How to Make Money as a Student

If you are struggling to make ends meet at university or college, read on for Send My Bag’s top ways to make money as a student.

Most people associate being a student with being broke. But this doesn’t have to be the case. As more and more students are realizing, there are numerous ways of making some extra cash, with the internet opening up a whole wealth of possibilities that didn’t exist for students in the past. Students can now take as little or as much time out of their day as they like to spend increasing their cash flow from the comfort of their own bedroom.

If you would like some extra cash to cover expenses, or to allow you to enjoy your time off a little more freely, then Send My Bag’s guide to how to make money as a student is for you.

How to Make Money as a Student the Traditional Way:

Get a Part-Time Job

Probably the most obvious way to make money is to get a part-time job that you can fit around your studies. This could be as a sales assistant in a retail store, as a waiter in a restaurant, or answering phones in a call centre. While this is a great income source, your academic work could suffer if you take on too many hours, especially around exam time or when a deadline is looming.

Take up Seasonal Work

Keep the impact on your academic performance to a minimum by only taking on a job during the holidays. This could be working for a kids club in the summer or stacking shelves during the busy Christmas period.

Seek Employment in College/ University 

Many universities offer their students employment opportunities that typically won’t take up too much of your time. You could sign up to help at a conference taking place at your institution, work at the campus coffee shop, or help with student registration at the start of the year. You can tap into this type of employment whenever you have enough time on your hands, without having to commit to an ongoing position.

Sell your Stuff on Campus

Finished your first year exams, with no further need for your textbooks? Then why not trade them in for cash at the campus bookshop? Or, you could sell them directly to new first years. Perhaps you are changing accommodation and no longer need the fridge you’ve been keeping in your room? Then you may as well try to sell it on to another student rather than dumping it. Check to see if you can advertise your items via round-email or notice board.

Take Part in a Medical Trial

This may sound a little drastic, but is typically not as serious as it sounds! Universities are full of medical research students looking for willing subjects to test their theories on. This might involve you taking medication (or a placebo) and reporting back to see how it affects your mood. Researchers will generally have access to funding that allows them to pay you for your time.

Do Some Tutoring

As you become more of an expert in your field, you may feel confident enough to help a younger student or high school kid improve their academic performance. You could take on as many students as you like, but could do as little as one hour a week to give you a little extra cash.

Be an Extra on a Film Set

Sign up to be an extra on a local film set. Should you be approached to take part, you can say either yay or nay depending on your availability at the time. If you don’t have much studying to do, this could be a great opportunity to get out of campus for a day or two, spot some celebs, and earn cash at the same time.

Be a Babysitter

Why not offer to do some babysitting for fellow students who have kids, or even for your professors, should you be on friendly terms with them? There are bound to be some PhD students with kids who would relish the extra time to catch up with work.

How to Make Money as a Student Online:

Start a Vlog

Why not jump on the Vlogging bandwagon and create your own YouTube channel? You can make money doing this if you allow Google to advertise on your videos. If someone engages with the advert, you get a percentage of Google’s commission. To do this you will need a Google AdSense account, which will need to be linked to your YouTube account. This is the quickest and easiest way to make some money before your channel becomes popular. You may not get a lot of money to begin with, but if you can create content people want to watch, your viewers will increase, and so will your income.

Take Part in Market Research 

There are plenty of survey websites that reward account holders for completing surveys. So why not sign up to a few and complete some surveys in your free time? As well as getting rewarded, you may enjoy giving your opinions on products and services. This doesn’t have to take up much time; you could do a couple of surveys each time you take a coffee break, or while watching TV.

Do On-Campus Advertising for Online Companies

Keep an eye out for online companies looking for student ambassadors. You could earn cash or discounts for simply putting up a few posters around campus.

Pick up Some Microgigs

This involves completing lots of small tasks online for which you are paid a small amount each time. Typical tasks include image processing or verifying data. One of the original sites offering this type of work is Amazon Mechanical Turk, but others have sprung up since. Again, you can do jobs like this while watching TV. Just make sure you are only signing up to legitimate sites.

Use Cashback Websites 

If you are going to make any purchases online, you may as well check to see if cashback is available on them. This way you effectively earn money while spending it!

Do Online Freelancing

Got skills as a linguist or a graphic designer? Then you could sign up to freelancing websites that allow you to pick and choose jobs that suit you, such as translating, transcription, proofreading, or web design. Websites such as these include Fiverr and Field Agent, which allow you to advertise your services to potential buyers.

Trawl the Internet for Student Bursaries or Scholarships

There may be bursaries or scholarships out there to which you are entitled, particularly from your own institution. These aren’t always widely publicized, which means you have to go looking for them yourself. You may not fancy your chances of being chosen, but you would be surprised at how few students apply to the funding opportunities available to them- so it can’t hurt to apply!

Don’t forget you can also save money at the end of semester by shipping your luggage home, rather than paying for college storage. Just package your possessions carefully in suitcases and boxes and have them picked up from reception or your mail room and delivered back home. We ship student luggage across the UK, the US and internationally.