18 best student jobs that you didn’t know are super flexible and pay well

The best student jobs today are those you haven’t thought about. 

When you think of part-time jobs as a student, most people think of bagging groceries, flipping burger patties or delivering pizza.

But we’re here to tell you that there are many other more interesting options for you out there.

Some don’t even require you to leave your room — saving loads of time and transport money.

The best student jobs have such features, allowing you to balance university and work without neglecting one or the other — and still get paid at the end of the week/month.

But before you say yes to the first job offer that comes your way, you need to first check if it’s a good fit for you. Here’s how:

How to know if it’s a good job for you

Student visa

If you’re on a student visa, you need to check if you’re allowed to work in a certain field and the hours given. Some countries like Australia enforce limited working hours for student visa holders, and you may face penalties or even have your visa revoked if you work for more than the stipulated time. 

Research

Look up the company culture and practices to see if it’s a healthy fit for you and if it aligns with your personal and professional goals. If you’re looking to build professional connections in the animal science industry, for example, you may not find it working as a transcriber. 

Flexibility 

Is your part-time job fully online or is it something you have to take two buses to get to?

Does it allow you to change your hours if you have exams? Find the answers to these questions first before accepting the offer. 

Salary 

Even if it’s a part-time gig, it should pay fairly and decently, and not take advantage of you. 

The best way to find out is to check the minimum wage in the country you’re in.

18 best student jobs you haven’t considered

What’s the “best” for you differs between all of us. Some of us need something that’s low-stress, others can take on more tasks in return for bigger pay.

We’ve considered the top wants and needs of students and listed the best jobs for students accordingly below:

Easy part-time jobs for students

Babysitting/Petsitting

If you’re used to bossing around your siblings, you can do it now and get paid. 

Jokes aside, babysitting is a great part-time job for international students. Busy parents who opt for babysitters are always looking for people available during working hours. If you only have a couple of classes a day, you can spend your free hours looking after children, usually from the comfort of their home. It’s a great student job for those who like working with children. 

Babysitting may not be a fit for those who aren’t familiar with handling kids, such as students without siblings, or for those who aren’t fond of children at all. In those cases, petsitting is a better option Get paid to walk dogs, play with cats or feed iguanas — a dream job for animal lovers. 

Personal shopper

Shopaholics, this one’s for you. You get to run around buying anything your customer wants, hopefully satisfying your urge for retail therapy. 

Personal shoppers are a pretty new concept in the last decade, but demand for them has steadily grown. They make shopping accessible for those who have no time to shop, or cannot go to particular stores out of their area. It’s helpful being a personal shopper, especially for those who have disabilities or lack transportation.

There are even personal shoppers for e-commerce platforms now; they go into Tiktok live streams to purchase items on discount or on limited stock. Mell, or menilovee on Tiktok, shops and packs orders for her 36,000 followers while offering tips on how they can do it too.

Rideshare driver

If you’re familiar with Uber, Lyft and other companies that offer ridesharing services, you probably know that they’re constantly in demand. 

As a student with a driving license, you can sign up to be a rideshare driver and drive in between classes. Even if you don’t have a car of your own, some ridesharing companies like Uber allow you to rent their vehicles to work. You don’t have to clock in at a certain time or arrange for shifts – you can start and end at your own pace. 

You can take advantage of surge times during rush hour or holidays and earn up to US$15 to US$25 per hour.

On-campus jobs for students

If you’re living on campus 24/7, consider these options:

Resident assistant 

To qualify for this position, you’ll most likely need to have lived for some time in your university’s residence hall or dormitory. Additional qualifications include great communication skills, creative problem-solving activities and a knack for conflict resolution – believe us, you’ll need a lot of that especially. 

As a resident assistant, you’ll help with university housing matters, supervising and connecting students, planning activities and ensuring a safe, livable experience for all. You may also be expected to file reports and regularly meet with boarding administrators to report on issues. 

Student ambassador 

Student ambassadors are ultimately a university’s best advocate. In fact, research by Unibuddy and Intead found that 57% of college applicants found the input of student ambassadors to be the most helpful part of the application and admissions process. 

While they represent the institute and mainly speak to new students, student ambassadors also represent the student body. They are key in guiding and inspiring students in their university journey.

Campus tour guide

If you like talking to people and walking around, being a tour guide for your campus is the perfect student job for you.

As a campus tour guide, your role would be to provide useful information and historical facts about the university and its students.

Even though walking around is a big part of the job, that’s not all there is to it. Campus tour guides usually plan and implement marketing activities and events that welcome guests and potential students, such as Open Days and education fairs. 

Administrative work

This is a lesser-known but common position with lots for you to learn. 

