It’s no secret that it’s getting more and more expensive to go to college. Whether you want to avoid massive student debt, just want to make some extra cash, or relieve the burden on your family, there are ways to make good money as a college student on the internet from the comfort of your own home.
Benefits of Online Jobs for College Students
Let’s start with the big question. How much money can you make working an online job? The good news is that while there can be a lot of variation, almost all jobs pay more than the federal minimum wage of $7.25. You can easily make a couple of hundred dollars a week and even more depending on your skillset and how much time you can put in.
One of the best benefits of working an online job as a college student is having a flexible schedule. Many gigs just care about deadlines, so you can work whenever you can, wherever you want to, as long as you deliver on time.
You may find yourself getting paid for something you just considered a hobby, or you may learn some entirely new skills. In either case, getting an online job is an experience that will improve your knowledgebase and look good on a resume.
Let’s take a look at the wide variety of online jobs for college students with no experience you can easily do!
Writer, Editor, or Proofreader
The demand for quality content is always increasing, and if you have the skill to write, edit, or proofread you could make a really good side income. You can write articles, scripts, blog posts, or edit and proofread more technical documents.
What It Pays
There are millions of people around the world who are non-native speakers and will charge as little as a dollar per 100 words, but a native speaker can easily make 5 dollars per 100 words, and experienced writers can make over $10 per 100 words. It depends on how quickly you can write, but if you build the right clients, you could make upwards of $30 an hour.
How to Get Started
You can jump onto a platform like Fiverr or Upwork and start bidding for writing-related gigs, but it might take a while to start getting orders. Start a blog or a website and post articles with the end goal of building a portfolio. Armed with your portfolio, pitch article ideas to online publications. It might take some time to get your first few jobs, but if you impress with your work, it can become a steady, highly paying side gig.
Pros and Cons
Pros
- As long as you have good writing skills, you don’t need any experience to land your first job
- The pay can be high
- Great for Journalism and English majors
Cons
- The pay might not be that good at the beginning
- You might face criticism of your work
- It’s your responsibility to maintain clients
Graphic/Web Designer
If you have any experience with image editing software, then finding an online job you can do from home as a Graphic or Web Designer could be a good fit. Every company needs logos, websites, and business cards, but you could also design brochures, pamphlets, packaging, characters, illustrations, etc.
What It Pays
This is another high-paying option for freelance work with the average hourly wage being $30 an hour. When starting out, you may have to charge less, but once you have some experience you could make a lot of money for simple projects that don’t take up a lot of time.
How to Get Started
Fiverr and Upwork are great places to get started, but 99designs is a platform catered specifically for freelance graphic designers. Build a portfolio and use it to show potential clients your work. You can advertise through platforms like Facebook or Instagram to get clients as well.
Pros and Cons
Pros
- If you study graphic design, then this is a great way to start building a portfolio before finishing college
- It can be a highly lucrative gig if you find and maintain the right clients
- You can quickly learn graphic design skills from free courses online
Cons
- As with anything art related, you may come across clients who disagree with your vision and designs
- There is a lot of competition so it may be difficult to get high paying jobs from the very start
- Some editing software is expensive, so there are some start-up costs
Online Surveys
Answering online surveys is one of the easiest ways to make money online. It has absolutely no requirements and is easy to do.
What It Pays
It depends on the length of the survey, but most surveys pay between $1 and $3 dollars. Depending on the platform you use, there may be a limit on how many surveys you can do per day or how much money you can make a day, but it’s a quick and easy way to make some extra cash.
How to Get Started
There are many websites like Swagbucks, Savethestudent, and Surveyjunkie that you can quickly sign up to. Just fill in some background information and a list of surveys you are eligible for will appear. Answer them, and make some money. It’s that easy!
Pros and Cons
Pros
- It’s one of the easiest ways to make money on the internet because it requires no special skills
- Many surveys don’t take more than 10 minutes to complete, so you can make some money while commuting or when you’re just bored
- There’s no limit to how many survey websites you sign up for so you can always find something to make a few extra bucks
Cons
- There are quite a few scam companies out there that don’t pay, so make sure to research the company before you sign up
- You won’t be making the kind of money you could doing some of the other jobs in this article
- Many online surveys are area or product-specific, so you might not be able to answer as many as you would like
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Audio Transcription
Technology may be advancing, but computers still have a hard time deciphering human voices, especially if the audio quality is bad or the voice is heavily accented. With more and more video and audio being put out on the internet, there’s always a demand for audio transcriptions, and the low entry requirements make it one of the perfect online jobs for students.
