Author Topic: Summer work ideas for college student?  (Read 5879 times)

cosmie

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Summer work ideas for college student?
« on: February 09, 2013, 10:35:24 PM »
I'm a college Junior currently doing a 6-month co-op/internship that ends mid June. I don't go back to school until the end of August. I've successfully gotten two internship offers for the summer, but neither of which were willing to work on the dates (most are 10-12 weeks and start mid-May).

As such,I've started looking at alternatives for the summer. Do you guys have any recommendations on how to spend the rest of the summer, preferably that could pay my bills? I'll have a job once the semester starts back up, but I'd prefer spending the summer exploring another field vs. delivering pizzas (my fallback).


Kriegsspiel

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Re: Summer work ideas for college student?
« Reply #1 on: February 09, 2013, 10:44:28 PM »
Do you live near a farm?  I have great memories of baling hay, fixing fences, and riding ATVs on a farm. Castrating bulls wasn't as fun, but I think you can opt out of that.

JT

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Re: Summer work ideas for college student?
« Reply #2 on: February 09, 2013, 10:54:41 PM »
Hi Cosmie

If you're technically brilliant, you could create an app.

There's always babysitting - I'm not sure what it pays in the States but here in NZ you can get a decent hourly rate

You could offer to feed cats or walk dogs

Mow lawns

Wash cars

If you have a talent, teach that talent to others

Become a bicycle courier

Form a walking group and ask for contributions to join

Create fitness programs for people

Create a sauce or chutney to sell to a local cafe

Organise a music festival

Follow a builder around to learn about building houses (free education)

Read financial books (free education)

Restore furniture and then sell it

Create a book for Amazon

Check out craigslist in case there's any summer jobs you could do there

Think about your strengths, is there anything that you could sell?

Grow plants for sale

Find a water spring and bottle the water for sale

Organise a quiz night with funds going towards a charity (but take a cut - this would be a lot of work for not much though!)

Clean house windows

Clean ovens


I hope you find something!  Good luck!


NestingFish

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Re: Summer work ideas for college student?
« Reply #3 on: February 10, 2013, 09:53:24 AM »
Are there any tourist attractions near where you live? I worked at one for several summers during university. They hired a lot of university kids, so it was a blast, and they were very accommodating with our schedules as they lined up with their busy season.

amyable

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Re: Summer work ideas for college student?
« Reply #4 on: February 10, 2013, 10:08:49 AM »
I'll have a job once the semester starts back up, but I'd prefer spending the summer exploring another field vs. delivering pizzas (my fallback).

If you're interested in exploring another field while making some money, it really depends on the fields you are interested in.

cosmie

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Re: Summer work ideas for college student?
« Reply #5 on: February 10, 2013, 10:41:39 AM »
Some great responses gals/guys!

Do you live near a farm?  I have great memories of baling hay, fixing fences, and riding ATVs on a farm. Castrating bulls wasn't as fun, but I think you can opt out of that.
This is actually one I'm looking into. My school is in Tennessee, so if I go back there after this internship (which is in the greater NYC area), then that's definitely a possibility.

Hi Cosmie

<list of great ideas>


I hope you find something!  Good luck!
Thanks for the ideas JT! A portion of them aren't quite transferable to the part of the States that I live in, but some of them are definitely viable ideas!

Are there any tourist attractions near where you live? I worked at one for several summers during university. They hired a lot of university kids, so it was a blast, and they were very accommodating with our schedules as they lined up with their busy season.
Hm, I didn't think about that. Not necessarily close, but Gatlinburg is a big tourist destination and is only about a ~45 minute drive.

If you're interested in exploring another field while making some money, it really depends on the fields you are interested in.
A very valid point! I'm interested in them all, which is why I didn't specify that originally. My skillset is most amenable to continuous and strategic improvement roles, applicable to most fields. My experience to date:
  • Currently doing a role in supply chain for a consumer goods company, driving the integration of a new methodology of supply planning.  As well, facilitating compliance with a new software rollout that was met with reluctance; mostly stemming from a misunderstanding of it's purpose.
  • Previously, did a stint in marketing, redeveloping a generic digital marketing strategy to be effective in the particular vertical it was meant for.
  • Before that, worked in a university department performing root cause analysis for low student interest in the degree offered, which again stemmed from a misunderstanding of what the degree was and wasn't, and how it was being perceived both internally and externally.
  • Before that, worked in a grant-funded IT department, assisting with aligning our clients' expectations with our capabilities.

The two internships I was offered that didn't fit within my availability involved working on the business side of healthcare IT, which would be interesting to me.  I'm not sure which other fields to look into, though. Any suggestions?

