Freelance Writing Jobs for College Students Online

College students looking to make some extra cash while juggling coursework or during summer break are finding more and more opportunities to find jobs online. Writing is one such field that presents a number of freelance projects for college students to take on as a means to pad their wallets. The best part of freelance writing projects is that they are flexible, so students can take on as many or as little projects as they want. Here’s how to jump in on these great freelancing opportunities in three easy steps:

• Step 1) Identify your writing strengths



What type of writing are you best at? Some people thrive by writing blogs or short articles. Others are great at writing reports or academic pieces. Find out what you are good and would be interested in writing and create a list. Use the items in this list as keywords for when you later search for projects. For example, you may decide you want to write travel journals because you have some traveling experience. Use “travel journal” or “travel writing” as your keywords and get a list of employers or clients looking for just this exact skill.



• Step 2) Determine your rates



It will serve you to do a little research before you start accepting jobs or posting bids for projects. Many new writers are unsure of what to charge per hour or per word to get a project done. It’s a good idea to look through some old postings and find what the going rates for certain projects have been. You’ll find that some more experienced writers charge quite a bit to submit polished works, while other less experienced writers are limited to low writing jobs because they’ve yet to build a client-base or portfolio. Find out where you fit in this scale and set your rates accordingly.



• Step 3) Build a profile, develop web presence



A critical step in getting your choice in writing projects is developing a web presence. The easiest way to do this is by building up a couple of profiles listing your skills and qualifications as a writer. Creating personal websites is a great idea as well. Your own blog or personal site allows you to create a portfolio demonstrating your talents as a writer. A solid web presence helps you connect with other writers, editors, and freelancers who can provide leads to potential clients or job opportunities.