25 best jobs for college students

There are many opportunities available to college students across a variety of industries. Here are 25 examples of jobs that can be beneficial while you complete your education:

1. Administrative assistant

Job duties: Administrative assistants generally handle administrative tasks on behalf of more senior employees. Their duties usually include taking notes during meetings, maintaining files and records, sending and receiving correspondences and distributing memos and other communications to other employees.

2. Animal caretaker

Job duties: Animal caretakers groom, bathe, feed, water and walk/exercise non-farm animals. Generally, these professionals work in kennels, pet daycares, veterinary clinics, animal shelters, pet stores, zoos and aquariums.

3. Bank teller

Job duties: Bank tellers help customers with financial transactions, such as depositing, withdrawing and transferring money, and fulfilling money orders. They also answer phones, greet customers, count cash, file deposit slips, manage ATMs and balance numbers.

4. Barista

Job duties: A barista works at a restaurant or coffee shop and greets customers, takes orders and prepares and serves hot and cold beverages such as coffee and tea. They also clean work areas and customer seating areas, sanitize utensils and equipment and manage cash registers.

5. Brand ambassador

Job duties: Brand ambassadors are employed by companies to help drive publicity and raise brand awareness. They act as representatives of the brand, promoting products within their social circles via social media, providing product samples to retailers, performing product demos, monitoring and addressing customer feedback and building relationships with customers and vendors.

6. Customer service representative

Job duties: A customer service representative handles customer questions and concerns via phone, email, chat or in person. They’re generally tasked with offering advice and guidance on products or services, updating customer records and helping customers complete a purchase, return or other transaction.

7. Line cook

Job duties: A line cook works in a restaurant kitchen and reports to a chef. Generally, line cooks are responsible for washing and prepping vegetables, and grilling, cooking and plating food. Most kitchens employ multiple line cooks and assign one person to each station or work area.

8. Receptionist

Job duties: A receptionist is responsible for greeting and directing customers, answering customer questions and referring them to other employees. They also answer the phone and assist with administrative duties such as filing and office organization. A receptionist may also screen visitors and issue security badges.

9. Restaurant server

Job duties: Servers greet diners, set tables, take food and drink orders, answer menu questions and provide suggestions, communicate orders to kitchen staff and serve them after they’re prepared. A server clears used dinnerware and utensils, issues the check at the end of the meal and collects payment.

10. Retail sales associate

Job duties: A retail sales associate stocks merchandise, helps maintain display areas, greets customers, answers customer questions and assists them in finding products. They may also be responsible for taking inventory, managing cash registers and recording sales.

11. Telemarketer

Job duties: A telemarketer dials customers or receives inbound calls and solicits orders for products and services. Telemarketers are usually responsible for reading from scripts composed by marketing teams to persuade prospective customers to purchase items or sign up for services on behalf of retailers and financial institutions.

12. Transcriptionist

Job duties: A transcriptionist listens to live or recorded speeches or conversations and transcribes it into readable text with proper syntax, spelling and grammar. Transcriptionists may be employed directly with a company or work for multiple clients as part of a transcription service.

13. Tutor

Job duties: A tutor travel to student’s home, school, library or other locations to help them improve their academic performance. Tutors may conduct lessons, assist with homework and help students prepare for upcoming tests. They may also work with students virtually through video calls.

14. Cashier

Job duties: Cashiers are responsible for receiving customers’ payments by cash, credit or debit card, check or vouchers and providing change and receipts. They also issue refunds and credits and count money at the beginning and end of each shift. A cashier may work at a grocery store, bookstore, boutique, campus dining hall or any other retail store.

15. Package handler

Job duties: A package handler is responsible for sorting packages for delivery, making sure packaged goods are successfully transferred and delivered to their intended destinations. They may also pick up packages and operate machines such as forklifts and trucks.

How to Choose the Best Part-Time Online Job for You

1. Your Skills:

Get brainstorming. Make a list of everything you’re good at and start to look at the big picture of how you could use your skills to make money. For example, if you’re crafty, look into some creative art or projects to sell online. If you consider yourself a people person, time to look into online marketing and sales. Use your skills and make money doing something you excel in.

2. Your Time:

How much time do you have to commit to a job? 10 hours per week, only an hour per day? Look at how much time your studies take up and how much time you could realistically fit work into. Remember, you are still a student and should think of your study time first. If you are studying online such as at the tuition-free University of the People, you can choose your own hours to study, which also gives you a lot of flexibility to choose the hours you want to work.

3. Your Financial Needs:

Make sure you take into account how much you need to make your budget work. Take stock of your expenses and calculate how much you would like to make per week or per month, and use that to calculate an hourly rate you will need as a minimum. Also think about how valuable your skills and time are and don’t accept any less!

4. Your Future:

5. Freelance vs. Salaried:

Some jobs are better suited towards freelance, such as design and writing, while others it might make more sense to be an employee. For a freelance career, remember you will need to keep track of your own taxes, but the pros to being self-employed are you get to choose your own projects, don’t need to ask for time off, and it’s easier to work around your school schedule. For hourly or salaried online work the pluses are that these jobs may come with certain benefits, and the peace of mind that comes with a reliable and steady income.

