Student Loans, Part 2: Why a Side Hustle May Be in Your Future

How to use the skills you have now to keep massive debt at bay

Photo by Toa Heftiba on Unsplash

If you’re reading this, I’d like to think it’s because you didn’t freak out and decide to run away and live on an abandoned island. For real, we hope the information we gave you last week was useful. As you can see, figuring out student loans can be a little tricky and confusing at first. But with the right information, you can make the best decisions about your loans and not let them become a burden for the next decade, or longer.

And now that you have an idea on what kind of loan suits you, you will need money to pay it back right? Getting a job may seem like the most reasonable thing to do, but as you can imagine, balancing college life and a job is not easy. During the first couple of years of college, you will be adapting to a new environment, new classes, etc. You can always get a part-time job, but in most cases, it will take time away from studying, and you’ll be too tired after work to go home and keep studying right?

That’s why a side hustle is a great choice! A side hustle is a means of making money alongside one’s main form of employment or income. As a student, having a side hustle will allow you to go to class, study, and also earn money, on your own time. With a little research and planning, we’re sure you will find something that fits your personality, current skills, and time that you have available for work. Of course, you won’t get rich doing this starting off, but it’s a good option to keep the money coming in and to keep your student debt from growing. Here are four great options for you to choose.

FIVERR

Fiverr is an online platform for selling and buying services. Fiverr is especially designed for freelancers and side-hustlers to provide services such as writing articles, translating, and graphic design. If you enjoy writing, this a really good place to start. It’s really easy to use. Once you sign in, you’re ready to customize your profile and create your own products. Fiverr is a really great option if you’re just starting because you can scale it however you see fit. For example, if you only want to focus on editing resumes, you can create a gig that is simply for that. People can book that one service and pay you once the project is complete. If you also want to write cover letters as well, you can create that as a separate gig. You set your own prices and deadlines, so you will be in charge of your own time.

Fiverr also provides in house tools such as client management software, time tracking, billing, tech support, any other services a freelancer will need. All of these services are provided for you free of charge. These tools make Fiverr an attractive option for someone, especially a college student, just starting out as a freelancer.

Also, with every completed assignment, you will earn a customer review. As you continue to work on Fiverr, you can continually build up your positive reviews and attract bigger and higher paying clients. This will allow you to pay off your student loans even faster than maybe you expected.

Overall, providing services on Fiverr is a really good way to start and grow a small business. With millions of users all over the world, Fiverr may be exactly what you are looking for. The site is very easy to use, and the staff is very helpful.

Become a VIRTUAL ASSISTANT

Yes, being a virtual assistant is a thing and it’s a very interesting side hustle. A virtual assistant is an independent contractor who provides administrative services to clients while operating outside of their offices. There are as many types of virtual assistants as there are businesses: some focus solely on accounting work, for example, while others focus on marketing. If you enjoy working from your computer, this is a great option. You can work for people all around the globe, in a variety of industries. If you are interested in becoming a virtual assistant, there are a couple websites you can check out such as Upwork, Fiverr, and Task Rabbit. Typically, people post their jobs or project, and freelancers submit proposals in which they describe their skills, how they meet the needs of the project, and their billing rate. At times these sites can be little more demanding since you will be working for someone else, but a plus is that you will be learning new skills along the way and using those new skills you’ve gained in college.

eBay

eBay has been around for a long time, and most of us are very familiar with using it to search for hard-to-find items that we want to purchase. However, have you considered selling your gently used clothing, accessories and technology there? This is a great option because you’re using the stuff you already have — you’re not purchasing anything! Also, the seller’s tools on eBay are similar to Fiverr in that they save you a lot of time. You can, quite literally, take a photo of your items on your phone, post them to eBay, ship it to the owner, and get paid for it without having to set up a website or figure out postage. This is a great option for young students (even in high school!) who are just getting started.

ETSY

If you’re into creating and crafting, Etsy might be an ideal side hustle for you. Etsy is a website for selling your own creations. With literally thousands of categories of products, it’s easy to find active buyers for your unique crafts. This will not only give you extra cash, but also, it’s a very nice reward to see people interested in your products.

BECOMING A TUTOR

If you like to teach and work with other people, becoming a tutor might be the best option for you. It’s not for everyone, but if you enjoy teaching, becoming a tutor will suit you the best. It will give you a break from your obligations, clear your mind and give you the opportunity to interact with other people with topics you probably loved to learn about. A positive side to this is that it you get a chance to teach subjects related to your career. This will give you the chance to gain even more knowledge and study for your own future career field while you make some money. With COVID-19 still placing restrictions on how people work together, there are plenty of ways that you can tutor online. Of course, you can set up your own Zoom or Microsoft Teams account, but there are many websites that will hire knowledgeable tutors. Websites to check out include Wyzant and Princeton Review.

As you see, there are many options to make extra money in your free time. But let’s be honest, if you’re in your 20s and just starting a career, student loans might not be on your priority list. At first, you may find yourself using your side hustle money to pay for textbooks and going out. And that’s fine! As we have learned, you won’t have to pay your loans until a couple of months after you graduate. We’re not telling you to blow all your money but know that side hustles will help you make some extra dollars and also teach you discipline and give you experience for your future career.

But, even if you’re reading this after you have graduated and started your career, side hustles are still a great option for you, too. Even with a salary, it’s not always easy to save and cover all your debt and expenses. These side hustles are ideal for young professionals with a job who are looking to increase their income. You can choose the one that suits you the best and do it on your own schedule. You can even save and use the money you get working online exclusively to pay off your student loan debt.

Next week, for our final post, we will learn how to set different and effective strategies to make a wise use of our money so you can cancel your student loans faster and easier. Stay tuned!