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As a student, you’re usually strapped for cash, so uncovering some of the best side hustles for students can help put some money in your pocket.
Starting a side hustle as a student can also set you up for further success in life. You can invest your earning to purchase assets, build something that will have a lasting impact on your financial life, and learn entrepreneurial skills. Even when you get a job after graduation, your side hustle may be something you can carry with you to supplement your income.
For the purpose of this article, we are going to focus on side hustles that can be done during the school year.
Recognize the Time Component of Side Hustles for Students
When considering side hustles, you need to think about both the amount of time it will take to make money, and the how the side hustle can scale with time.
Some side hustles won’t make money right away. Things like setting up a blog or youtube channel won’t make money for quite some time. Whereas something like driving Uber will have an immediate return. That said, with something like Uber, you can only ever make as much as the hours you work. There is no ability to scale without increasing the time spent.
Think about not only the money you’re making, but also the skills or earning ability that you are building.
Both sides of the spectrum have their advantages, and you need to think about your goals with your side hustle.
Best Side Hustles for Students
Here are some great side hustles for students – pick one that works for you:
Uber/Lyft or Food Delivery
Ridesharing or meal-delivery services are great for students due to the flexibility and immediate payback.
You can drive deliver food in the evening after class, but there’s no obligation. You also start making money immediately. That said, depending where you are, you will likely need a car (or a bike for food delivery). The downside of this side hustle is that you only make money for the hours you get paid.
With ridesharing or food delivery, there’s no upside or ability to scale, but it can be an easy way to make money.
Become a Tutor
Tutoring can be a great way to bring in some extra cash while helping other students.
You can tutor either other students at your school, or high-school students in the area. Tutoring involves some obligation as you need to be present at your scheduled tutoring appointments, but you can typically work with the client to find a time that works. It also can pay quite well compared to other hourly positions ($20-30 per hour).
Tutoring can be a great way to make good money without a huge time commitment, but again, won’t scale beyond the hours you put in.
Freelance Writing
Freelance writing (or coding, design, etc.) can be a good way to make money on your own schedule.
Sites like Upwork allow you to sign-up and take freelance writing gigs. The pay will depend a lot on how much writing and the topic, but it allows a lot of flexibility, and you can get paid as soon as the work is done. It takes effort to be a good writer, but the skill of writing can be leveraged to write books, a blog, or build a business around writing.
Freelance writing can be very fruitful, and also help you develop an important skill that can be leveraged elsewhere.
Start a Blog
Blogs (or youtube) can be a very fruitful endeavor, but it takes a while to build.
Blogs typically don’t make money for months, and creating a meaningful income will take at least a year. That said, being able to build a website and create content is a high-value and repeatable skill. Websites can also be sold for a huge multiple of their monthly earning (20 to 50 times), meaning that you are truly building an asset.
Blogs won’t make money quickly, but allow you to build an asset and skillset that can pay you for years to come.
Get a Part-Time Job on Campus
There are typically lots of part-time jobs available on campus.
These are often conducive to a student schedule, allowing you to work on evenings and weekends, but you usually have a set shift. Similar to ridesharing/food-delivery, you can only make as much as the hours you work, but they are a low effort way to make money. Sometimes after a long day/week of school, you don’t want any more mentally taxing activities.
Check for a school job board to see if any positions fit well with your life.
Teach Music
Similar to tutoring, as a music teacher you have a skillset that people are willing to pay good money for.
This is very similar to tutoring in that you can offer classes to other students, or local people in the community. And teaching music can be a lot more fun than working on math problems. Again though, this is not a scaleable side hustle for students, but can be a great way to earn some extra income.
See if there’s a need in your community for your music skills.
Dropshipping/Affiliate Marketing
Dropshipping or affiliate marketing can be very profitable, but they are not easy.
Similar to building a blog, pursuing this side hustle for students will not make you money quickly. It takes a lot of effort to find the right products and build a following to sell to. That said, these opportunities are incredibly scaleable, and can make you huge money in the long-term.
If you’re willing to put in the work and be patient, dropshipping or affiliate maketing can be a great side hustle for students.
Summary – Side Hustles For Students
Starting a side hustle as a student can be a great way to make some extra money alongside your studies.
With side hustles for students, you need to consider:
- Time commitment/flexibility – Do you want scheduled hours that you need to work?
- Mental Exertion – How much thinking do you want to have to do in your side hustle?
- Payback timeline – Do you need money now, or can you wait for deferred income?
- Scalability – Can your income increase independant of the hours you work?
Find a side hustle that fits with your life and desires, and take action.