10 Unconventional Passive Income Sources for College Students in 2021

Often college students seek part-time jobs to support their day-to-day expenses and lessen their student loans burden.

As per the Georgetown University report, 70% of American college students work part-time while studying. But unfortunately, the more hours students work, the more their grades suffer and make it harder for them to graduate.

Therefore, it is important for students to find the right part-time job to make them financially independent without sacrificing their studies.

It might sound difficult to find a perfect part-time job suiting your busy college schedule, but it’s possible. Yep, college students, there are many passive part-time income sources available today that can help you earn good money without compromising your studies.

Below we have selected the best part-time jobs for college students that you can try today!

1. Sell your study material

If you take every note or create flashcards for quick learning, you can be a self-employed student. You can sell your impeccable study material to other students in your university or other universities to make a side income.

But won’t that be unethical? 

Well, there’s a fine line between unethical and ethical in this method. If you do someone’s class assignments in exchange for money, it is unethical. In contrast, we can’t call it unethical if you upload your old assignments on your website for a reference with a small subscription fee.

Though, you should check your college policy on plagiarism and students selling their study material before implementing this idea.

2. Teach other students

This one is the oldest and the most popular part-time job for college students. Teaching or tutoring other students allows students to earn money while helping them in their own studies. So, it’s a win-win situation.

However, this part-time job has a tiny issue – you have to be good with your studies. If you aren’t good at academics, you can’t teach other students. Also, you can only generate a couple of bucks weekly by tutoring, which won’t be sufficient for your daily expenses and college fees.

3. Become a driver

Today, if you have a car and a valid driving license, you can easily become a Lyft or Uber driver. These companies allow you to work according to your schedule. All you have to do is register with their app, and you are set to make some money.

The only problem here is that these apps deduct a percentage from your earnings as their fees. This is fair as they provide you with a proper infrastructure to find riders.

However, if you don’t want to share your income with anyone, you can simply rent out your car. You can rent out your car to tourists who are visiting your town for a few days or to your college friends. All in all, if you can find your own car renters, there’s no need to rely upon cab app companies.

4. Offer your elite companionship

Driving a cab or selling your study material won’t be sufficient if you have to pay your college fees while supporting your family. You need a part-time job that can offer you more money in fewer hours. And that job is escorting.

Don’t get shocked! The escort industry is a legitimate business model where many young girls and boys are working today. And most importantly, being an escort does not mean being a sex worker or prostitute. Escorts offer a variety of services that have nothing to do with being intimate such as companionship.

Some escorts simply accompany clients to corporate events, parties or just talk to them. Today, you won’t realize how many people are ready to spend a lot of money just to have a good-looking companion by their side at a business function or someone to talk to when they’re lonely.

Additionally, anyone can become an escort today. Simply create your profile on the UK escorts directory, specify your services, upload your pictures, and you are set.

The best thing about this part-time job is you will get cash on the spot. The moment you go on a date with a client, he or she will hand over the money to you. So, whenever you need instant money, simply go on a date with someone as an escort.

5. Rent out your bedroom or home

College students often live in shared accommodation as they can share rent this way. So, if you have a spare room in your apartment or house, you can rent it out to someone else to make some extra bucks.

To find a housemate, you can share information on your college bulletin board or post on Facebook. Nowadays, many online websites and apps are also available to find suitable renters.

If you don’t want someone living with you all the time, you can hire occasional renters. How?

Using Airbnb, you can rent out your bedroom or the entire house for a weekend or a couple of days. This way, you don’t have to stick with a renter until a lease is over.

Suppose you are visiting your parents for the weekend; instead of leaving your house empty, rent it out on Airbnb. This way, while you chill at your parent’s place, your house is making you money.

6. Sell your stuff online

If you have a huge pile of old stuff laying around your house, you have some money there too. You can sell your old stuff online on Craigslist or eBay and make some extra money. Especially if you have old smartphones or laptops, selling them can help you earn good dough.

But unfortunately, this method will generate income once, not constantly. You can create some stuff and sell it online for regular income.

For example, if you are good at photography, you can sell your photos on stock image websites. Similarly, if you create DIY art pieces from waste material, you can sell them on eBay at a good rate.

7. Launch yourself as a social media influencer

If social media is a constant part of your life and you have thousands of followers on your social media accounts, there you also have money-making opportunities.

Today, many brands and marketers are looking forward to tying up with social media influencers to promote their products at a significant cost. For instance, if you have a makeup tutorial YouTube channel, you can contact beauty and cosmetic brands to promote their products on your channel in exchange for a small fee.

Social media influencers can not only make money from paid sponsorships, but they can also sell premium products to their followers. Suppose you teach math online; you can only host special live seasons for premium users or provide additional services to paid members.

However, you can’t become a social media influencer overnight. To establish your brand identity, you have to constantly share valuable content and interact with your followers on social networking platforms. Overall, it’s a long process with an unstable revenue generation system.

8. Publish an ebook or audiobook

Suppose you are gifted with the talent of writing. In that case, you can use KDP, CreateSpace, or similar platforms to publish your ebook. Both these platforms are affiliated with Amazon. You can simply write an ebook and sell on Amazon without spending a dime on publication.

Similarly, the audiobook format also allows you to generate some passive income. What you need to do is convert your already written ebook to audio format and upload it on one of the platforms designed for that (for example, Audible and iTunes).

You simply have to promote your book and survive your college life on royalty coming from your book’s sales.

9. Try your luck in forex trading

Are you studying finance in college? Then, you can use your financial lessons and dip into forex trading. Forex trading, aka FX, is the trading of one currency for another.

For example, you can swap the dollars for euros or vice versa. All these transactions take place in the foreign exchange market, so it is a fully legit money-making method.

However, you need immediate knowledge of the global currency market and some funds for the initial investment in forex trading. Plus, it’s a lot like stock trading, so one wrong move and you might end up losing your own money.

10. Become a private chef

Can you cook different cuisines? You can become a private chef and prepare delicious meals for other people. You can work with families or elders who need help with cooking and pay your tuition fees.

To offer private chef services, you have to promote your services on social media or can even create your own website. You can list your services on third-party sites like HireAChef.

Parting Remarks

College is perhaps the best, most fun time in one’s life. You make new friends, learn new things, and party like crazy.

But in all this, don’t forget, you have a big student loan to pay. If you don’t take your finances seriously now, you will be stuck with a huge debt after graduation.

Looking for passive income sources to support yourself during your studies is a smart way to go. Just make sure to select part-time work that won’t impact your grades in any way.