What It Pays
When just starting out, you can make upwards of $0.36 a minute on websites like Rev. Be warned though, it usually takes a lot longer to transcribe the length of audio you’ve heard than just its playtime. More experienced and niche transcribers can get paid more than $1 per minute transcribed, so it can become a good source of extra income.
How to Get Started
There are dedicated websites like Rev, CreativeCow, and Transcription Sourcing that list job offers. You will have to pass a test to make sure that your work is up to the mark, but after you pass there’s no limit to how many jobs you take on.
Pros and Cons
Pros
- You can work on your own schedule
- There is a potential to make significant money
- You don’t have to work with other people
Cons
- Not working with other people means you’re also not expanding your work connections
- Though there are no entry fees, you will have to invest in a foot pedal to control the audio as you type
- You may come across some very difficult audio pieces to transcribe
Voiceover Work
There’s a massive demand for people with clear speaking voices to voice over presentations, videos, and even short films and animation. Over the last few years, many people have started doing it as a side gig to boost their income. Best of all, it doesn’t require any experience!
What It Pays
Voiceover work can earn you a good amount of money, especially if you have a good speaking voice. You can make upwards of $25 an hour and with more experience, a lot more than that.
How to Get Started
There are a few things you need to start your career in voiceover work. A good pair of headphones, a good microphone, and audio recording software can get you started, but you may want to invest in specialized equipment. Websites like Fiverr and Upwork are great places to get started.
Pros and Cons
Pros
- You can make a substantial side income
- The ability to work on your own schedule and from anywhere
- The work itself can be very rewarding
Cons
- There are some initial setup costs
- Having to carry equipment with you if you want to work
- It can be difficult to get higher-paying gigs
Video Editing
The amount of video on the internet is only increasing, and while many people might be able to take good videos with their smartphones, not everyone has the skill or patience to edit the videos. Video editing takes a little practice to learn, but it can be one of the high-paying online jobs for college students once you know how to do it.
What It Pays
Rates can vary based on the amount and type of work. It can be as simple as splicing together different scenes with smooth transitions or creating completely new content. In general, freelance video editors can make between $25 and $45 an hour, but with more experience and the right clients, you can charge up to $75 an hour
How to Get Started
You’ll need a fairly powerful computer to handle video editing along with paid software like Adobe Premiere. Build a portfolio that you can show clients, and then either pitch directly to clients or find work on freelance marketplaces like Fiver or Freelancer.
Pros and Cons
Pros
- It can be one of the most lucrative part-time jobs online
- You can work on your own schedule
- Building a portfolio can help you find future jobs
Cons
- You may come across difficult clients who don’t like your work
- The work can be very challenging
- There are significant start-up costs
Online Tutoring
There are lots of ways you can make money online as a tutor. You could teach your own language, teach foreign languages, teach different school subjects, or even teach niche specialties like gaming, building a social media presence, etc. This can be one of the best online jobs for students because it relies on the expertise you already have and it can be quite lucrative.
What It Pays
Online tutoring pay can vary greatly with the kind of tutoring you can do as well as the difficulty. Teaching business-level English pays a lot more than teaching English as a second language to kids. At the bottom end, you can make upwards of $10 an hour with no credentials. With credentials however you can make anywhere between $20 and $50.
How to Get Started
There are many companies like VIPKid, Cambly, and EF Education First that give you the opportunity to teach on their platform. You will have to pass some tests but apart from that, you don’t need much else to get started
Pros and Cons
Pros
- It can be a high paying side job
- It’s a great fit for people studying languages or education
- There are few barriers to entry
Cons
- You will come across some challenging students
- You may have to work around your students’ schedules
- Many companies have strict policies about performance
Translation
Speaking multiple languages is impressive, but it can earn you some money as well! Translation services are in high demand and there are low barriers to entry. You could translate simple text or convert more technical language for higher pay making this one of the best jobs for college students online.
