business plan of college students

Business Plan Examples for Students

Ajay Jagtap

• December 29, 2023

26 Min Read

Do you know what’s the most common mistake students and rookie entrepreneurs make while preparing their first business plan?

Of course, it’s the first business plan we’re talking about; there’ll definitely be a few. However, overcomplicating things and failing to consider a business plan example still remain the most common one.

That’s why we decided to come up with a solution. We’ve curated this list of top business plan examples for students to help you get going.

So whether you need a business plan for a college project, start a side hustle, or win a business competition, these examples are just what you need to create business plans that stand out.

Ready to dive in? Let’s start by understanding the key elements of a business plan example:

Key Elements of a Business Plan Example

Business planning is not as complicated of a process as people think it is; they’re just overcomplicating things. (Don’t think so?)

Let’s simplify the key elements that make up a comprehensive business plan; you’ll understand it better that way.

• Executive Summary: A high-level overview or summary of your plan.
• Company Overview: A detailed description of your business idea, its fundamental elements, history, and future goals.
• Market Analysis: A study of your external business environment that includes details about your industry, competitors, and target market.
• Products and Services: Description of the products or services you intend to exchange for money.
• Sales and Marketing Strategies: A section outlining sales and marketing strategies your business will implement to achieve its financial goals.
• Operations Plan: A section outlining the business processes and daily activities involved in ensuring seamless business operations.
• Management Team: Introduction to your founders, key management, and their compensation plan.
• Financial Plan: Your financial plan is a detailed breakdown of your business’s financial projections and financing needs.

That’s pretty much it about the key elements of a business plan example. Next, let’s explore the best business plan examples for students.

Say goodbye to boring templates

Build your business plan faster and easier with AI assistant

Get 30% off for Students and educators

Top Business Plan Examples for Students

Now that you already know about the components of a business plan template, let’s review some of the best business plan examples for students.

1. Startup Business Plan Example

Upmetrics’ startup business plan example is the ideal solution for students planning to start up or participate in a business plan competition. This business plan template follows the SBA-approved business planning format used by thousands of successful entrepreneurs.

Whether your startup is about a new-age AI-based application, an online shopping site, or traditional IT consulting—this sample business plan is just what you need.

Unlike any traditional small business plan, this example of a startup business plan is lean and agile in approach, focuses on innovation, and emphasizes market validation.

2. Lean Business Plan Example

Since you’re transitioning from a student to an entrepreneur, you may not have enough time to spend on creating a detailed business plan. That’s where this lean business plan template can help.

It’s a condensed version of a traditional plan summarizing all its sections with a primary focus on covering only the critical aspects of the business.

This template is best for startups or businesses uncertain about business planning and student-turned-entrepreneurs with limited time and resources to prepare a business plan.

3. SBA Business Plan Example

Following an SBA-recommended business plan format is key to securing bank loans and business grants. Since it can be time-consuming to find a template that follows a similar outline as the SBA, this SBA-approved business plan example is the way to get started.

This SBA business plan template has nine primary sections, that include executive summary, company description, market analysis, organization, product description, marketing, funding request, and financial projections.

SBA business plan examples ensure you stay on track and don’t deviate from your funding needs.

4. One-Page Business Plan Example

As you may have already guessed, a one-page business plan is a one-page version of a traditional business plan. Since it’s a condensed version of a business plan, drafting it can be quite easy and quick compared to a lean or traditional plan.

Employees, partners, and vendors often use one-page business plans as a quick overview of your company and banks and investors as a summary of your operations.

While it may not be the ideal choice for entrepreneurs seeking investment or bank loans, students with side hustles and idea-stage startups can consider this option.

5. HBS Sample Business Plan

Harvard Business School’s new venture competition selected this sample business plan as a finalist in 2011.

This is a business plan of App Success, a collaborative web-based platform that connects low-income high school seniors with college students from top universities; this business will enable them to collaborate on college selection, college applications, and financial aid applications.

