Being a student is not cheap, and often comes with its share of debts. Having a side hustle while you complete your studies is a smart way to keep money in your pocket, and help you transition to your first big job.
There are some side hustles that suit students more than others, and this can be for scheduling or because of the marketable skills you have simply from studying. Here is a guide to the top side hustles for students in the USA.
Investing In Property
It may seem far-fetched at first, but students that have a little capital to invest can become property developers and flippers, playing Monopoly on real streets with real buildings.
Starting off small, and in your spare time, a little bit of money and some extra financing can start turning a sizable profit. Many people start this on the side but develop it into a full-time job. All you need to do is identify an up-and-coming area to make your investment in and find a property with potential.
There is a lot of demand in New Bern, North Carolina, for real estate in the area. Homes for sale here are consistently going up in value, making it the kind of area to invest in. EZ Home Search and put you in touch with local real estate agents, and with a little financing anyone can get in on the action.
House flipping can generate a lot of profit depending on the value of the property. Even by starting off with small homes or plots of land, you can still make enough income as a side hustle to keep you going between full-time jobs. It just takes some discipline and careful study to be successful, and who better to do that than hardworking students?
Tutor High School Students
One of the advantages of higher education is the knowledge you gain along the way. You can pass this down to the generations below you and help high school students achieve a better grade while getting paid.
This is an area where math and science majors can make some big numbers. These two subjects can be a challenge for many high schoolers, especially if their teacher is sub-standard. For some young people to succeed in a high school subject, they need a tutor that knows the subject well and has experienced it at their level.
The highest earners are language students and students who speak another language as many international students do. Tutoring English or another language or assisting younger foreign students with their studies and translation can be worth hundreds a week to a student who knows how to hustle.
Tutoring can be a wonderful way to fit an income stream around your schedule. High school students have a similar timetable to a college, and you can make some cash in the early evenings to pay for the weekend parties or, better yet, some groceries.
Dropship Products
One of the fastest-growing side hustles is dropshipping. This is using online marketplaces to sell products you never have to house or interact with yourself; all warehousing and despatching is done by another company.
People have made massive incomes from anticipating trends online and selling hundreds of units of a single product on a site like Amazon and eBay. They buy cheap online too, from American and Chinese sources. Their order is delivered to a warehouse, and they will pass the products on to a delivery service when you make each sale.
You can even use websites and apps to look for popular products on Amazon, for example, and undercut the competition with the same product for less. This kind of side hustle is perfect for students and young people. You get to choose your own working hours, fitting it in around your schedule, and it involves being glued to your cellphone at times searching for niches and high-value deals.
The key to successful dropshipping is volume. Moving lots of products with a little profit generates more income than trying to squeeze a lot of money from a few sales. If you make ten cents on each item but sell 10,000 in a week, you have made $1000. Quick sales equal quick profits. The best part is you never have to pack a box or go to a postal service, and it is all at your fingertips wherever you go.
Freelance Content Creation
All students, no matter what major they are studying, will all do two things a lot that have value in the online marketplace; they can read, and they can write.
You may have written tens of thousands of words while studying, not just in your assignments and exams but in all your notetaking and study sessions too. Being able to research topics quickly and provide authoritative information about them is a skill that is always in demand.
This can be in a variety of fields, but writers who can provide unique and informative content for blogs and marketing campaigns can create a good side hustle, and all the work can be completed online. If you are an international student, then you have even more opportunities and often at a higher rate of pay.
Being able to translate online content for businesses or writing fresh content in another language is a highly marketable skill in this sector. Spanish, Portuguese, French, and Punjabi readers, and writers are always in demand for a variety of projects including international marketing campaigns and retail website translations.
You may not consider the ability to read and write English or another language a valuable skill, but there is money out there waiting for you.
Monetize Your Influence
YouTube, Instagram, Twitch, and Twitter; all these social media platforms combined can generate quite a lot of influence. If you wield this power correctly you can begin to monetize your social media presence, even with just a few hundred followers.
Do not use your personal profile, leave that for you. Some of your followers will follow your new account if you tell them about it; make it their choice rather than your account suddenly becoming promotional. Search for hashtags to find popular niches you can join and start to generate followers and likes.
It helps if it is something you have an interest in, but if you are trying something new you can make that the theme of your account. Followers can watch your journey and learn from your experiences.
Veganism is a good example of this. Cooking and recipes are always popular, and more people are switching to a vegan diet every day. If you make the change in your diet, sharing your thoughts and feelings along the way, your follower count and the number of unique interactions with your account will grow.
With a vegan lifestyle account gaining traction, you can contact marketing companies and businesses that make vegan-friendly products and promote them on your profile. You can review vegan foods or even vegan clothing.
Early on you may only receive the products as payment, but as you grow in influence your fee can grow too. Soon you will be posting for profit and getting the goods and some cash.
It only takes one of these side hustles to boost your income significantly, but why stop at one? Put a couple of these together and you may be working for yourself when you finish your studies.