5 ways to earn money at university

The majority of full-time students have a student loan and a bank account with a generous overdraft to get them through their uni days, alongside a little help from the ‘bank of mum and dad’. However, it can be tricky to live on just this and, of course, you’ll have to pay that loan and overdraft back once you start working full-time. If you often find yourself trying to decide between a week of half-decent evening meals or one night out with your mates, you might find it useful to take a look at the suggestions below. After all, university isn’t as much fun when you’re not striking that uni work/life balance. Make sure you can still have some fun by trying one of these flexible money-making ideas.

Find a part-time job

There are usually many part-time jobs on offer in student towns and cities, especially in the run up to Christmas and, in seaside or tourist towns, in summer too. Go out with your CV and drop it in at pubs, bars, restaurants, cafés, offices and shops. Do bear in mind though that you will have to pay Income Tax if you earn more than your Personal Allowance, which is currently set at £958 per month for students. National Insurance also kicks in once you’re earning over £157 a week, too. This isn’t a problem, of course, it just means that you won’t get to keep everything you earn.

Become a tutor

Why not put what you have learnt so far in your studies into practice and offer a tutoring service to others? You can charge between £20 to £35 per hour to assist people with their learning so, depending on how many students you take on, you could earn a fair amount of money! So, how do you find students? You could advertise in your local area or join a tutoring website that matches you with potential clients, such as Tutorful. Students are looking for tutors in a wide range of subjects, so even if you are an expert in a specialist subject, there will be someone out there who wants to learn more about it.

Become a YouTuber

Who doesn’t love YouTube?! Unfortunately, the figures surrounding how much you can earn on YouTube are very mysterious, but the current approximation is £1 for every 1,000 views when you switch ads on for your videos. So, what should you make videos about? Whatever your passion is. Love make-up? Then try make-up tutorials or product reviews. Adore cooking or fitness? Then you know what to do! Start off with a basic setup (cheap lighting and an affordable camera) and then invest in upgrades if it starts taking off. If you just want to give it a go, your camera phone might be OK as long as the lighting is ample.

Become a film extra

Have you always wanted to be on the big screen? This could be your chance! Sign up online to an extras website such as Universal Extras and you could be paid between £60 and £80 per job — simply for turning up on the day and lurking in the background of a scene for TV or a movie! Do bear in mind though that you might be there all day, waiting for your scene to be shot.

Become a mystery shopper

Getting paid to shop or dine out may sound too good to be true, but it’s a very real job! You won’t earn loads, but you’ll generally be refunded for whatever you spent at the shop or restaurant you are reviewing, plus a little extra for your time. After you have done your mystery shopping you just need to submit a report back to your employer, and you’re done. Try signing up with a company like Market Force.

Want to know about more part-time jobs you could get? Read our blog post, Five part-time jobs you’ll enjoy at university.