This example can be a great reference for those planning to start a mobile or web-based solution.

6. Kean University Sample Business Plan

Kean University organizes a business plan competition every year for its students where students prepare and present business plans to compete, and this is one of the sample business plans the University provides to participants to understand the format.

It’s a business plan of Blue Water Boatworks, Inc., a boat detailing and cleaning company specializing in servicing recreational fiberglass and aluminum watercraft.

This example can be a great reference for those planning to start a business related to housekeeping, cleaning, or maintenance.

7. UVM Sample Business Plan

If you are looking for a strategic business plan for a food business, the University of Vermont’s Fancy Foods Business Plan can be a guiding resource for you.

Despite the fact that it can be a good reference for detailed planning, it was written in 1998, so any statistics and numbers may not seem relevant to today’s market landscape. Make sure you keep that in mind.

You may closely follow this example as a reference if planning to start a food truck, restaurant, or any other business that serves food.

That was the list of best sample business plans for students. However, there’s more to talk about. You now have a business plan example, but what about pitching to investors? Let’s explore free pitch deck examples for students.

Free Pitch Deck Example for Students

Pitching to investors as a first-time founder can be exciting but also overwhelming at times. Worry not; we’ve got a solution—investor pitch templates. We’ve prepared a set of 8 investor pitch templates and examples for students and entrepreneurs to help create winning business pitches.

Whether you need a pitch to find an opportunity, ask for subject matter knowledge, or a problem-solving pitch, these investor pitch examples have got you covered. Download now.

How to write a winning plan for a business plan competition?

Creating a business plan is no different than creating one for a real business. Similar to how entrepreneurs prepare and present business plans to investors, Students in business plan competitions pitch to judges.

In short, the business planning process remains exactly the same. Let’s discuss how you can write a winning plan to help you win a business plan competition.

• Select a compelling business idea : everything starts with a compelling idea. Make sure you have a viable business idea to compete in the competition.
• Refer to winning business plan examples : Once you are sure about your business concept, refer to business plan examples from previous winners and how they planned the sections of their plan.
• Market Research & Industry Analysis : After referring to business plan examples, conduct industry research and market analysis to make your statistical and financial numbers accurate and realistic.
• Understand business model and revenue streams : Since you are preparing a business plan for a company that doesn’t exist, be sure about the business model and how the business will generate profit.
• Use AI business plan generator : Using an AI business plan generator like Upmetrics can be incredibly helpful in speeding up the business planning process. With industry-specific business plan templates and AI assistance to write your plan, you can write the first draft of your plan in literally no time.
• Presentation and visuals : Prepare visuals and graphs to make your business plan visually appealing and numbers digestible. You may not need to prepare these visuals if you use business plan software manually.
• Proofread and edit : Grammatical errors are the last thing judges want to see in a business plan. Make sure you proofread and edit your draft thoroughly before submitting it.

Easy as that, that’s the way to write a perfect business plan that can lead you to victory in any business plan competition on planet Earth. Let’s look at an example of a real-life business and financial plan.

Business and Financial Plan Example for Students

Having learned about business planning for students, let’s quickly discuss a coffee shop sample business plan and financial statements prepared using Upmetrics.

1. Executive Summary

The Cooper’s Cup will be a new cafe in Phoenix, Arizona. The 1,500 square foot café will be located in the newly constructed Market Square Plaza on the northeast corner of 135th Street and Mission Street. The anchor tenant, the Price Chopper grocery store, has already taken occupancy, and the excellent location brings more than 10,000 shoppers weekly.

The Cooper’s Cup, aptly named for the aromatic brown liquid that will fill the cup, fills the void of original cafes in the market and stands out from its corporate peers with its fast food concepts and prompt services. The Cooper’s Cup is the alternative to fast food/commercial/coffee shops and offers a much calmer, civilized gourmet coffee experience.

