When the elusive paid internship appears out of reach and completely unattainable, it may be time to consider adding on a part-time job to your already hectic schedule. It’s well known that college kids notoriously don’t have a lot of money or a lot of time. It sometimes feels absolutely impossible to juggle everything that we have going on, what with going to school, studying, paying rent and everything else.
So what exactly are the best jobs perfect for busy college students? Consider these following jobs to give you an idea of hours, time and pay and then decide for yourself exactly which is the best option for you.
Waitressing/Bartending:
Waitressing and/or bartending can be a great job in terms of scheduling and pay. At most restaurants you can have set days and hours when you are available to work. You can also set days when you are unavailable to work. Furthermore, typical dinner hours are usually great for the college student trying to maintain their morning and early afternoon classes.
The drawback here? Exhausting hours. Expect to get out late, especially as a bartender. Working in a restaurant or bar can also be stressful at times when it’s busy and you do end up spending a lot of time on your feet, but the pay is great.
Disregard the MA minimum wage of $2.63 an hour for these jobs. You’ll be making 15-20% of the bills in tips in addition to your wage, which on a busy weekend night can lead to upwards of a few hundred bucks.
Difficulty: 4/5
Pay: 5/5
Convenience of hours: 3/5
Babysitting:
Or what I like to refer to as: freelance childcare. Babysitting is an easy way to make some extra cash and, depending on the behavioral patterns of the children, it can actually be a lot of fun. There are essentially no set hours when it comes to this job since your employer will usually call you and let you know when you are needed.
However, because there is no set schedule it’s not the most dependable source of income since it is possible to sometimes go weeks at a time without any hours. Average pay for a babysitter usually starts at around 10 dollars and peaks at around 18. Another pro? The possibility of being paid in cash.
Difficulty: 2/5
Pay: 3/5
Convenience of hours: 4/5
Work Study:
Landing this job depends on if you qualify or not, but if you do, the Umass Boston website boasts awarding “$2 million to our students every year” from the federal work-study program. This may seem like a lot but in actuality students are getting paid slightly over minimum wage and there are usually limits on how much a student can make throughout the semester or year.
Another restriction is that federal regulations order that everything earned through the program be spent on “educational purposes” only — not exactly money in your pocket but hey it helps with tuition. Federal work study is need based but if you do end up qualifying some of the perks include the possibility of studying while being paid to work, hours convenient to your class schedule, and virtually no commute to work since it is an on campus job!
Difficulty: 1/5
Pay: 2/5
Convenience of hours: 5/5
Retail:
Working in retail provides exciting opportunities… for in-store employee discounts that is! However if you are looking to make a lot of money with only a limited time to work, don’t look here. The national hourly rate for retail sales associates ranges from $7.40 to $12.67 an hour, according to payscale.com. Your hours are usually scheduled for you so expect to work nights and weekends since those are their busiest times.
This type of schedule is manageable with morning and early afternoon classes but the work can be wearing and repetitive. There are, however, usually opportunities for raise and promotions. Customers can be difficult, as well, so expect to make less than you probably deserve.
Difficulty: 3/5
Pay: 2/5
Convenience of hours: 3/5
Tutoring:
If you think you have the brains tutoring is an excellent way to mold your mind and talents into money. Private tutors’ pay usually depends on their experience but the average hourly rate is around $25 an hour.
Tutoring is a great part-time job as a college student especially since it lets you create your own hours as they are convenient to you. Some drawbacks can be lack of hours depending on demand and the possibility of tutoring a child who just doesn’t care can end up being quite draining.
Difficulty: 2/5
Pay: 5/5
Convenience of hours: 5/5