What It Pays
Like with most things, the pay varies with the difficulty of the work, but translators can make $30 an hour and more. This makes translating an excellent part-time job you can do from the comfort of your own home and with more experience, the price you can charge goes up.
How to Get Started
As long as you speak and write two languages you can find a job as a translator. Translating is a skill though and there are specific rules to follow, so taking a course in it will increase your credibility. You can find jobs on freelance marketplaces like Fiverr, Upwork, and Jobstreet.
Pros and Cons
Pros
- It takes advantage of a skill you already have
- If you speak a relatively uncommon language, your services can be in high demand and you can charge more
- It requires no special software or equipment
Cons
- You may come across some challenging assignments
- The competition is fierce for well-known languages like Spanish and French
- It may take some time to start getting high paying jobs
Search Engine Evaluator
Search engines are constantly updating their algorithms, but they still need humans to fine-tune their results. Evaluators check search results for accuracy, relevance, quality, and safety. The job doesn’t require much more than a high school degree and is easy to do, though it doesn’t pay as much as some of the other online jobs listed here.
What It Pays
Search Engine evaluators can make up to $15 an hour and usually start at about $10 an hour. There is no way to make more than this, so it can be a good way of making a little extra cash. But you won’t get rich doing this.
How to Get Started
There are a few websites that offer positions as search Engine Evaluators - Appen, Lionbridge, Teamwork, and Workforce Logiq. You will need to pass a test to make sure that you can follow the guidelines, but once you do that, you can start working and earning right away.
Pros and Cons
Pros
- The ability to work at home and set your own schedule
- The job can be quite interesting
- Low barriers to entry and requirements
Cons
- The pay doesn’t increase with experience
- Most companies have a non compete clause which means you can only work for one company at a time
- There may be times when there is no work available
Influencer
It seems like everyone want’s to be an influencer now. The life can be glamorous, and even if you don’t make a lot of money initially, it’s a way of making a little extra cash that might eventually become a full-time job. You can become an influencer not just through YouTube, TikTok, FB or Instagram, but also by creating a successful blog or website. The ClubHouse platform is also looking prospectively;)
What It Pays
If you make it big, you could earn millions of dollars a month. But when you’re starting out, it might be as little as just a few dollars a month. It takes time to build a following and your pay is directly related to how many people you can influence. With a little effort, you could make a few hundred dollars a month quite easily though.
How to Get Started
Choose which platform you want to build a following on and study all its intricacies. There are free courses that will teach you how to build a following on all of the popular social media websites. Create a content plan and upload new content regularly and hopefully, with time, you can earn decent money. This can be one of the best online jobs for students that have something interesting to show or say. You could choose the partners programs with popular services or place some advertisement on your channel to make money when you have a lot of subscribers.
Pros and Cons
Pros
- Limitless potential for fame and wealth
- Can be a very fun way to make money
- You are your own boss
Cons
- The chances of making a lot of money are very low
- You will be in the public eye
- It takes a while to start making significant money
Social Media Marketing(SMM)
Every business needs a social media presence now, but most of them don’t have anyone on staff that truly understands how to do it. Freelance social media marketers are in high demand and it’s a perfect position for young people who live and breathe social media. The advantage of SMM comparing to media influencers is that you don't need to think about monetizing your traffic. You'll just work with some companys' social networks accounts and get your money for it!
What It Pays
Most social media marketers make around $25 an hour, but if you have experience and can prove yourself, you can eventually start charging over $50 an hour.
How to Get Started
You have to know all the intricacies of the major social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, LinkedIn, etc. This includes their marketing and analytical tools. There are lots of free resources online that can help you with this. A working knowledge of marketing fundamentals is essential, and can easily be understood through courses online or by reading a few books. Once you’re confident, websites like Fiverr and Upwork have lots of jobs for freelance social media marketers.
Pros and Cons
Pros
- If you’re a heavy user of social media then this can be a very exciting job
- It looks good on a resume, especially if you’re studying marketing
- The pay can be excellent once you have a little experience
Cons
- You may have to follow tight schedules and deadlines
- Some clients can be very demanding if engagement doesn’t go up
- Working in Social Media may make you enjoy it less in your personal time
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Stock Photographer
If you enjoy photography and already have a vast collection of interesting photos, then becoming a stock photographer could be a good source of extra income. It’s a side job that can become a full-time job in the future, but it requires passion, dedication, hard work, and patience.