There are no televisions in the cafe, the background music is subtle, and work from local artists will hang on the walls. The restaurant is well-appointed, with overstuffed leather chairs and sofas in a library-like setting. The cafe is reminiscent of times gone by – yet is cutting edge technologically with WIFI and state-of-the-art espresso machines.

The Cooper’s Cup measures its financial success in terms of increased market share and earnings. This is a tremendous opportunity with a total local market of $54 million! The keys to success will be offering quality gourmet coffees, taking advantage of its small size, and relying on an outstanding barista staff.

To achieve these goals, the cafe will present some of the area’s finest gourmet beans from local distributors. Because of its small size, the restaurant can enjoy larger margins through lower overhead. The cafe will hand-select baristas and offer salaries comparable to the chains. The baristas will be trained to cross-sell and sell higher-margin products.

The primary objectives of the business plan for Cooper’s Cup are below:

• To increase revenues by $36,000 or 5% in Year 2 and $73,000 or 10% by Year 3
• Achieve a profit margin of 5.2% in Year 2 and 6.90% by Year 3
• Be the Cafe of Choice in the Phoenix area and the recipient of the Best Coffeehouse Award.

Guiding Principles

The Cooper’s Cup is committed to values such as excellence, passion, quality, integrity, and leadership, allowing them to navigate challenges and provide for future opportunities. These core beliefs start with their commitment to their products and their employees. Cooper’s Cup rewards excellence and cherishes loyalty. The cafe will work with its employees to build strong businesses and a secure future.

Mission statement

The Cooper’s Cup is committed to its products and employees, which they believe is the recipe for market success.

Key to success

The Cooper’s Cup stands out from the competition. Below are their Keys to Success:

• Great Products : providing exemplary products at market prices – will make customers want to return again and again.
• Hire Quality Baristas : Pay employees rates similar to the larger chains with opportunities for long-term careers and opportunities for advancement with long-term plans to open a second facility.
• Convert Customers to Connoisseurs : Only 40% of the nation’s coffee drinkers consume premium ground and whole bean coffee – this will aid in the continued growth.

Financial Summary

2. Business Overview

The Cooper’s Cup will be a coffee house/cafe located in Phoenix, Arizona. The cozy cafe will be located in the newly completed Market Square Plaza in the Arizona City area. The cafe will serve gourmet coffee, espresso, drip coffee, lattes, and smoothies. The simple pastry offerings may vary with seasonality, but the primary line will be muffins, bread, cookies, scones, and rolls. All pastries will be supplied daily by a local bakery.

The cafe will be owned and operated by Owen Jones, a veteran restaurateur with several years of experience running and managing chain restaurants. The cafe will be open for business Monday – Thursday 7-10, Fridays and Saturdays, 7-11, and closed Sundays.

The Cooper’s Cup will be formed as an S-Corporation owned by Mr. Doe.

Start-Up Summary

The Cooper’s Cup will have seating for 40 patrons. The rent is $2,075 a month, with a three-five-year lease available. The site comprises 1500 square feet of leased space consisting of a dining room, a coffee bar, two restrooms, and a storage room in the back.

This storefront needs to be plumbed and wired appropriately to be used as a restaurant. Painting, new floors, and countertops are also needed. A custom coffee bar needs to be built. With materials bought on sale and volunteer labor, the cost to renovate will be $71,725.

The coffeehouse equipment will consist of two commercial espresso machines, air pots and urns, a commercial blender, a commercial brewer, top-loading coffee bins, barista syrups, cold drink dispenser, frothing equipment, a commercial refrigerator, microwave, and stainless steel prep bar.

The cost of the equipment is $38,275. The furniture will consist of leather couches and chairs (purchased at auction), coffee tables, bookcases, and window treatments. The artwork will come from local artists and be sold on a consignment basis. The books were secured via donations. The total cost to furnish is $14,000. Other startup expenses will be dishes, furniture, rent deposit, and marketing.

Location and Facilities

The new coffeehouse is located in the highly desirable Phoenix, Arizona, area at the northeastern intersection of 135th Street and Mission Street in the Newmarket Square Plaza. The property is situated in an excellent location, with an easy 6-minute drive time to I-435 and 69 Highway. 

