Posts published on December 12, 2018

5 Ways to Earn Money Online while at College

BY MELISSA BURNS

Ask almost any student what makes him most anxious and unsure about the future, and nine times out of ten the answer would be “student debt.” The reasons are obvious – tuition costs keep growing while getting a higher education is no longer a surefire guarantee of landing a good job after graduation. As a result, many graduates find themselves neck-deep in debt and with no prospects of employment. If this is what you fear, you should start taking measures early on, while you are still at college – you still have time to improve your financial position and chip away at the debt. In this article, we will cover some ways you can legally earn money online without it affecting your studies too much.

1.    Take online surveys

This method is one of the most accessible because it doesn’t require any special skills. Just sign up with one of many websites dealing with these things and start taking surveys. Each survey you successfully complete will earn you points that you can later exchange for money. The good thing about it is that you can do a little bit of work whenever you feel like it or have some time to kill, without any need for preparation. The bad thing is that some surveys may be pretty time-consuming. Also, try to stick to well-reputed websites that are known to pay regularly.

2.    An eBay or Etsy store

Starting your own online store via websites like eBay or Etsy is not only one of the easiest but also one of the most profitable ways to make money on the side – at least if you take it seriously and apply a little bit of ingenuity and effort. One approach is to resell vintage or slightly used items found in thrift shops and garage sales – however, it requires the ability to recognize genuine vintage items and an eye for the things that will sell good. If you are good at making things with your own hands you may try to sell what you make via Etsy – just visit this website and take a look at the stuff people successfully sell, and you will get an idea if you can do the same.

3.    Get paid for using Google

This won’t bring you much, but on the flipside, it doesn’t require you to do anything you don’t already normally do. Sign up with Qmee, install a particular plugin for your browser, and from that moment on you will be rewarded for simply running searches in Google, Yahoo, and Bing. Every time you run a search, you may see a few sponsored results alongside normal ones – simply click them and start collecting your rewards.

4.    Get paid for testing websites

This one may take a little bit of your time, but it is an excellent way to put small periods of free time you inevitably keep getting to good use. Sign up with a service like UserTesting and start reviewing websites assigned to you. Each review won’t take you longer than 20 minutes and pay about $10. It is fast, it is easy, and who knows, perhaps you will stumble upon some really interesting websites.

5.    Get paid for doing stuff online

There is a plethora of services offering you to get paid for doing all kinds of stuff online – watching videos, surfing, visiting websites and so on. The most popular and well-reputed of them are probably SwagBucks and Toluna – try them out if you want guaranteed results.

Most of these methods are something you can do in your free time – they are not much individually, but together they can help you steadily get the much-needed cash.

Melissa Burns graduated from the faculty of Journalism of Iowa State University. Nowadays she is an entrepreneur and independent journalist. Follow her @melissaaburns or contact at burns.melissaa@gmail.com