What It Pays
Unfortunately, it takes a while before stock photography pays good money. That’s because it depends on the number of photos you have. On average a photo brings in 25-45 cents a month, which means that you would have to upload 1000 high-quality photos to make around $400 dollars. If you already own a camera and enjoy photography, it can be a good way of adding some income, but it is difficult to earn a lot, especially early on.
How to Get Started
Buying a brand new camera can cost you around $1000, and working with professional photo editing equipment isn’t cheap either. If you can pick something up secondhand and have good photo editing skills, then you’re all set to go. Sign up on websites like Shutterstock and Pixabay and just start uploading photos.
Pros and Cons
Pros
- You can turn a hobby into a way of getting some extra money
- You will be building a portfolio
- There is a chance that you become famous and can make a lot of money
Cons
- There is a lot of competition
- It takes a long time to start earning significant money
- It can be expensive to get into
Remote Call Center Worker
Many companies need customer support representatives that are available at all times, especially if they have customers around the world. Rather than have offices in many countries, a lot of them hire remote call center workers. This job can pay well and has few prerequisites, but the pay growth is limited and schedules are less flexible.
What It Pays
Remote call center workers make $28,000 per year on average but hourly rates can vary based on how technical the work is. You can make between $10 and $25 an hour as a freelancer depending on the difficulty of the work.
How to Get Started
Look at job boards like Flexjobs for opportunities. Many companies release job notifications for remote call center workers, so it can be worthwhile to check specific company’s websites as well. Companies like Sykes and Concentrix regularly post job opportunities. Each company has different products, so you will have to go through a training phase. If you pass, then you can start working.
Pros and Cons
Pros
- There are many opportunities in many different fields
- You get to work in new industries
- This is a recognized job, so will look good on a resume
Cons
- Less schedule flexibility than many other online jobs
- The job can get boring if you have to face a lot of the same complaints every day
- Working with customers can be draining, especially if they are rude or unpleasant
Product Reviewer
If you like trying new products then this can be the perfect side hustle! Companies need people to try their products and write reviews. You can sign up to be a product reviewer and receive products to test, and then write about them on websites or social media.
What It Pays
There is no way to break this down in earnings per hour, but you can expect to get paid between $2 and $10 per review. If you write a lot of reviews, this could mean a lot of money. There are a lot of different requirements that pay varying amounts on the main product review websites, so search around a little and find the ones that make the most sense to you.
How to Get Started
All you need to do is sign up to a website like InboxDollars or LifePoints and answer a few background questions. Then you’ll be presented with a list of products to receive and review. There are no prerequisites, so this is one of the best jobs online for college students.
Pros and Cons
Pros
- It can be a really fun job
- You get to keep a lot of the products for free
- It’s very easy to get in to and you can work remotely
Cons
- There is limited earning potential
- It doesn’t enhance a resume
- There can be a lot of competition for some products
Micro-Freelancer
Websites like Fiverr, TaskRabbit, and Gigbucks list thousands of jobs for as little as $5 a job. Though this may not seem like a lot, people have made millions through sites like this. Initially, you may only get low-paying jobs, but the more orders you complete and the more experience you get, you can be paid more than $100 a job.
All you need to do is sign up for an account on one of these websites and you can find some of the best online jobs for college students and start making some money as a micro freelancer. You can find jobs as varied as:
Graphic Design
Digital Marketing
Writing and Editing
Resume Writing
Programming
Illustration
Business consulting
Data Categorizing
Voice acting
Honestly, the options are unlimited, you’ll be able to find something that interests you.
Online Jobs For Students Are Everywhere
Many businesses had to move online in 2020, which has led to a massive shift in the way people think about online work. People are much more comfortable with ordering services through the internet and there has been an explosive growth on online job platforms and micro freelancing sites.
As young people, students like you are tech-savvy, but may not even know that you have skills that will get you legit online jobs for college students. In fact, if you want to make some extra money as a writer or tutor it is a great option! Check out the provided websites and start making money now.
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