The property is 95% leased with Price Chopper as the Anchor Tenant. Other tenants include LifeSpring Med Spa, Jane’s Canines (Pet Store & Boarding), Pride Cleaners Kahn Dental, and Swim U. 

Price Chopper brings more than 10,000 shoppers per week to the center. The location comprises a population of 9,420 within a one-mile radius, 61,102 within a 2-mile radius, and 149,550 within a 5-mile radius – with a median household income of $120,856. Sprint / Nextel’s corporate office is within 2 miles of the site.

3. Market Analysis

Phoenix, Arizona, is an award-winning place to live and work and is considered the leading business community in the Midwest. National publications and organizations recognize Phoenix for its business environment and livability. Here’s a sampling: 6th Place, America’s Best Places to Live Money, Top 50 Cities to Live and Play, National Geographic Adventure, 3rd Hottest Town in the U.S., Money, Among 20 Best Places to Live & Work Employment Review, One of only 72 Sterling Tree Cities in the U.S., National Arbor Day Foundation, Top 10 best Locations to Raise a Family, Southern Business and Development, 1st Place, Kid Friendly Report Card, Population Connection, 2nd Best City in America to Live Business Development Outlook.

Phoenix is at the core of one of the most dynamic local markets in the U.S. It offers easy access to the Arizona City region’s amenities, and, as part of the Arizona City metropolitan area, it is within the most centrally located major market in the nation. I-35, I-435, I-635, and U.S. Highway 69 all pass through Phoenix, and no point in the city is more than 3.5 miles from a freeway. The city maintains an excellent arterial street network and plans to construct additional lane-miles as the area grows. Three airports serve the region. Arizona City International Airport (MCI) is just 25 interstate highway miles north of Phoenix. Johnson County Executive Airport—the second busiest in Arizona—provides complete services for private business jets and general aviation. New Century AirCenter, just 12 miles southwest of the city, offers available aviation services and accommodates cargo or passenger jets of any size.

Phoenix supplies some of the most highly educated workers in the nation, with 97% of Phoenix adults over age 25 holding at least a high school diploma. Johnson County, where Phoenix is located, ranks first among the country’s 231 counties with populations greater than 250,000. The county ranks sixth in the percentage of adults with at least a bachelor’s degree and 16th with a graduate or professional degree.

The Phoenix area has a population of 175,265, based on the 2010 census. The median household income is $77,881, and the median age is 37.9. (2010 U.S. Census)

Industry Analysis

The U.S. coffee shop industry includes about 20,000 stores with a combined annual revenue of about $10 billion. Major companies include Caribou Coffee, International Coffee & Tea (The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf), Peet’s Coffee, and Starbucks. The industry is concentrated: the top 50 companies generate more than 70 percent of sales. Coffee shops are part of the specialty eatery industry, including retail outlets specializing in bagels, donuts, frozen yogurt, and ice cream products. (First Research)

Competitive Landscape

Consumer taste and personal income drive demand. The profitability of individual companies depends on the ability to secure prime locations, drive store traffic, and deliver high-quality products. Large companies have advantages in purchasing, finance, and marketing. Small companies can compete effectively by offering specialized products, serving a local market, or providing superior customer service. Specialty eateries, which include coffee shops, are labor-intensive: average annual revenue per worker is about $50,000. Coffee shops compete with convenience stores, gas stations, quick service, fast food restaurants, gourmet food shops, and donut shops. (First Research)

Market Size

The U.S. coffee shop industry includes about 20,000 stores with a combined annual revenue of about $10 billion. Major companies include Caribou Coffee, International Coffee & Tea (The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf), Pet’s Coffee, and Starbucks. The industry is concentrated: the top 50 companies generate more than 70 percent of sales. (First Research)

Target Market and Segment Strategy

Most adult coffee drinkers said their lifelong habits began during their teenage years. 54% said they began drinking coffee between 13 and 19. Another 22% reported their coffee cravings started between 20 and 24. This means that 76% of adult coffee drinkers began drinking coffee by the time they were 24. So, despite a large amount of marketing and advertising directed at the younger age groups, savvy coffee shop owners will remember to cater some of their offerings to the adult and senior market. (National Coffee Drinking Study).

