Aside from the traditional student money-making ideas, such as babysitting, waiting tables, and working in retail jobs, students looking for extra money should consider marketing their academic skills. Tutoring; freelancing as a writer, researcher, or artist; and providing other professional services, such as tax preparation and support, are all excellent ways for students to make money while building their professional credentials.
Tutoring
One easy way for students to make money is by offering tutoring services, either on their own or through a private tutoring firm. If you are an upperclassman or are skilled in a particular subject area, such as math or writing, you may be able to find work tutoring your classmates. College freshmen and students majoring in education or child development may find it both interesting and profitable to tutor high school and elementary age students.
If you performed well on standardized tests, such as the SAT or ACT, you may qualify to teach prep courses through a private tutoring company. Each company establishes its own requirements for who may teach prep courses, but the cutoff is generally those who scored in the 95th percentile.
Offering Professional Services on a Freelance Basis
Because students' work often involves conducting research and writing papers and summaries of their findings, college and graduate students are ideal candidates to work as freelance writers and researchers. This is not only a good way to make money, but it also adds valuable professional experience to your resume.
Students with experience in the arts and Web design may be able to find freelance work creating logos and websites for small businesses. If you are interested in working as a freelance creative professional, you may be able to find job leads through your professors, who can also help you put together a portfolio to present to prospective clients.
For students majoring in business, accounting or finance, consider working as a part-time contractor for bookkeeping and tax preparation services. Often, these firms only require seasonal workers to have one to three years of education beyond high school.
Auctioning Items Online
For quick cash, consider selling your old textbooks online at used-book or auction websites. If your books are in good condition, you may be able to sell them for close to the same price at which you initially bought them.
In addition to books, you can also use auction websites to sell such items as clothing, toys, jewelry and household items that you no longer use or have room for.
Tags: able find, make money, auction websites, high school, prep courses