Check Out These 10 Best Online Part-Time Jobs for Students (And How to Get Started!)

1. Tutoring Online

If you’re an expert in any subject, use your smarts to make some extra money and help others too! Tutoring can be done in any field, but commonly requested subjects are math and test preparation.

How to get started: Make a note of the subjects you have mastery over, then make accounts on tutoring websites such as Chegg, Tutor.com, and/or Yup. You can also find private tutoring gigs from your peers, family, or Craigslist.

Source: Unsplash

2. Teaching English Online

In order to teach English online, you will likely need to be a native or very fluent speaker. Most often, companies will prefer teachers from the U.S. or Canada, but any native English speakers can apply. Some companies may require a TEFL certificate, but many do not!

How to get started: Check out the following companies that hire for flexible online English teachers. They will match you with students from around the world! VIPKID, Cambly, and Qkids are all great sites to get started on.

Source: Unsplash

3. Blogging/Writing

Writing is an amazing way to make some extra money as a college student. You already write for school, so why not put those skills to good use? Look for topics that you love, or topics you consider yourself an expert in, or try something brand new! It can be fun to teach yourself about a topic you know nothing about, so don’t knock a potential writing gig if you don’t have personal experience in the field. Try freelance proofreading as well, which involves editing others’ online articles and posts. Typically, proofreading or editing will pay a bit less, but will also take much less time per article. Great option for busy students!

How to get started: If you want to get paid to write, you will certainly need to provide writing samples. A great way to get started is to write your own blog, or offer to write a few pieces for a friend or peer’s site or blog. In addition, try to reach out to various small local companies to see if you can write an online article for them, either for free or for a small fee, just to get experience. Once you’ve got your writing samples, try looking for freelance writing gigs on sites such as Morning Coffee Newsletter or Blogging Pro.

Source: Unsplash

4. Data Entry

Data entry generally won’t make you a millionaire and it can be tedious, but the benefits are that it’s easy work, and there are lots of options! The position will usually involve looking at collected data and organizing it into a spreadsheet or other program. This industry is wrought with scams, so be careful and find legitimate data entry jobs on Indeed and FlexJobs.

How to get started: Online data entry positions rarely require experience, and usually you just need a fast typing speed and flexibility to get the job done quickly. You can find plenty of data entry jobs through online job sites, but as we mentioned, be wary of scams in this field.

Source: Unsplash

5. Freelance What You’re Good At

Freelancing something you have talent in can be very fun, and you’ll get to improve on what you know, while getting paid to do something you enjoy! Some ideas for freelancing to get you started could include: web design, graphic design, content writing, counseling/advice, photography, music writing, travel or sport consulting, or consulting in any area you may know a lot about!

How to get started: Figure out what you’re good at and what services you could provide others. Do some research on what prices are generally offered for your kind of work. Then make your own website on easy-to-use platforms such as Wix or Squarespace. Market yourself on freelance sites such as Upwork, Freelancer, or Fiverr. This is also a great time to benefit from networking! Use your connections to see who is out there looking for freelance work, and what type of freelance work. Check out these great networking tips.

Source: Unsplash

6. Translation

If you were lucky enough to be born with a knack for languages, or were raised speaking more than one language, put those skills to use with translation services. With the global economy and increased need for communication across countries, there is a high demand for many translation services, with the highest demands for global languages such as Spanish, French, Arabic, and Chinese. You may even be paid more for obscure languages.

8 best student jobs you probably haven’t considered

Working a part-time job while you’re at uni is a great way to boost your CV, meet new people and (most importantly) rake in some extra cash. And it looks like you agree with us – according to our National Student Money Survey, 66% of students work part-time.

But entering the competitive world of the part-time job hunt can be super daunting. Every student and their dog is looking for a way to supplement their Student Loan, which often barely covers rent.

So why not increase your chances of landing something great by looking where others don’t? Here are some part-time job ideas for students you probably haven’t considered yet!

The hardest part of working during term time is juggling shifts with your studies, and a lot of universities recommend you work no more than 15 hours per week. Check out our guide on how to balance a job and university.

8 best jobs for students

Working in PR is a perfect option if you’re an outgoing, enthusiastic and social person. A lot of brands are interested in hiring student ambassadors (or ‘Student Brand Managers’ as they’re also called) to promote them online.

What does a student brand ambassador do?

Often brands will ask you to post about them on your social media accounts to generate interest from your friends, or they’ll simply ask you to spread the word in exchange for a bit of commission.

Doing PR for clubs and student nights (where you get paid a small commission for every person you get into the club) is also a popular option for students, and this can be as easy as creating a Facebook event and inviting everyone in your halls, or flyering on campus.

Most companies will ask to see your social media profiles when you apply because PR is all about knowing people. If you can, it’s best to get working on your friends list and online following.

But beware – companies hiring student brand ambassadors will often promise freebies, prizes and sell the job as “valuable experience” instead of paying you an actual salary. Only get on board if the company is paying minimum wage. You wouldn’t wait tables for “the experience” now would you?

Resource:

https://www.indeed.com/career-advice/finding-a-job/best-jobs-for-college-students
https://www.uopeople.edu/blog/the-best-online-part-time-jobs-for-students/
https://www.savethestudent.org/student-jobs/top-10-student-jobs.html