The Cooper’s Cup will offer a unique experience for coffee enthusiasts by providing a quiet, cozy, yet sophisticated cafe and a sense of refinement and peace in an otherwise hectic and fast-paced world. While other coffee shops cater to convenience with drive-throughs or loud music venues late into the night, the Cooper’s Cup will stand apart from its competitors with its quiet yet soothing ambiance, capturing a truly unique (and much-needed) market niche.

• Unique products (specialized roasts, local ingredients, locally-themed or named drinks, custom drinks by the star barista, etc.)
• Games, puzzles, mind benders, and other activities that encourage customers to linger over their coffee
• Hosting or sponsoring local events (entertainment, readings, book clubs, etc.)
• Using technology to creatively compete in marketing with big chains — services like FourSquare, Yelp, and Google Places can increase visibility in the local market.
• Delivering amazing service from knowledgeable baristas — spend lots of time training staff and utilizing online services like the American Coffee & Barista School.
• Selling coffee-related items (and tracking down any co-marketing opportunities with a local community college or another student-related group in the area)

4. Products and Services

Product/services descriptions.

The Cooper’s Cup’s primary offering is gourmet roasted coffees with mocha, carmelicious, white mocha, candy bar latte, and brewed coffee. Complementing the coffee will be a smoothie line including wild berry, strawberry, peach, mango, and lemonade. Rounding out the simple menu line will be pastries obtained from an outside supplier, freshly made and delivered daily. The pastry offerings may vary with seasonality, but the primary line will be muffins, bread, cookies, scones, and rolls.

Product/Service Sourcing

The Cooper’s Cup has negotiated supplier agreements with several local food-service wholesalers and coffee wholesalers in the Phoenix area that have a reputation for quality and reliability:

• Mean Beans Coffee Roasters
• Phoenix Brewers
• Healthy Harvest Bread Co.
• Mary’s Organics

If one of the abovementioned specialty suppliers cannot meet their needs, the following national suppliers can provide all the food-service products they require. In addition, the following wholesalers will supply the cafe with general restaurant supplies:

• Lawrence Food Products Corp.
• Gerry Food Supply Inc.

Future Products/Services

Young families, which comprise Phoenix’s third largest market share, are often overlooked in the coffee market. Coffeehouses traditionally have not been considered ‘kid’ friendly. To overcome this hurdle, Cooper’s Cup has long-term plans (5 years) to open a 2nd coffee shop: A combination indoor play area/coffee bar. This concept allows parents and caregivers to meet and relax with other adults while the children can enjoy the indoor playground amenities.

Additional future services will include in-store sales for home purchases and an online store.

The website will have the option to purchase a prepaid gift card program – Prepaid gift cards provide immediate cash, reduce credit card transaction charges, and draw new customers to the business.

5. Sales and Marketing Strategies

Swot analysis.

Unique Selling Proposition

The Cooper’s Cup stands out from a crowded sea of coffee chains and franchises. What sets it apart from the competition is primarily its smaller, cozier size combined with premium coffees served by knowledgeable baristas, providing so much energy and enthusiasm for its products.

Market Strategy and Positioning

The Cooper’s Cup utilizes a focus strategy on its Market. By specifically targeting three primary segments, they can cater specifically to their needs.

Senior Market (age 45+)

The Cooper’s Cup will target this Market simply by its well-selected location. Although this demographic group could readily drive downtown, they prefer a local cafe to unwind and relax and historically become some of the most loyal patrons.

Newly Hired Employees

The cafe will attract regular customers (weekly or more) – particularly the newly employed (first job) by providing free WIFI services and providing interesting games in the customer area.

