Today’s college graduates struggle to find a job. Many leave their alma mater with massive debts. So, when recent learners start working, they can’t use their salary to the most.
To paint a more pleasant picture, a number of college students choose to launch their startups while still in school. It helps young people raise funds for educational needs. That’s also a practical business experience to add to a professional resume. And if they are lucky enough, they become their own bosses! In this article, we’re going to share ten great startup ideas and give examples of real-life businesses started by students to prove their validity.
1 Do tutoring
Entrepreneur students know that knowledge sells. Accessible Tutors is an after-school tutoring service started by a high school student Owen Kaplan. Outcome Tutoring for university learners was launched in 2016 by two college students, Alejandro Ernst and Kevin Fleishman.
Share your knowledge of a particular subject with those lagging behind. You can also set up a Skype language course for learners all over the world.
2 Launch a food startup
It’s quite a widespread business idea among students. Bear-y Sweet Shoppe, Health by Chocolate Bakery, Zoni Foods, Chops Snacks, Byte Foods, the list can go on and on. So, if you’re a passionate cooker, your homemade smoothies or sandwiches may bring you some money. Try to find local companies ready to order your foods. There’s always a chance that your food-oriented business will grow and you’ll be an owner of your own company.
3 Develop an app
We couldn’t but include this idea our list. An app developer is one of the hottest and most lucrative freelance jobs. The millennials are ahead of all in this field. Facebook, WhatsApp, Messenger, Instagram, and Snapchat are the most downloaded apps of all times. College students developed such popular apps like Pulse News, HBCU Buddy, Rover, Power Planner, Clever Miles and MadPad. So, if you’re majoring in computer science or engineering, think of creating an app.
4 Launch an essay writing service
Students face all sorts of challenges when it comes to writing assignments. They experience a writer’s block, procrastinate, or don’t know how to do it properly. Exchange students lack the knowledge of English.
If you have no troubles with completing your academic papers, why not earn money by doing that for others? The students who started Essay Service had come to that decision. Now this successful essay writing company crafts hundreds of papers every month.
5 Start a blog
For a student who doesn’t have time for other complex projects other than writing your thesis, blogging is a good choice. Revenue comes from affiliate marketing programs which are interested in advertising their products or services to a wide audience. So, you’ll need to gain a lot of readers. Be ready to provide consistent, original content and use social media to create traffic. Do you know that Mashable was started in 2005 by Pete Cashmore when he was 19? Today, its value estimates $11,5 million.
6 Start a vlog
Carli Bybel is one of the most popular beauty bloggers on YouTube. She was studying at high school when she decided to earn some cash with hairstyle and makeup tutorials. Now she has 5,6 million subscribers. Every vlogger who has many followers can earn money from YouTube videos by hosting ads for payment. Unusual topics (surviving a week on a $50 budget), reviews to popular topics (films, games, music) or the subject that fascinates you.
7 Become a photographer
If you love taking photos, hone your skills and start making money on it. Picfair is a nice marketplace for a beginner. It lets photographers set their own prices. You can turn your photos into amazing custom posters with the help of Truprint and sell them to students who want to improve their dorm rooms’ interior. Find out whether your college needs a new brochure featuring pictures of the campus or take photos of a campus event to cover it in the newspaper.
Johannes Hulsch is a student based in Leipzig, Germany. He is also a successful landscape and travel photographer. Google his works to get some inspiration.
8 Become a personal trainer
Late night snacking and fattening dorm meals end up in gaining weight. Students often search for the ways to lose extra pounds. If you’re into sports and healthy lifestyle, consider launching a personal training business.
It can be morning yoga classes on campus or creating eating plans for your peers. With the increasing popularity of online training sessions, you can get more off-campus clients. Get inspired by Fitness Cubed that was founded by three classmates of The University of Chicago.
9 Provide transportation and delivery services
If you own a car and live in a place where transportation system is poor, you can provide travel services to people of your community. Consider using Uber. The company describes its drivers as independent partners. In this sense, becoming an Uber driver makes you a small business owner.
The idea of FedEx came to its founder, Frederick W. Smith, in the process of research paper writing. So, don’t be so skeptical about homework essays.
10 Organize guided tours
If you’re a history student, you must be interested in the origin of your city and the story of its development. You can start working as a tour guide and telling tourists all the remarkable things about your living place. If you enjoy this experience, you might try to launch your own tours. That’s what Columbia University graduate students Ed O’Donnell and Seth Kamil did. They founded Big Onion Walking Tours. To practice organizing tours or to start with something not so challenging, try to organize student event trips (to other cities or festivals).
Whatever type of business you decide to start, it won’t become successful overnight. It does require time, hard work, and perseverance. If you’re just a beginner, you’ll have to fight for every single client. Remember, the harder you try, the better results you’ll get.
About the Author: Michelle Brooks is the independent writer and blog editor at the educational resource. Her expertise includes career, self-development, and education.
