Working through university is a productive way to offset one's bills, be it school related or just for personal reasons. With the high cost of living that affects everyone, students are ‘forced' to engage in income generating activities at least to fend for their needs. However, it is quite challenging to secure a decent-paying job that a student can balance with extracurricular and classes.

You need to find a flexible job that can accommodate your class schedules and rising obligations such as group discussions and trips. If it were not for online works; this quest could be next to impossible for office jobs work on a fixed schedule- starting and ending time for shifts are fixed. Online jobs are becoming more popular with the rapid growth of the online world, and such jobs may include online tutor, data entry clerk, search engine evaluator, niche blogger, social media manager, freelance writer or editor, micro-freelancer, virtual recruiter, PowerPoint presentation designer, genealogist, virtual assistant, transcriptionist etc.

Unlike office jobs, online ones are mostly favourable to students because:

• Time and place flexibility

Online jobs are mostly timed on login and logout basis, with no specific duration set. Instead work is acquitted for on completion of the task assigned. Therefore, students can benefit from this as it comfortably fits into their schedules. Be it a one hour break between classes, during lunch break, or at night before sleeping; students can log in at their convenience, unlike office jobs where one has to go through the daunting task of rushing to the place of work and dealing with all sorts of stressful encounters, i.e. traffic. You can organize your school commitments and work around any other personal agendas instead of the other way around. With online jobs, it is easily accessible as long as you have internet and you can multitask for instance working while you travel. Also, jobs are available at any time- 24/7 basis- hence you can pick an order at any time, and that is compatible with your schedule. For instance, paid online surveys take little time and are less engaging- availing you with more time for other obligations. For office jobs, you can avail yourself for work but lack tasks to work on or be overwhelmed with too much work at once.

• No need for huge initial capital

As students, most of you don't have money set aside to venture into business. Actually, most are looking for jobs to earn something to call their own. Therefore, online jobs favour students as they mostly require no investment- in most cases, you only incur internet charges. Once you have a computer, internet connection and a set of the necessary skills, you are set to start earning. However, specific jobs may need some money in advance, i.e. using Gigwalk may have you incurring transport cost since the app requires you to walk around towns, taking pictures and checking signs.

• Suited for the young generation

The online world is undoubtedly dominated by the young generation compared to the older generation. It's, therefore, more logical to let the students work online as they relate to the trends, and naturally adapt to being online most of the time. Young minds are also creative and innovative, giving the online world a better platform to continue evolving. Certain jobs require young personalities, such as a social media manager, where one needs to keep up with the news, blogs and trends. Online marketing also demands the energy and agility of a frequent online personality, which is undoubtedly the young generation. Most grown-ups usually deal with the background tasks such as payments auditing.

• Endless opportunities on offer

The online world hubs numerous websites that offer jobs, spread through a wide pool of businesses. There is always more help needed somewhere, and since the whole world is connected, one can even find a job based on another continent. From marketing brands to creating emails, the online jobs are quite limitless providing anyone with the opportunity to earn money. Also, one can be an essay writer, and compose academic papers for others students who are too occupied to do their assignments or simply need professional, high-quality essays.

• Minimal effort required to complete a task

Some of the online jobs are quite effortless, in some cases, you get paid just to post pictures of certain brand's goods. This requires little skill and education, therefore most students are capable of engaging in the job. Also, in regards to how school work can be draining, students get to earn without much strain as they go about their businesses. Such jobs arise when a company brand approaches an online user with great influence and pays them to post their goods on their online personalities- kind of being the company's brand ambassador. However, some jobs are a bit engaging, but fortunately, this usually means more pay.

• Safe, easy and fast payments

Most online job payments are made through PayPal, which is the most reliable and the easiest to use online transaction system. Students don't have to bother with bank cash-ins or anything like converting currencies, for money is automatically transferred and is ready to spend. However, alternative methods might be used depending on where you are working, but you should ensure the website is reliable and have a secure payment connection such as the Visa option.

Generally, online jobs are bridging the gap of unemployment mostly among the youths, enabling them to be independent and productive with their efforts. We are gradually escaping the era of having jobless graduates due to limited job opportunities for the online world is presenting endless opportunities to benefit from. With the right skills and platform to work online, any student can take control of their school life and rake in some money while studying. The emergence of online jobs has also seen people quitting their office jobs to embark fully on them, which prove to be less stressful, more flexible and gives one the ability to manage themselves - determine how much they earn.