“I don’t mind Lucky beer, but I sure wouldn’t mind a Corona every once in awhile.”
Students everywhere are looking for quick ways to earn a little spending money to carry them through each semester. There are always the entry-level jobs that most people associate with university students such as retail work, and serving positions. Either way there are numerous opportunities for earning money on campus. Many settle for these types of jobs when in fact there are numerous opportunities right under their nose that would be far easier and less stressful.
University campuses are huge places that require a lot of different kinds of services in order to run properly. This translates into many jobs that are ideal for students. The best part of these jobs is that they are tailored to fit students’ schedules. This flexibility is often a stark contrast to the unsympathetic demands of retailers who do not understand the peaks and valleys of university life. Since you are on campus so often anyway, these jobs offer to maximize your time management efficiency as you can plan classes and group work to occur either right before or right after your work. It also cuts down on travel costs immensely, and the sheer frustration factor if you rely on public transportation. Finally, many of the jobs on campus are union protected; consequently, the wages are usually somewhat higher than minimum wage.
- Reffing intramurals or youth sports that occur on campus
- Marking papers (easier to get into once you have a couple years in a faculty under your belt)
- Working in the bookstore
- Working in the library
- Setting up for special events
- Coordinating the audio/visual equipment for classrooms
- Campus security
- Bartending
- Administrative work at the various offices around campus
- Various jobs at the campus gym including training, maintenance, and administration
Maybe the most lucrative job for students is sharing all of that hard earned knowledge with others. By this I mean tutoring.
Related: 5 Ways To Make Money As A Tutor
By advertising on campus you can create a nice little niche for yourself if your market your services correctly. For example, if you help international students with their English skills this will be very valuable to them and usually proves fairly profitable. Essay help is always in demand, as are exam prep courses for most common 1st and 2nd year courses. Once you set up a few basic advertisements on campus, your personal tutorship business will be up and running. Once again, the cherry on top is that you can schedule the tutoring appointments to fit your daily plan, and often can meet your fellow student on campus to best satisfy both of your schedules.
By and large campuses are fun places to be. They are packed full of young people and the energy that comes with them. Staying on campus to work keeps you amongst people that have similar interests and are at similar places in their life. This is great for learning skills from your co-workers and building extremely valuable networks that will benefit you throughout your life. In fact, you may actually find that although the paycheque you receive from this job will be a nice addition to your personal finances, the biggest impact will probably be the people that you meet and relationships you build.
So next time you are passing by the bulletin boards in your faulty lounge, student centre, or administrative offices, just pause for a couple minutes and see what catches your eye. You’re already on campus, why not earn a few extra bucks while you wait for your carpool or night class?
