College can be a great time to explore entrepreneurship. And there are plenty of different business opportunities that college students can start without a lot of upfront expense or time commitment. Here are 50 potential small business opportunities for college students.
Business Ideas for College Students
Blogger
Blogging can offer great opportunities for college students. You can choose a topic or niche that interests you and work to build up an audience on your own schedule.
Virtual Assistant
You can also work from your home or dorm room as a virtual assistant, offering services like email communications and social media management.
Tutor
If you have expertise in a specific academic topic, you could offer your services to other college students as a tutor to help them get through specific courses.
YouTube Personality
YouTube is a great platform for building a business. You can earn money through ad revenue or work with brands as an influencer.
Social Media Manager
For those who have a fair amount of social media knowledge, you can offer your services to businesses that need help managing their social media accounts.
Social Media Influencer
You could also build up your own social media accounts and then work with brands as an influencer.
Social Media Consultant
Or if you’d rather simply offer your expertise to brands so that they can work on their own social media accounts, you can offer your services as a consultant.
Podcaster
Podcasting is another potential business opportunity that you can work on from your home or dorm room and set your own schedule.
Child Caretaker
If you’re looking for a more low-tech business opportunity, you could offer child care services to parents in your community.
Housesitter
Or you could serve as a housesitter for people traveling out of town.
Dog Walker
If you like spending time with dogs, you could start a business as a dog walker and appeal to local pet owners.
Pet Groomer
You could also start a pet grooming service where you offer to wash and groom animals for a set fee.
Inventor
There are also plenty of opportunities for college students to invent brand new products and then license or produce those items to sell.
Graphic Designer
If you have some design skills, you could start a business as a graphic designer, working on logos, branding elements or other designs for clients.
Web Designer
Web savvy designers could also set up a business designing websites for businesses or individual clients.
App Developer
Or if you’re really skilled with mobile technology, you could start a business developing mobile apps for clients or even making your own and then selling them in app stores.
Clothing Designer
Fashion savvy college students, you could start your very own clothing line out of your home or dorm and then sell your designs online or in local boutiques.
T-shirt Designer
Or you could use online marketplaces to offer t-shirts with your own custom designs for sale.
Jewelry Maker
If you want to make some other unique wearable creations, you can make your own jewelry and sell it online or at local events.
Flea Market Vendor
You could also sell a variety of different products at flea markets in your area on the weekends.
Farmers’ Market Vendor
Or if you grow or can any of your own food products, you could sell items at farmers’ markets on the weekends.
Soap Maker
Soap is another product that you can easily make in your own home or dorm and then sell online or at craft fairs or events.
Candle Maker
Or you could make your own scented candles and sell them in one or more of those avenues.
Vintage Clothing Seller
If you have an extensive vintage collection, you could set up your own online shop where you can sell vintage clothes. Then you can scour resale shops and flea markets for even more vintage finds to sell.
Ebook Author
If you have enough vision or expertise to write a book, you could self-publish your own ebook and sell it on platforms like Amazon.
Ecommerce Reseller
You can also pretty easily set up your own ecommerce business on sites like Amazon or eBay and then sell a variety of different types of products.
Event Photographer
Photographers, use your weekends off from school to start an event photography business where you could photograph weddings, conferences or other events.
Portrait Photographer
Or you could offer portrait photography services and sell various packages for family photos, senior portraits and more.
Recycling Service Provider
If you want to start an eco-friendly business, you can offer to pick up select items from people and take those items to local recycling facilities.
Book Seller
College students often have a lot of books lying around. You could start a business by selling some of those books online and maybe even open up your own shop.
Transportation Service Provider
You could also start a transportation service where you offer rides to other college students who don’t have reliable transportation.
Errand Service Provider
Or you could offer to handle various errands for busy college students or others in your community.
Student Magazine Publisher
You could also start your own magazine about student life or a variety of other topics and then sell copies or ad space.
Baker
If you enjoy preparing food, you could start a business as a baker for special events. Or you could even sell specific products to nearby stores or bake shops.
Tech Support Provider
For tech savvy college students, you could start a service where people with tech questions can contact you for assistance in exchange for a small fee.
Computer Setup Povider
Or you could offer to set up people’s computers or other devices if they need some help getting started.
Tour Guide
If your college campus is in an area that’s popular with tourists, you could offer your services as a tour guide and shop people around the community.
Laundry Service Provider
Some college students might not have enough time or patience to do their own laundry regularly. So you could start a laundry service where you charge a small fee to take care of that chore for your fellow students.
Musician
Musically inclined college students, you can start your own band or musical act and play at local events or venues.
Student Website Operator
You could also start your own website for your fellow students and charge a membership fee or even work with local businesses for advertising opportunities.
Social Networking Founder
Or if you have an idea for a new social networking site, a college campus could be the perfect place to get started and test out your idea.
Freelance Writer
For writers who don’t necessarily want to make a business out of their own blogs, you could offer services as a freelance writer for other publications.
Resume Service Provider
Or you could offer services to your fellow college students who are entering the job market by writing or critiquing their resumes.
Illustrator
Artistically inclined college students, you can offer your services as a custom illustrator for businesses, authors or other organizations that need specific items drawn out.
Artist
Or you could create your very own drawings, paintings or other works of art and sell them online or in local galleries.
Delivery Service Provider
If you have reliable transportation, you could also start a delivery service for food or other items.
Proofreader
You could also start a business as a proofreader where you look over papers or other assignments that your fellow college students want edited.
Welcome Kit Provider
If you’ve been in college for a few years, you know some of the essential items that newcomers should have. So you could put together and sell welcome kits for new students and their families.
Personal Trainer
For those who are more physically focused, you could offer personal training services to help your fellow college students avoid the dreaded “freshman 15.”
Sports Coach
Or you could provide coaching services aimed at people competing in specific sports.
College Students Photo via Shutterstock
This article, "50 Business Ideas for College Students" was first published on Small Business Trends
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