Saving money as a student can be a challenge. If you have a tight budget, you may need to turn down invitations to fun events and carefully watch all your expenses, including food. Some students increase their spending money by finding a part-time job, but this can be hard to fit around classes and other commitments. A great alternative is to earn an income by finding gig work or starting your own side hustle. You’ll be able to work whenever you want and will hopefully earn enough extra cash to feel financially secure.
1. House Sitting
There’s always a need for house sitters, especially during weekends and holidays. You’re particularly well-suited to house sitting if you already have experience taking care of pets. A gig could involve staying in the house or just coming over a couple times a day to feed and walk the animals. To find work, you’ll need to advertise your services, which could be as simple as offering to help when someone mentions a weekend trip and expresses concerns about leaving a pet behind.
2. Blogging
It’s likely there’s one niche topic you know more about than almost anyone else. You can share your unique knowledge or insights by setting up a blog. You’re most likely to be successful if you pick a topic no one else is covering (or at least not covering well) but that other people do find interesting. To get started, use a template on a free website builder and pay for a catchy domain name.
For the best results, aim to write a blog post or shoot a short video twice a week. To gain more visibility, share the content to social media and use some basic search engine optimization techniques. Once you have a decent number of followers viewing your content regularly, research ways to monetize.
3. Rent Your Car
If you live close to campus and have few commitments that require you to go farther afield, you may only need your car to return home at the end of each semester. Instead of leaving your vehicle sitting in the parking lot for the rest of the time, rent it. You can find services online that will help you rent your car safely.
4. Tutoring
A classic gig for university students is tutoring. You could offer to help others with a class you’ve already passed, provide homework help for kids at a local school, or even teach English to kids online — tutoring in another country can be particularly convenient due to the time difference.
5. Sell Crafts on Etsy
Turn your hobby into a side hustle by setting up an Etsy store. It’s likely that whatever you make has a market — from jewelry and clothing to photographs and gift tags. This is a great way to turn what you enjoy most into an income and perhaps explore more creative outlets.
As well as earning more money, it makes sense to cut expenses. A simple way to do this is to search for more less expensive housing. You can find affordable Kingston student housing rentals at Foundry Princess. Choose between apartments with two, three, four, and five bedrooms — all our suites are spacious, feature a full kitchen, and have their own laundry facilities. You’ll also have access to great onsite amenities, including an outdoor swimming pool. Take a virtual tour to check out the apartments and community spaces for yourself.