You get to work with one of several departments to calculate budgets, prepare reports and transcripts, and other related tasks. 

You’ll work in and alongside people in your community, improve your communication, and learn about teamwork — making it a win-win-win role for those who’s short on time and can’t travel far to get to a job.

100% online part-time jobs for students 

For students who want more flexibility with their time, consider these fully remote part-time jobs. All you need is your laptop, a good Wi-Fi connection, and a few hours a day.

Subtitling and transcribing

Many companies like Amberscript, HappyScribe or even Netflix constantly require subtitling and transcribing. Most work is project-based, calculated via the minute rather than having a fixed salary. 

Amberscript, for example, pays US$0.49 to US$1.31 per audio/video minute for a transcriber, and US$0.98 to US$2.08 per audio/video minute for subtitles. 

Social media manager 

There are now 5.04 billion active social media users worldwide and companies want to capture their attention.

This is where social media managers come in.

Your duty mostly comprises scheduling content, planning timelines and managing comments and shares.

Some even take it a step further to curate content for their clients, using apps like Canva to create simple visuals.

Some students have done so well that they ended up turning this part-time work into a career — like this  mechanical engineering student who co-founded content-driven social-media agency while still at University of Sheffield.

Virtual assistant 

Think personal assistant – but fully online.

Rather than running down to the nearest coffee shop to get your boss their black coffee with no cream and sugar, you’ll manage smaller-scale duties online. Common tasks are calendar management, appointment booking, data entry and other related filing duties. 

For this role, it’s a good idea to be familiar with online programmes such as Microsoft Office, Trello, Airtable and related management software. 

Graphic designers/digital artists

If you have a passion for digital art, graphic design is the way to go.

Brands and individuals are always seeking out artists, even with AI art becoming a thing – in fact, brands tend to lean away from AI art due to unpopular public sentiment.

Personal commissions are also popular, especially on websites like X (formerly Twitter). Many individuals are eager to commission artists, whether for professional or personal reasons.

Highest-paying part-time jobs for students

Looking for the best student jobs that pay above-average rates? These are our top picks.

Tutor/Music teacher

Tutoring is a great part-time job, offering flexibility in timing, audience and career advancement – most importantly, it’s a great source of income.

You can work one-on-one with juniors or even high school students, helping them prepare for exams, complete their assignments and improve their academic understanding. As time goes by and your area of knowledge advances, so will the students you are working with and your experience.

Tutoring doesn’t have to be fully academic. If you have access to an instrument you play, such as the violin or guitar, you can also offer music lessons or training to younger students. 

Freelance programmer

It’s no secret that programming and web development are some of the most lucrative jobs on the market. Glassdoor reports that the average salary of a full-time web developer comes up to US$93,402 per year. 

Not many students think they can find work as web developers, but there are many freelance opportunities offered by small and medium-sized companies. It helps build a great portfolio and gain working connections.

And of course, the pay is pretty good. Freelance programmers can earn up to US$30.40 per hour!

Freelance photographer

If you own a camera, being a freelance photographer can be a great source of income, paying up to US$36.31 per hour.

Lots of organisations and agencies source for freelance or project-based photographers on a regular basis, and you’re also likely to find individuals such as influencers or Instagram models looking for professional photoshoots.

You can also offer consulting advice or hold workshops for clients interested to learn more about photography.

Massage therapist

A very lucrative part-time job that pays up to US$49.82 per hour! A massage therapist performs massages on clients, ranging from your average blue-collared worker to professional athletes.

This job will require you to have some knowledge about the human body, to be able to spot symptoms or trouble. You’ll also have to be well-versed with relaxation techniques and both deep and surface-level massages.

Most prestigious part-time jobs 

Brand ambassadors

This is a step up from social media marketing, as you become the face of a product or brand. You will work with a specific company to host in-person events, hand out products, answer questions about the brand and even handle social media posts.

Being a brand ambassador is prestigious as it will put your name – and face! – out there. When people look you up, they will see the brands you’ve worked for or are associated with. Plus, it pays decent money.

Paid internships 

A traditional route, but it has yet to fail. 

A paid internship as a research assistant, for example, will be beneficial in both academic and monetary aspects. You’ll collect and verify data, prepare materials and reports, interpret findings and provide recommendations. 

The greatest thing about these paid internships is that you can turn it into a full-time position.

Interpreter/Translator 

If you’re studying abroad in a country that doesn’t use your first language, there’s always a chance to become an interpreter. 

For example, if you’re studying in Korea and are fluent in both Korean and English, you can earn decent money being an interpreter for foreigners looking for surgery procedures. 

The more languages you know, the more potential you’ll have in landing a job as a translator. You can work with individuals, assist small teams or even work with local embassies.