Ways to earn extra pennies at college or uni (low time and effort!)

It can be challenging for college students to make ends meet. Tuition, room and board, and other expenses can add up quickly. So if you are looking for ways to earn a little extra money, you’re in luck! There are many ways to make some extra cash while still attending school. Here we will discuss the top best methods for doing so.

1. Sell your unwanted clothes and bits and bobs

This is a great, easy way to earn pennies and the Vinted app is great for this!

2. Learn a special skill

It’s great to learn a special skill over the summer, if you can! Great skills include haircutting or digital design and illustration, learning expertise in any subject you can tutor others in, or any experience with pet care or babysitting can be amazing, especially volunteer experience, as you will be able to ask for references from people.

3. Offer your services

If you’re an animal lover, why not get paid to take care of someone else’s pet? You can offer dog walking or sitting services through online pet sitting companies, by asking around, or even starting your own pet-sitting business. Just be sure to do your research before taking on any clients, as you’ll want to make sure you’re covered in case of any accidents.

Another option of freelancing could be to use your skills to earn money. Tutoring is amazing for this, especially if you have a specialist subject that you are confident in or passionate about; tutoring high school or secondary school students is a wonderful idea! Whether it’s tutoring, design work, web development, or anything in between, there are plenty of ways to use your skills to earn extra cash. Sites like Fiverr are great places to start looking for work, and you can often find jobs that fit your schedule and pay pretty well.

4. Offer to write articles for niche website owners

This is a great thing to do if you love writing. The only drawback to this is that it requires a lot of extra writing, with potentially some tight turnarounds, so might not be great if you are already struggling with a heavy workload and trying to meet deadlines as a college student!

5. Create and sell some printables

Why not design some cute printables and sell them on Etsy! This is an amazing thing to do, especially if you are handy at digital design and illustration, as you can create all kinds of popular and in demand products, such as ready made Disney inspired or themed kids party invitations! This is one of the best ways to earn extra pennies, as you only have to create each design once and the pennies you earn will be passive, you don’t have to do anything further once you finish and list a product, and it can be bought unlimited times! There are so little drawbacks to this idea and you could create an unlimited number of products, just by practising with your gadget and a stylus pen!

6. Starting a blog

If you have an interesting story to tell or a passion for a specific topic, why not start a blog? You can monetize your blog through advertisements, affiliate marketing, or selling products and services.

Blogging is a great way to earn some extra money on the side. It’s also a great way to build your writing portfolio and get your name out there. Once you have your blog up and running, there are several ways you can monetize it. You can sign up for Google Adsense or another advertising program and place ads on your site. When readers click on the ads, you will earn money.

Another way to monetize your blog is through affiliate marketing. For example, if you have a travel blog, you could promote travel products and services and earn a commission when someone books a trip through your link.

Even though beginning a blog makes for an incredible investment, it can take many years and a huge amount of writing to gain traction traffic-wise. A great way to start is by choosing a special niche that you specialise in and know is relatively popular and write articles for people on Pinterest – write about topics that people look for on Pinterest and then make lots of pins for Pinterest. This is a faster way to get traffic in the meantime, while you wait for organic Google traffic to grow.

There is a huge amount more to learn, but is definitely worth a try over time if you love writing!

7. Helping the community

You can also make a pretty penny by setting up a small hydroponics operation. All you need is a little space, some essential hydroponics equipment, and some plants. Once your setup is complete, you can sell the produce to local restaurants or farmers’ markets. You could even offer a service to deliver fresh vegetables to community members. By providing your community with fresh, locally-grown produce, you’ll be doing them a favour and earning a little extra money at the same time. It’s a win-win!

If you have a passion for helping others, there are plenty of ways to turn that into an income stream as well. For example, you could become a helper for the elderly in your community or offer your services in other areas. You could also contribute by doing odd jobs for people in your area, such as mowing lawns or shovelling snow. Whatever you choose to do, you’re sure to be of service to others while earning money in the process.

I hope you liked these tips! I definitely recommend creating some printables to sell on Etsy as it is an amazing low time and effort way to earn pennies ♡