Young Families

The third targeted Market, younger families, often find that coffeehouse is not ‘kid’ friendly. The company has long-term plans to create a combination coffee shop/play area so that parents and caregivers can meet with other adults while the children can enjoy the bounce houses, slides, and indoor playground equipment.

Pricing Strategy

The Cooper’s Cup primarily utilizes competition-based pricing. The cafe does not utilize coupons and discounts (other than opening promotions) because they believe that the most valuable customer demographic of daily coffee consumers is not influenced by discount programs or coupons.

Promotion and Advertising Strategy

• Online Advertising – The Cooper’s Cup will advertise regularly on popular social media sites like Facebook. Compared to traditional print advertising, this is a cost-effective tactic that will allow them to reach prospects in a highly targeted way (e.g., based on criteria such as age, gender, geography, etc.).
• Website – Cooper’s Cup will develop a simple Web site, which will provide basic information about the business, the menu, and links to their presence on the aforementioned social media channels.
• Radio Advertising – During the first six months of operation and the busy holiday shopping season, the business will advertise on local radio stations.

Sales Strategy

The Cooper’s Cup will use the following methods to increase sales revenue (as recommended by Andrew Hetzel on Better Coffee, Better Business):

• The menu will focus on the most profitable products sold. The cafe will always draw customer attention to the best products.
• As warranted, the cafe will raise prices to bolster its brand image. Prices communicate the perceived value of a product, so if set too low, the customers might assume that the beverages are inferior compared to the competition.
• Monitor flavoring inventory – Excess flavoring inventory ties up capital and valuable backroom space for storage. The cafe will utilize 4-6 varieties, including sugar-free offerings.
• Control waste and theft – audit sales and inventory reports to evaluate ingredient waste due to inefficient preparation, returned drinks, and employee consumption. Retail locations can easily waste 20% or more of their daily sales in these three key categories, which is a substantial and unnecessary loss.
• Monitor and evaluate hours of operation.
• Run employee sales contests – The baristas are the salespeople and have great influence over the customer ordering process. All baristas will have some form of sales and customer service training to make each transaction active rather than passive. Sales contests will emphasize high-margin items or cross-selling.

6. Operations Plan

Staffing and training.

An ongoing training and education program will ensure that each staff member learns and implements Cooper’s Cup’s exacting service and operational procedures standards. Staff meetings will reinforce service standards and principles. The Cafe will have detailed work descriptions and training programs for each position, from entry-level employees to the ongoing development of managers and owners. New employees will undergo an extensive training program. This ensures that each guest receives a quality experience from all employees, regardless of how long they have been employed. The Cafe embraces the concept of promoting from within. Excellence in one function typically leads to excellence in another. Regular staff evaluations and training will ensure motivation and address critical issues.

Inventory controls

The founder will be responsible for hiring and training managers who, in turn, will ensure that the day-to-day operations will comply with the standards set by Restaurant policy. Weekly management meetings will provide a forum to review and discuss financial and operational performance. Critical decisions related to purchasing, human resources, marketing, capital expenditures, and customer service will also be addressed.

Purchasing cost controls

Food preparation personnel will follow standardized recipes developed by the founders to control food costs and ensure consistency. The coffee shop will offer an innovative menu with nutritious food and beverages while achieving the most significant margin yield.

Customer Service

The hospitality business recognizes the client’s support experience is the critical driver to replicate business. The direction will Offer a superior degree of Professionalism by hiring individuals who deliver the ideal attitude to work and teaching them the skills required to accommodate guests. The restaurant will keep high levels of consumer satisfaction with talented, educated, and well-trained workers who understand and implement the fundamentals of fantastic service. Ongoing training will be provided to enable staff to perform their jobs with confidence and ability. Employees are well-spoken, well-versed, and trained to provide friendly, prompt, and professional service to each customer. This practice teaches employees who, by producing an exceptional customer experience, can optimize sales and raise their reimbursement. The team will have the knowledge and service required to create excellent daily service for every customer.

