Thrilling Ways to Pay the Bills: Unusual Jobs for College Students

College students need cash, either for fun or to help pay their way. I had several jobs as a student, from cleaning bathrooms at the School of Art to writing for the university catalog. If you're more daring than I was, check out these unusual college jobs. They might not boost your resume, but I'm sure they'll give you plenty of interesting stories to tell your friends.

Nude Model for the Art Department

Not for the shy, this is often one of the higher paid jobs on campus. Colleges with an art program are likely to hire students to pose nude for life drawing classes. If you're daring enough to bare it all in front of your fellow students, go for it. One catch: This position might raise an eyebrow or two if you list it on your resume.

Animal Watcher

If your school has an animal research center, there'll be plenty of round-the-clock student job opportunities. Most of these jobs require staffing a front desk area and contacting a researcher or faculty member if one of the specimens acts up. Of course, you could earn a few dollars per hour more if you are willing to roll up your sleeves and clean up after a variety of furry creatures (if you decide if the pay is worth the smell).

Meal-tester

Campus dining services often hire students once or twice an academic year to taste new recipes before they are introduced to the student community. This isn't a steady gig, but it sure is a tasty way to earn some extra cash. Keep an eye in the school newspaper or on bulletin boards in the cafeteria for these openings.

Model for College Marketing Materials

Remember all of those publications you received when you began your college search process? They featured real-life students, and some of them may have been paid to pose for the camera. If behind-the-lens is more your style, college marketing offices have also been known to pay student photographers for capturing their point of view on film.

Student Blogger

A trend among undergraduate admissions offices across the county is to pay students to blog. You'll be given guidelines about what to write about (and what not to write about) and will be featured on the prospective student section of the college Web site. This is great experience for those of you interested in writing and marketing.