Being in college is often synonymous with being flat broke. After tuition, fee’s, books, board and food you find yourself pursuing a degree and broke. What are some ways to make a few extra dollars? What about work experience? What if you could obtain work experience and money while still pursuing a degree? Students who graduate with work experience under their belt seem to have an advantage. Now a day’s employers are looking for experience over certifications or a degree. Don’t let this discourage you or even consider dropping out of school, you’ll still get a job don’t worry. Not to mention, having both experience and an education will put you well ahead.
Since I pursued a degree in Computer Science I decided to make this centric to CS majors. In reality, the majority of the following can be applied to any field.
Internships
Internships are great ways to obtain work experience and quite possibly some extra money in your pocket. The downfall to internships is you don’t always get paid for your work. Many companies enjoy taking advantage of student interns and the hours they will put towards projects. Upon completing your internship many companies will offer their interns a full position. Compensation for internships can range greatly depending on where your school is.
Co Ops
College co-op programs differ from internships in that the work experience is integrated into the academic curriculum. Co-ops are always paid positions, and they’re set up as sequential, ongoing experiences. Much like in college coursework, the level of learning increases as you progress.
The average co-op student graduates with 18 months of experience from time spent in five to seven paid positions. Earnings from co-op programs are significant enough to contribute to the cost of a college education, if necessary. Consider the average monthly earnings of today’s University of Cincinnati co-op student: $1,700 to $2,500.
Work Study
The work-study program provides part-time employment to undergraduates and graduates to help with college expenses. There are two different kinds of work-study: Federal Work-Study and non-Federal Work-Study.
Federal Work-Study (FWS) is a form of financial aid awarded to students who demonstrate financial need and meet certain eligibility requirements. The work-study program encourages employment in community service and in fields related to your major of study. Job positions can be either on-campus or off-campus. Most off-campus positions will be at private nonprofit agencies or public agencies and will be in the public interest. At the very least, you will earn the current federal minimum wage, but that amount may be higher depending on where you work and the type of work that you perform.
Non-Federal Work-Study (non-FWS) is not based on financial need. If you do not qualify for Federal Work-Study, you should inquire about non-federal student employment opportunities at your school. Working on campus will give you more flexibility than working at an off-campus job because on-campus employers are usually more understanding of your class schedule and school work. At most schools, employment for non-Federal Work-Study is available as funding allows. Your earnings will depend on where you work and the type of work that you perform.
Work a Full Time Job
This happens to be my choice. I signed up for the military with a job in computer systems and communications. Once I finished my technical training I found a college that offered night courses and online courses. Beyond working full time in the military I was taking mini terms of 8 weeks. I took 3 courses per term, CLEPPED out of a full year of courses and somehow finished my degree in 2.5 years while working a full time job. Technically it took me 3 years to complete but there was a 4 month time frame that I was not taking courses because I was in the middle of Afghanistan.
Take up Odd Jobs
Craigslist, and Rent a Coder are among the top choices for odd jobs, even when you are finished with school these two sites are great resources to make a few extra bucks. You will find anything on Craigslist ads from data entry to setting up wireless networks. You can even run advertisements on craigslist to showcase your skills and availability.
Rent a Coder lets you locate and bid on coding projects and questions from around the world! Rent a Coder also allows you to advertise your skills through their website, and receive emails on new bids that come in. Rent A Coder handles all the money collecting so you can concentrate on what you’re best at…coding. By the time you’ve begun work, the buyer’s money has already been placed into an escrow account, freeing you from the problem of getting ’stiffed’. The Downside to Rent a Coder is the charge. Rent a Coder charges coders a 15% Rent a Coder Fee on the profit from work and questions.
Tutoring
Tutoring can be a great way to enhance your knowledge of a particular subject and make some money on the side. If you are an upper classman or have advanced knowledge of a particular subject you may be able to help underclassman or fellow students in your class. Many graduate students find their understanding of a subject magnifies while being a teachers assistant. The great thing about tutoring is reinforcing your own knowledge of a subject while making extra money.
Consulting
This somewhat goes along with taking up odd jobs. However, I consider consulting to be more focused on a particular subject. Consulting can range from programming, database design all the way to network administration. Often time’s large companies will overlook small business because they are looking for larger pay outs. Suggest you have good knowledge of network administration, or network security auditing. Small businesses need these services and chances are they can get it cheaper from a student. Not only does this put money in your pocket it gives you an excellent learning experience in business which is something CS majors often don’t get.
Blogging
Although blogging won’t always make you an instant millionaire, it can bring in a few extra dollars. If you have a decent knowledge on a particular subject you can extend your tutoring into blogging. Beyond that, you can start a blog that gives other students a first look at events taking place at your university. The possibilities of blogging are endless, whether you become the voice of your university, the master of Beer Pong blogging can be a great way to make some extra money. Even if your grammar sucks, you can still pull it off. Just look at me!
Book Seller – Ebay Specialist
I’m amazed that people have yet to figure out how they can sell things on Ebay or half.com. There are store fronts which charge upward to 25% of the selling price for your items that have sprung up throughout my city. These store fronts take care of everything once you bring it into the store, from pictures to the listing and collecting the money. Between random stuff that fellow students have lying around and text books you can start up a small gig in your dorm. This is pretty simple, fellow students bring their stuff to include text books to you to resell. You then take 10% off the selling price and everyone is happy. This may be a little harder to pull off in a college since most college students have the technical savvy to sell things on the internet.
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