
Summer is the period when students are in limbo, wondering what they can do while waiting for the upcoming semester to start. However, students need to attack the summer holidays which to some students, doesn’t sound too great. They should take the summer period as an opportunity to either grow their wealth or get experience in the industry they want to enter once they finish college. Or, save a ton of money to go travelling! Let’s take a look at your options.
Why Work During Summer?
Working throughout summer is the best way to help build your finances up as a student because a lot of businesses will be taking on students during this period. The reason for that is because businesses are in a much busier period and therefore, they need the staff, especially businesses in the hospitality sector. This is an opportunity for students to work and earn money during this period. However, it isn’t just the hospitality sector that needs extra workers, there are other areas as well, areas where you can get experience in an industry that you wish to work in at the end of college.
Jobs to Consider
Retail
Retail work is an area that offers a lot of temporary work opportunities, making it one of the best jobs to consider. Additionally, you don’t often need work experience to work in this sector so it heightens the chance of you getting the job.
Something which is worth considering is getting a part-time job where you are at college, so it allows you to carry on working whilst you are back in college or University for the next term. This is needed for some students who don’t get a good student loan during their student semester.
Hospitality
We briefly discussed hospitality before because this is the sector where the majority of students go when they are looking to earn some money. Plus, it is in demand during the summer period. Furthermore, hospitality is a place where you can get extra money through tips if you offer a great service to your customers.
There are a couple of issues when working in hospitality. One of those is that it is really busy so you won’t feel like you are getting much of a rest. Additionally, the customers can give you a lot of trouble for something that you may not have necessarily done i.e., giving them food which is poor quality. So, weigh up the negatives and the positives before you rush into a hospitality job.
Working For Your University or College
Despite your college or university being closed during the summer period, there are still plenty of jobs available for them to do. Admin jobs and work on student events or even in the accommodation as a cleaner are all jobs that need to be fulfilled. It can be quite surprising how many jobs become available when it is closed for summer. Even some form of marketing or pop-up stalls are required to be fulfilled.
Temporary Work
Temporary work is something else that you can pick up and this covers a lot of sectors. This is when a particular business goes through a busy period and needs someone to pick up the grafting part of the job. There are many businesses that go through periods where they don’t want to hire someone full-time.
There are a lot of businesses out there that are looking for temporary workers so it isn’t something you should struggle with, especially if you live near a city centre. From working at a theme park, a fashion store or even managing a car park that is near a busy tourist attraction.
You can look for a temporary job that covers the line of work you want to do. It will not only help you build experience while generating an income during the summer holidays. Plus, they might offer you a full-time position or even a job that allows you to earn money on the side.
Paid Summer Internship
Internships are another excellent option for generating a bit of money during the summer period. The only issue with this is that this line of work can be very competitive amongst other students as they are often advertised through basic job application websites and universities which you can imagine gets lots of people browsing.
Something that you will need to remember when applying for a summer internship is that the applications open very early so make sure you are one of the first. Additionally, if there is a specific company that you wish to work for, we recommend that you visit their website to see if it is something that they offer. If you can’t see anything contact their business itself via a phone call and see if you can get in touch with someone and they might be able to offer you an internship.
Earning Money Online
The online world is a great place to earn money. From buying and selling products for a profit on the Facebook marketplace to starting an e-commerce business or even your own blog. You can also make money by filling out online surveys or participating in user testing. There are so many different options so it is certainly worth considering.
Work Experience or Earning Money – Which Should You Do?
There are many things to consider when it comes to the summer holidays but it all depends on your situation. Will you need money when the new college or university semester starts? Or do you just need money through the summer holidays to help pay rent and food bills at home? If you don’t need that much money when you go back to college, consider just getting a part-time job that offers you one or two days of work to help pay the bills at home.
Work experience is something else you should consider during the summer period. Your proactiveness in seeking experience in a sector that you wish to go into after university looks great on your resume. So if you have the financial capabilities of doing this then you should do it to help you in the future. Yes, it might be unpaid work but it can benefit you massively once you have finished university.
Summary
As you can see, there are many opportunities when it comes to earning an additional income. That being said, there are also plenty of opportunities in regards to work experience which will only benefit you in the future once you have finished University/college. It is important that you do something during summer to keep yourself looking proactive and generating money/experience in the industry. Not to mention keeping you active and fit.
SEE ALSO: Why Your College Years Are the Best Time to Travel