything but your average work-study gig.
As a Rosengarten Reserve employee, Nagaraj checks out library-owned laptops to students and helps them get books on reserve. Much of what he does is exactly like the duties of other library employees - except he works from 2 a.m. to 7 a.m. twice each week.
A first-year graduate student in electrical engineering, Nagaraj has had the job for a few months, and he said he doesn't find the hours unbearable.
I'm "sort of used to late nights," Nagaraj said.
The pay is a dollar better than what students who work during daylight hours get.
But being awake at hours others would find unthinkable has its benefits, the native of India said - he talks to friends and relatives in his home country while at work.
"The time difference is quite good," he said. Chatting online, he says, keeps him company when everyone else - at least in this time zone - seems to be asleep.
His nights are usually quiet, Nagaraj said, and he hasn't encountered any problems on his shift. Sometimes, Penn Police officers make their rounds through the study area to make sure everything's going smoothly.
He started work when his roommate - another Rosengarten employee - told him about a job opening. Most of Nagaraj's classes start at 3 p.m., so he said it isn't a problem for him to get some sleep after work.
He decided to take the graveyard shift because he could get his work done then, since few students ask for help during those hours.
Most of the students in Rosengarten during Nagaraj's shift work quietly or sleep themselves.
"I try to" sleep, Nagaraj said. "But then somebody comes and asks for a laptop."
But Nagaraj is gearing up for Rosengarten's busy season: midterms and finals.
"You see a lot more people," Nagaraj said. "You see a lot of people [cramming] on Friday nights, so you know it's midterms."
