15 Jobs for Making Money While in College

Sometimes we arrive at college not realizing the skills we’ve got that are marketable.  For example, if you’ve been a videogame wizard in high school you probably know something about how PCs are put together. These are a few more ideas if you are a college student looking to make some money on the side…

Top 15 Jobs for Part Time Cash While in College

1. Some big electronics retailers like Best Buy and Staples still operate computer repair centers – and many of them have part time employees for budgetary reasons.  That’s a skill position that should draw a decent hourly wage.
2. Radio Shack and other electronic retailers need sales personnel that know what those widgets do.  A lot of college age kids can identify half the stuff on the walls before the job interview. Managers in these stores put a premium on new employees that don’t require a lot of training.
3. About one out of four bank tellers work part time.  Many banks want tellers with experience.  But if you have a decent command of another language besides English, banks are a good place to look for work.
4. City recreation departments also rely on part time employees for planned recreational activities and facility monitoring.  If your college is in a temperate climate zone, these jobs are usually available year round.
5. If you’re athletic, spent time in the gym and particularly if you’re female teaching aerobics at a fitness center is a great job that takes a few hours out of the day a few days per week.  Those schedules are always changing, usually due to instructor concerns.
6. Public high schools hire tutors.  This job isn’t for everybody – it takes patience and personality.  But the pay scale can be decent, particularly for math tutors.  You can find private tutoring opportunities as well if you keep an eye on local want ads.
7. Waiting tables in a decent restaurant can be a very lucrative job on a part time basis.  Find a restaurant that does most of its business during the dinner hour and the shift shouldn’t be longer than five or six hours.
8. For flexibility, check the on-campus work-study opportunities.  The library usually has student staffers – as do public libraries, for that matter. You may have to start by working in the stacks, but eventually you’ll work your way to the help desk.  If you have any sort of construction experience, the maintenance departments may have some part time needs with decent pay.
9. Professors and doctoral candidates are often looking for research assistants.  You’ll have to know the turf though – and often these jobs go to graduate students.
10. The right extended care facility may provide a good part time job opportunity.  There are jobs in nursing facilities for unlicensed personnel – and while the pay may not be great, the studying opportunities between job tasks may sweeten the pot. County or city operated facilities may have more reasonable pay scales.
11. Some elementary schools accept teaching assistants who have no formal training.  There are also pre-schools and day care facilities where assistants can work without formal training.  These jobs can quickly become full time however, above the kindergarten level.
12. The U.S. Postal Service now has a “casual (temporary)” job classification for seasonal work and for jobs during other high-volume activity, some of which are part time.  Start with the USPS website and expect to devote some time to the process.  Stay away from so-called “placement” services that claim to have access to government jobs.
13. You might consider places like grocery stores and department stores to see if they have any weekend jobs.  Those might be eight hour shifts, but limited to perhaps three days a week – two of which are non-class days.
14. If you’ve got a car and the initiative, consider providing day care support or child care support to a couple of working parents.  If you’re mobile and can pick up children from school, etc. your time should be of substantial value.
15. Are you a morning person?  Most of the coffee specialty houses, from Starbucks on down, have a morning rush hour.  If that works with your class schedule, it’s a relatively painless four hours a day.

What other money making ideas do you have for college students?