A sorority girl is someone who can talk for hours about how much she loves her sisters and how becoming affiliated was the best decision she ever made. As someone who has only been in a sorority for a few weeks, I can say that all the hype is completely warranted. Within days of getting my bid, I had a million welcome posts on my Facebook wall, a dozen sister date proposals, and over a hundred new girls to call sisters. My college experience changed overnight, and I love it.
But even the best experiences have down sides, and ours comes in the form of dues. I remember looking at my payment sheet and panicking; I wanted to sit down in the middle of my chapter meeting and cry because I loved all my new friends, but I had no idea how I was going to manage to pay for it all. I knew it was expensive coming into it, and I knew that paying my own dues was going to be difficult, but while I was rushing I never accounted for all the initiation fees that almost doubled my dues for the first semester.
So if you are like me listen up, because we are going to figure this out together.
There are plenty of great websites that are perfectly suited to help college students make money while being about to work around their regular schedule. And the great thing is, some of these jobs don’t even require you to get out of bed. Here are five ways to pay your sorority dues that don’t involve selling your organs on the black market.
1. Babysitting
Babysitting is without a doubt one of the easiest ways to make money as a college student. Websites like Urban Sitter give students a free outlet to network themselves within their community and find dozens of potential employers. The great thing about the site is that will screen families for you by asking your preferences toward salary, schedule, number of children, age of children, etc. Many parents may even offer to drive you to and from work if you rely on public transportation.
2. Freelance Writing
Organizations like ODesk allow students to sign up as a freelance writer for various professionals seeking help through the website. What I love about ODesk is that it allows you to have complete control over your schedule and your workload, so you get to choose the jobs that suit you best. It offers opportunities to write anywhere between short 500-word blog posts to ongoing writing positions lasting weeks or even months, and you have complete authority to charge however much money you feel your services are worth.
Pro tip: To make your profile more impressive, take advantage of hundreds of free online skills tests offered by Odesk. What this means is that if you have any skill relating to writing, data entry, or computer programming you can take a test to show employers that you are actually qualified. Some tests offered include English language, grammar, and spelling, Adobe Photoshop CS3, US word usage, internet marketing, management skills, bookkeeping, negotiation skills, etc. Basically, there are a million things you didn’t know you were qualified for but can now put on your online resume.
3. Data Entry
Elance is a website that offers the general public the opportunity to sign up for work typing things into documents. Yes, it sounds dull, but it’s also easy and lucrative since no one else actually wants to do it. Plus, if you can multitask you can binge-watch Friends and sit in your pajamas while getting paid to type numbers into a spreadsheet.
4. Survey Taking
Okay, I admit that this opinion will not pay off all your dues (unless you really commit to it) but it is an easy way to make a few dollars while you are just hanging around the dorm or messing around in class. With websites like IPoll you get paid to answer surveys. Sure, it only pays a few dollars per survey, but the great thing is that you can access the site on your computer or your smart phone, meaning that you can actually be productive while you wait outside for the shuttle that was supposed to be there 15 minutes ago.
5, Drawing, painting, or taking photos
Society 6 is a perfect place for anyone with any bit of artistic talents. This website allows artists to upload their work and covert them into awesome products like:
- Wall Art
- T-Shirts
- Sweatshirts
- Tote Bags
- Phone Cases
- Throw Pillows
- Mugs
- Rugs
- Shower Curtains
- Duvet Covers
- Clocks
- Baby Clothes.
Membership costs a one-time fee of one dollar, which is only charged so that they can link your paypal account to the website. Artists only get 10% of the revenue from the products they sell, but it can add up. The great thing for me is that I haven’t updated my page in about a year, and yet I still get a check every month with more earnings. Amounts can vary, as there will be some months when you earn seven dollars, and then others where you earn one or two hundred dollars, but for not really working much, that’s a pretty good deal.Some of the coolest and most unique products online come from this website, so even if you don’t have any artistic talent I suggest you check it out anyway. Have some self-control; don’t buy anything until after your dues are paid.
So let’s get to work, because these decorating fees definitely aren’t going to pay themselves.