3 Jobs You Can Start While Still in College
Image by Robert S. Donovan
College means different things to different people. For some it’s a time to let their hair down before they settle down to becoming serious professionals, for others it’s a launching pad that helps them achieve their professional and personal dreams and goals, and for yet others it is a sea of opportunities that they must tap before someone else does. It is this last group of students who think about becoming entrepreneurs even before they graduate. They don’t launch their companies with fanfare and pomp; rather, they start out quietly on their computers, they are their only employee, and the money made is nothing to write home about. However, the very fact that they’re doing something worthwhile speaks volumes about the kind of adults they will grow up to become.
If you want to join this bandwagon, here are a few jobs that allow you to stay on campus, focus on your lessons and also earn some money on the side:
Freelancing on the Internet: If you’ve got a skill that can be sold over the Internet, take advantage of it by all means. Those who have a flair for writing can take on freelance writing assignments, those who are good programmers can develop code for those who need it, and those who have a creative eye can enter the world of web design. All these positions are in high demand today, and you could earn quite a bit if you know how to balance your work and study, and also sacrifice a little bit of your social life.
Working as virtual assistants: If organizational skills are your forte, then this is the job for you. You could take on the responsibility of being someone’s assistant, of organizing their schedules and reminding them of appointments. Many people require temporary assistants who are cost-effective and who work part-time. If you own and know how to tap the potential of a smartphone, this is one job you can do even on the go, no matter where you are.
Starting an Internet business: You could tie up with local vendors and set up a website to help sell products or services, taking a commission for each order that comes through the site. It involves a few visits to local shops, convincing people to invest in your idea, and then carrying it out. You would have to find ways to publicize your website, and the best way to do this is to use the students in college as your first customers. Get your friends to buy online instead of going out of campus to get what they need; once people get used to the idea, you can watch the money start pouring in.
It’s not that hard to think of jobs you can do while still in college; however, make sure that your grades don’t slip and that you’re able to balance all that is going on in your life along with work.
This guest post is contributed by April Davis, she writes on the topic of Accredited Degree Online. She welcomes your questions and comments at her email id: april.davis83(@)gmail(.)com.
Honestly, this is just not helpful at all. For starters, freelancer’s on the internet are a dime a dozen these days. With so many individuals and small businesses in 3rd world countries offering to do hours of work for what sometimes equates to less than $4/hr, there’s very little demand and the pay on most websites has become a joke.
Virtual assistant jobs are few and far between. Also, those types of jobs are typically not very flexible. I know because I’ve hired assistants personally for my own business in the past. When I had meetings, they needed to be available afterwards to organize, structure, make phone calls, etc.
To act as if starting up an internet business is a way to make extra cash in college is absurd. To succeed, you need a very in-depth knowledge of SEO, far more of a starting base than a few friends from college, skills in network marketing, and the list goes on. An internet business is an impractical way to try and simply make some extra cash on the side. I have personally witnessed countless individuals spend hours and hours over weeks or even months on a website, all to get little to no return.
This information needs to be more thoroughly researched, as I could give about 30 more sensible types of work to pursue than what is listed here.