3 Easy Ways Cash Strapped Students Can Boost Their Finances

When you’re at university, though you may need the money, if you want to keep on top of your studies and actually attend your classes, taking on a full time job is not really an option. On top of this, with the economy as it is, even part time work can be hard to come by.

However, there are a number of less obvious ways that students can get their hands on some extra cash without the need for formal employment. Here are just three methods of giving your bank balance a little boost that won’t take up too much of your time.

Receive Junk Mail

Photo Source: Night-thing

Whenever you take a pile of junk mail you’ve just received and dump it all in the trash, unopened and unread, you probably wonder to yourself why companies even bother sending the stuff out. Well, as is always the case in businesses, the answer is that they smell the potential for profit.

Likewise, companies that get hold of your details can profit by selling them on to those who’re looking to send you promotional materials. So, why not take a cut of the action yourself? There are now companies online who’ll allow you to set up an account with them, take the contact details you give them, and pass you a share of the money every time they’re sold on.

Rent Your Car

Photosource: DennisSylvesterHurd

If you own a car, it may be time to try and release some the value lying dormant in your asset. One great way to do this is to rent it out. Obviously, this isn’t a risk free operation, but many online services have recently been set up that can make it a lot safer, and many even offer insurance which covers your vehicle whenever it’s being used by one of their members. Using such a service, also takes the hassle out of looking for somebody to rent your vehicle to in the first place.

Alternatively you can rent out your car as advertising space. You can contact local businesses to see what they’ll pay you to have their logo displayed on the side of your ride. If this sounds too time consuming, you can use an agency to get a gig, but that’ll eat into your profits. For help on car insurance: www.carinsurance.org.uk

Sell Your Opinion

Photosource: TheKarenD

Knowing what the public wants is vital to any business, and many top companies spend huge amounts on market research in order to find out. If you know how, you could end up with some of their outlay in your hands.

Probably the easiest way of doing this is to sign up to one of the many online market research agencies who will send you consumer surveys and pay you for filling them out. The pay per a survey isn’t astronomical, but it can give a regular source of very easy money.

Will Kerr writes on all sorts of topics relating to student life, from financial concerns to study tips.