By Sam Cole
Staff Writer
Everybody knows college students are busy, but even with a heavy workload most still have to get a job to make ends meet. Once they have a job, students still need their work schedules to be flexible.
It can sometimes be difficult for them to earn a steady income that would fit their needs to live comfortably if employers aren’t able to accommodate for a college student’s abnormal calendar.
This is where side hustles come in. A side hustle, also known as a side job, is an extra job that many students take in addition to their primary job in order to make a little extra cash.
Students at Dominican pick up side hustles for many different reasons, such as profiting from a hobby they enjoy or building a potential career for themselves. Hopefully by sharing student experiences with their side hustles, it will give others’ ideas for their own ventures.
The following students elaborated on the different ways they earn their spending money:
Mack Gonzalez, a senior at Dominican, claims the way he used to make side money is by working for the White Sox during games as a food vendor since 2016. He said, “I have sold food like nachos and Dippin’ Dots up until this year. This was my first year being allowed to sell beer and it was a great time, especially with fan attendance going up because the Sox had a great season.”
He also uses it as a way to spend time with his family. He continues, “Working with my mom is the best because me and her work almost in perfect sync with one another. She has been working there for over 27 years and she even worked there while she was pregnant with me.”
Working at a sports stadium is a great way to earn a little extra money, catch an awesome game, and just have a good time while you work. There are many places in the Chicago area hiring right now such as the United Center for Blackhawks games, Soldier Field for Bears games, and tons of college stadiums needing ushers, concession workers and janitors.
Another senior at Dominican, Jolie Meyers, says her side hustle is promoting bars. She is essentially a public relations representative promoting events for bars that have special nights. She claimed she would, “promote events mostly on Thursdays and Fridays, especially thirsty Thursdays.”
There are plenty of restaurants and bars that offer side jobs for college students in search for one. Along with being a public relations representative, students can be a server, cook, hostess, social media manager and more.
Students don’t even have to hold themselves down to only one side hustle. Some push themselves to get multiple jobs on the side to increase their cash flow. For example, junior Giselle González says she “donates plasma, makes deliveries through DoorDash, babysits children and even coaches CrossFit classes two times a week!” With such a busy college schedule, many would think this would be impossible, but this just goes to show how much a college student is able to do when they put their mind to it.
There are countless ways students can make some extra cash doing side hustles off campus, but there are even ways to make money on campus. To find employment at Dominican, go on their website and find the Student Employment page. On that page there will be numerous steps a student can follow to easily obtain an on-campus job.
Finding an alternative and simple way to make a little extra money is perfect for college students who are strapped for cash, but don’t have the time to dedicate countless hours to a single job. With a little research, anyone can easily start their own side hustle.
