As any student can tell you, a student loan doesn’t go far. Especially when there’s essentials such as rent, text books, Pot Noodles and Jägerbombs to pay for.
So, how to make money as a student?
There are the obvious ways, of course, such as getting a part-time job in a restaurant, bar or signing up for shifts as a food delivery driver.
Although these are all perfectly good ways to earn money, restaurant, bar work and food delivery shifts can not only be draining but also difficult to juggle with your studies. For example, if you’re asked to work a night shift the day before an early seminar or you’ve got an assignment due in the next day, you can feel as if you’re being pulled in too many directions.
With that in mind, wouldn’t it be nice if you could make money as a student without leaving your student accommodation’s comfy bed or sofa?
Well, you can!
Read on to find out ways to supplement your student loan and earn yourself a bit of extra cash without leaving the house.
Online surveys
You won’t get rich by filling out online surveys but they’re an easy way to make a bit of money in your spare time.
Google for online surveys and you’ll find lots of opportunities where you can earn around £4 for a few minutes’ work filling in some forms.
Competitions
There are thousands of people all over the UK entering hundreds of competitions a day. These people call themselves ‘compers’ and professional compers actually make a living from it.
You’ll need dedication to reach that level of comping but there’s nothing to stop you entering a few competitions a day and, if you do get lucky and win cash, hooray! If you win something else and you have no need for it, you can always sell it on.
Competition listing websites such as Loquax are a good place to start.
Transcription
If you’re a fast, accurate typist, then part-time transcription work is the perfect student side hustle.
To find transcription work, you can sign up at websites such as www.rev.com where, after passing a test, you can pick up work whenever you like but, be warned, the rates of pay are low.
If you want to set your own rates (and good transcribers can charge £1+ per audio minute), try approaching YouTubers or podcasters who often look for people who can transcribe their podcasts and videos for them.
Proofreading
If your spelling, punctuation and grammar is spot-on, offer your services as a proofreader to your fellow students. We’re not suggesting for one moment you write their essays for them, but casting an eye over their work to make sure there’s no glaring errors is perfectly within the rules and won’t get anyone into trouble.
Who knows – if they get a better mark than they were expecting, maybe they’ll pay you a bonus!
Sell your old coursebooks
Unless you want to keep your previous year’s coursebooks for sentimental reasons, there’s no reason to hang on to them.
Either offer your old coursebooks for sale to the students in the year below you or sell them on Amazon or eBay and make some of your money back.
Make money without leaving the house
We know living on a student loan is difficult and going out to work at a part-time job can be tiring and stressful (and, with winter approaching, cold too).
As you’ll see from the above though, there are ways to make money as a student without leaving your house.