It can be tough to earn some money while you are attending university. Sure, you need money, but trying to balance a job with a full-time course load is a lot to handle. But there are ways to make money online, that won’t require you to work a lot of hours at a remote location
Running your own blog
This isn’t the quickest way to make money but it’s one that you can do from your home or your dorm room and that you can do at your own pace. Since you’re a university student, you probably have some good stories to tell as well as plenty of useful advice to pass along to other students. You can write how-to articles that will be useful.
The articles can be about dating, social situations, how to study, living on a budget, entertainment on the cheap, or any relevant subject you feel qualified to cover. Over time, your traffic will begin to build, and that’s when the money starts coming.
Bonus: if you get a good head of steam going on your blog while you are still in school, you will have a nice side income after you graduate.
Writing for other blogs
If you don’t have the time that it takes start a making money blog, there is a quicker way. You can write articles for other blogs. If you are pretty good at writing you can probably find blogs that are looking for content. Articles can be university related, or they can be on any topic area that interests you.
You may have to start by doing free guest posts on a few blogs in order to build a portfolio of published articles before you can start charging money for them. This will also give other blogs an opportunity to see your work and to decide if they want to hire you as a paid writer.
You can earn a decent part-time income by writing steadily for just three or four blogs each month.
Customer service
If you’re looking for something more formal, with predictable hours and pay, check out online customer service jobs on elance. Customer service is a largely mechanical function that’s handled primarily by phone and by email. That makes it an ideal function for large companies to outsource.
If you have a pleasant speaking voice, a reliable internet connection and a dedicated phone line, you have the needed qualifications. Do an Internet search using the terms “work from home”, “telecommute”, or “virtual”, and see what companies are hiring online customer service representatives.
Customer service jobs will typically require that you work certain regular hours each day. The shifts will most likely be in the evening hours since they are the most difficult to fill with full-time employees.
Online tutoring
If there is a school subject that you are particularly strong in, you might be able offer your services out as an online tutor. In-home tutors are expensive; find out what the going rate is in your area, and offer a discount to tutor online.
If you have your own computer and a web cam you’ll have what you need to get started. Place some ads in your school newspaper or in a common online source such as Craigslist or kijiji to find clients. Another good place to find clients is at your university. Some schools have “Learning Assistance Centers” where they help connect students to tutors.
You won’t be able to charge as much as in-home tutors, but then you won’t be leaving your home either. If in-home tutors are charging $40 an hour you can charge $20 or $25 per hour, which isn’t a bad pay level for a work-at-home situation.
Selling your computer skills
Most students have better computer skills than people in their 30s and 40s do. Let’s face it, you’ve probably never known life without a computer and because of that you are more fluid and knowledgeable than older people are. You may be able to sell your skills to some of the many millions of people who have nowhere near your level of expertise.
If you have skills in graphic design, website design, website troubleshooting or strong social media skills, you may have a service you can sell to others. Some of your clients may come from your own school, but you can also sell your services to the general public.
Don’t underestimate the skills you’ve accumulated over the years! You probably have more knowledge than most people, and some of them will be willing to pay you to help them. And just like with tutoring, if the fees you charge are lower than the going rate you should have a steady stream of business.
Have you ever considered making money online?
