Looking for some ideas about the best online jobs for college students? You’ve come to the right place.
Let’s face it. Getting a college education is hard enough. From muddling through late-night study sessions to fielding the unending questions from well-intentioned relatives about what you plan to do with the rest of your life, it’s not a stretch to say that college is stressful.
Add it that the stress of never having enough cash on hand, and you might find yourself wondering if a college education is even the right choice for you. Don’t second guess yourself, though – working your way through college is a good way to alleviate some of your worries and to offset some of the increasingly high costs of attending school.
However, it can be tough to find a decent-paying job that you can balance with your classes, clubs, and other commitments. Lucky for you, the Internet presents numerous opportunities for students like yourself to make some money and get ahead. So, we’ve did the research and found the best online jobs for college students. Let’s get started!
Best Online Jobs For College Students
Here are 11 of the best online jobs for college students – many of which pay extremely well.
1. Freelance Writing
Ok, so if you’re struggling in English 101, this might not be the best online job for you. However, if you’ve got some serious writing chops to fall back on, you might want to consider applying for an online job as a freelance writer. There are a few ways you can go about this.
You can start your own blog and write articles for it – this will yield you tons of experience and you don’t have to wait around for someone to hire you. However, it might not be as lucrative as applying for a job on an online job board or bidding site, like ProBlogger, FlexJobs, or Upwork.
Don’t be afraid to cruise around the Internet until you find a job that matches your skills and desired pay. You could earn $50 per article or more, depending on your skills and niche!
2. Audio Transcription
Computers are getting better at interpreting and recognizing human speech – but they’re far from perfect.
As a result, there is a huge demand for people who are able to listen to audio and then turn the audio into the written word. Audio transcription is something that just about anyone can do, and you can earn money right from your own dorm room. Some audio transcription companies, like Rev, start freelancers at an impressive $0.36 per hour!
3. Teaching English Online
If you speak English – and have decent skills as a teacher – you can easily teach English online. While some TESOL websites like to hire teachers with qualifications such as a college degree or a teaching certification, others will hire sophomores, juniors, and seniors in college. You just need to be able to speak fluent English.
Expect to earn anywhere between $12 and $25 hours. In most cases, you can set your own hours, too. Look at websites like VIPKID when you’re first getting started – these will offer some of the best opportunities for newbie tutors.
4. Virtual Assistant
As an online virtual assistant, you’ll be able to leverage some of the communication and organization skills you’ve worked so hard to develop during all of these years of college. Your duties might vary, as could your pay and schedule. However, in a job as a virtual assistant, you might do things like social media management, customer service, and data entry.
Look to websites like Zirtual and TaskRabbit to get started.
5. Data Entry
It might be a bit monotonous – and truth be told, a job as an online data entry clerk probably isn’t going to pay the best. However, you could still earn up to $16 per hour with just a computer and an Internet connection. All you will need to do is plug in information! You can find data entry jobs with websites like Clickworker.
6. PowerPoint Presentation Designer
Believe it or not, you can actually make a decent living making PowerPoint presentations for someone else – and if you’ve been in school for more than a semester or two, you’re probably already a pro at making PowerPoints!
The idea here is that many businesses and speakers just don’t have the time to make their own presentations. You can list your services on sites like Freelancer or Upwork or even start your own professional virtual storefront when you’re first getting started.
7. Search Engine Evaluator
This is a lesser-heard-of job that can easily enable you to make up to $15 per hour. You’ll work to clean up search engines like Yahoo!, Google, and Bing.
Search engines are riddled with errors, relying on humans to look at their results and offer their feedback on usefulness, accuracy, and quality. You don’t have to have any kind of prerequisite skills to apply for one of these jobs, but you can do so at websites like Lionbridge or Appen.
8. Take Online Surveys
This kind of online work isn’t nearly as reliable as some of the other ones we’ve given you, but it’s still an option. If you want to just make a few bucks here or there in your downtime, consider signing up to be an online survey-taker. You won’t get rich taking a $1 or $3 survey, but most only take a few minutes to complete.
To start, you’ll need to sign up for a survey site like Survey Junkie. Then, you can answer some basic questions about yourself and you’ll get email notifications when new matching surveys are available.
9. Social Media Manager
Work online and earn up to $40 – sounds like a dream, right? Well, when you become a social media manager, that’s a reality. If you’re always getting compliments on your Instagram hashtags and you know what it takes to get a thousand likes on a single post, a job as a social media manager might be a good choice for you.
Not only can you connect with businesses you love, but you’ll be able to promote all kinds of content and deals to help companies interact with their followers. You’ll want to focus on your favorite (and most active) social profile. Advertise through those social media channels or reach out to companies directly to land a job – the choice is yours.
10. Online Tutor
If you want to teach online but aren’t sure that teaching English is the way you want to go, consider looking for a job as an online tutor. You can easily start your own tutoring business and work with fellow college students, K-12 students, or other individuals who want to improve their skills and training in a particular area.
It doesn’t have to be wholly academic, either. You could teach unique skills like fashion, computer programming, or karate. Consider finding an online tutoring job through a website like Wyzant or build your own course through Udemy.
11. Virtual Recruiter
“Wait, aren’t I supposed to be the one looking for the job?”
Well, yes – but if you work as a virtual recruiter, you’ll not only find an online job for yourself, but you’ll be able to help other people find jobs, too.
Here’s how it works. Recruiters will post jobs online and then look for potential employees on websites like LinkedIn. They’ll read profiles that they find and have resumes sent to them before deciding who might be a good candidate.
The recruiter will conduct the phone interview before passing the best ones on to the manager at the company. You can work from home or from your dorm doing this job – no background skills required.
Online Jobs For College Students: Some Quick Tips
Before you start searching around for your new dream job online, take some time to evaluate your capabilities – and your limitations. If you live in a dorm, make sure you have a strong Internet connection and a reliable laptop.
You’ll need to be able to find time to work when your roommate won’t be around to distract you, so consider working in a place like a library or coffee shop where you’ll be able to clock more productive hours.
You might also want to consider how many hours you actually want to work before you start applying for jobs, too. If you’re paying for college yourself – or just want a few bucks for some beer – consider setting a goal for your weekly earnings. That way, you’ll be able to plan your time more efficiently.
Make sure you are realistic with your schedule before you commit to a demanding online job. Consider applying for a position that will allow you to start off slow, ideally with just a few hours or so of work each week. Then, you can gradually build up as you gain confidence as you find that you are able to balance your new online job and your other commitments as a college student.
The best tip for looking for a new job? Be flexible – and get creative! Many of the best online jobs for college students go unfilled because nobody applies – don’t sell yourself short and be willing to try new things. Who knows, it could end up turning into a lucrative career!