Tami1982

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Re: Summer work ideas for college student?
« Reply #6 on: February 10, 2013, 10:54:48 AM »
I used to make a good deal of money working for OfficeTeam - a temp agency for reception/secretary.  One summer I did a project for Ernst and Young at Milguard windows.  Super flexible with the hours, generous breaks/lunches, and pay was good as well.  Was nice too when I worked other summers and was able to go to several different jobs - nice to have changes of pace.

AnonymousCoward

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Re: Summer work ideas for college student?
« Reply #7 on: February 10, 2013, 11:55:55 AM »
Have you asked your current employer to keep you on for another couple of months? That seems simplest.

If your co-op employer is like mine they'd love to have a cheap, already trained employee on hand. If continuing employment doesn't meet the terms of your school's co-op/internship program just don't report it to them.

first post! hello fellow college students =D

MooreBonds

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Re: Summer work ideas for college student?
« Reply #8 on: February 10, 2013, 12:26:55 PM »
I'm a college Junior currently doing a 6-month co-op/internship that ends mid June. I don't go back to school until the end of August. I've successfully gotten two internship offers for the summer, but neither of which were willing to work on the dates (most are 10-12 weeks and start mid-May).

As such,I've started looking at alternatives for the summer. Do you guys have any recommendations on how to spend the rest of the summer, preferably that could pay my bills? I'll have a job once the semester starts back up, but I'd prefer spending the summer exploring another field vs. delivering pizzas (my fallback).

Don't underestimate the value of an internship in the area you want to get a job once you graduate - even if it's unpaid!

Sure, it's not a long stretch of time, but it not only gets your feet wet to see what one possible job might be like in your field, but also pads your resume and makes you  stand out even more against your peers, many of whom just partied it up over the summer, maybe with a minimum wage job just for spending cash, rather than true experience in your industry.

Those few weeks of (even unpaid) internship could result in several thousand dollars higher starting salary - and if you can bump up that initial starting salary once you graduate, that effects all future salary negotiations for the next 10/20/30 years!

cosmie

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Re: Summer work ideas for college student?
« Reply #9 on: February 10, 2013, 01:27:02 PM »
I used to make a good deal of money working for OfficeTeam - a temp agency for reception/secretary.  One summer I did a project for Ernst and Young at Milguard windows.  Super flexible with the hours, generous breaks/lunches, and pay was good as well.  Was nice too when I worked other summers and was able to go to several different jobs - nice to have changes of pace.

That's definitely an idea! I actually *almost* had a position in Ernst & Young's advisory services, until they realized I was looking for an internship instead of a full time offer. :(

Have you asked your current employer to keep you on for another couple of months? That seems simplest.

If your co-op employer is like mine they'd love to have a cheap, already trained employee on hand. If continuing employment doesn't meet the terms of your school's co-op/internship program just don't report it to them.
There are only a few hiccups with that, mostly in regards to housing. The room I'm renting now is already spoken for by someone in the Fall co-op line up, so I'd have to find alternate housing for ~2 months. Not impossible, but in the NYC/New Jersey area, it'll definitely have a massive premium attached to it.

My only other concern is that this is the largest possibility for employment after graduation (they extend offers to ~70% of co-ops from each cohort), and I'd like to sample another company and/or industry to make a more informed decision.

Quote
first post! hello fellow college students =D
Welcome! :D
There's a good few of us here, and even a good portion of high school students. It's very convenient taking advantage of all of the mistakes wisdom of the older people here, since their life outlooks align well with my own, so they're great to bounce ideas off of.

Don't underestimate the value of an internship in the area you want to get a job once you graduate - even if it's unpaid!

Sure, it's not a long stretch of time, but it not only gets your feet wet to see what one possible job might be like in your field, but also pads your resume and makes you  stand out even more against your peers, many of whom just partied it up over the summer, maybe with a minimum wage job just for spending cash, rather than true experience in your industry.

Those few weeks of (even unpaid) internship could result in several thousand dollars higher starting salary - and if you can bump up that initial starting salary once you graduate, that effects all future salary negotiations for the next 10/20/30 years!
I understand completely! My previous experience allowed me to negotiate an effective pre-tax wage of roughly $28/hr for this co-op, vs. the effective rate of ~$20/hr they originally offered (effective meaning a combined rate inclusive of my hourly wage and monthly housing allowance).

It also (possibly) allows you to sample another geographic area, allowing a more informed decision when considering an offer. A Colorado internship would be awesome! :D

This is why I originally tried for another internship, but the end of my current one in mid-June doesn't allow for the usual time frame for other companies', which so far seem unwilling to be flexible in that regard. :-/

 

Wow, a phone plan for fifteen bucks!