Earning extra cash as a college student doesn’t have to suck.
You can make some pocket money for Friday night beer runs, grocery trips, or meals out with this simple trick:
Join a survey panel.
You’ve potentially heard of this concept before, and may feel some stigma around it.
Which makes sense, because a lot of these things are scams. But not all of them are just out to get you… In fact, tons of college students actually find legitimate panels to be a relaxing and somewhat addictive way to pass the time.
We’re definitely not suggesting that you spend hours searching Google for sites that promise to pay you and then don’t.
Instead we’re gonna tell you a little bit about how the legitimate panels work, and then suggest the one we love the most: a panel that’s super straightforward and pays you through PayPal.
How Do Paid Surveys Work?
Why would someone want to pay you for your opinion?
If you’re brand new to the idea of taking paid surveys, here’s the basic idea. You’re helping brands research their target demographic. Companies need to know what you want in order to make it, so they ask questions that will help them get an idea of what their consumers are looking for. You take their surveys. Then you get paid.
What about the cons? Sometimes the surveys can be boring, and some of them can take up to 30 minutes to complete. When I was in college, I would take them between classes when I had some time to kill, or as a good distraction from my study breaks. Plus I actually found them to be fun for the most part, especially when they were related to my interests.
One of the best paid survey sites is Survey Junkie, so I recommend you try them first.
Why do I think they’re so awesome? They’re 100% free to join and they’ve got a really low payment threshold – as soon as you hit $10 you can cash out.
Another one of my favorite benefits is that they’ll give you points even if you don’t qualify for a survey. Trust me… this is a really nice perk. I’ve signed up for other sites in the past that waste my time making me answer a lot of questions and then tell me I didn’t qualify, which isn’t the case here.
When you’re ready to receive your rewards, you’ll get them immediately at redemption. You can choose from PayPal, Amazon, or e-Gift cards. And there’s no fee to redeem your points. (Be wary of any survey site that makes you pay to get your money!)
All in all, I definitely recommend you give Survey Junkie a try and take their paid surveys. Even if you make it to the $10, I’d count it a win! We all know how much money that can mean when you’ve been on a strict diet of cup-a-noodles for the past two weeks.a
We’re not suggesting you skip class… Or that you take these surveys while you’re sitting in the back of the lecture hall slumped down in your chair and half-snoozing.
But when you’ve got some downtime between class, on study breaks,
Check them out and see what you think!