Technology & Software

While the quality of the cuisine and dining experience contributes significantly to a restaurant’s profitability, attention to business and financial details can transform small changes into significant returns. Critical sales, cost of sales, labor, inventory, marketing, and overhead metrics are monitored daily. Trends are evaluated, and constructive actions will be taken where improvement is needed. The management team will have access to the restaurant’s transactions and reports available in its real-time POS (point of sale) and accounting systems. Trends will be evaluated, and corrective action will be implemented as required.

7. Organization Structure

The Cooper’s Cup is formed as an S-Corporation wholly owned by John Doe.

Management Team

The Cooper’s Cup will be owned 100% by John Doe. Mr. Doe, a graduate of Arizona State University, has an undergraduate degree in business administration. During high school, he worked as a waiter in a local hospital coffee shop that purchased its beans from a local roaster. In addition to being an avid coffee drinker, this job allowed him to learn about the business first-hand. In college, Doe worked in a campus coffeehouse for four years, eventually becoming an assistant manager. Following graduation, Doe secured a business development position for a regional restaurant chain, which provided additional first-hand exposure to the food and beverage industry—especially the steps involved in establishing new locations.

Management Team Gaps

The Cooper’s Cup will rely on its POS (Point of Sale) system to generate daily accounting and cost activity reports. Mr. Doe will supply these to an outside bookkeeper for the preparation of annual income taxes.

Personnel Plan

Initially, the cafe will hire 1 manager, 5 baristas, and 2 part-time servers. In Year 2, the cafe plans to hire 1 additional full-time barista.

8. Financial Plan

Important assumptions.

• The sales forecast is conservative and assumes a 5% increase in Year 2 and a 10% in Year 3.
• The analysis accounts for economic seasonality – wherein some month’s revenues peak (such as holidays ) and wane in slower months.
• The analysis assumes the owner will not withdraw any salary till the 3rd year; at any time it is assumed that the owner’s withdrawal is available at his discretion.
• Sales are cash basis – nonaccrual accounting
• Moderate ramp-up in staff over the 5 years forecast
• Barista’s salary in the forecast is $36,000 in 2023.
• In general, most cafes have an 85% gross profit margin
• In general, most cafes have a 3% net profit margin

Projected Balance Sheet

Projected Cash-Flow Statement

Projected Profit & Loss Statement

Break Even Analysis

Write Your Business Plan With Upmetrics

Whether you need a business plan to compete in a competition, win investors, or gain a competitive advantage in the market landscape, Upmetrics can help you get started.

Upmetrics is an AI business plan software that comes with AI assistance, financial forecasting features, and 400+ sample business plans so that you can prepare a business plan in no time.

So what are you waiting for? Try Upmetrics and create your business plan in a snap.

Make your plan in half the time & twice the impact with Upmetrics

Fill-in-the-blanks, AI-assistance, and automatic financials make it easy.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you write a business plan for a college project.

As mentioned earlier in the article, business planning for a college project or competition is no different than for a real business. You can write your business plan using these step-by-step instructions.

• Select a compelling business idea
• Refer to business plan examples
• Prepare a business plan outline
• Create a company description section
• Conduct market research and industry analysis
• Describe your product and services
• Outline sales and marketing strategies
• Create an operations plan
• Introduce management team
• Prepare financial projections
• Summarize your plan with an executive summary

What is a business plan for students?

A business plan is a necessary business document that highlights its purpose,  business goals, product/service offerings, go-to marketing strategies, operations and financial plan, key people involved in the business operations, and other necessary details.

As a student, consider a business plan example as a document that helps you better understand business and industry dynamics and learn how a business operates inside out.

What is a business plan competition for students?

Business plan competitions are competitions mostly organized by universities for students passionate about entrepreneurship and the business world. These competitions offer students a platform to showcase their entrepreneurial skills while also providing opportunities for mentorship and networking.

How can I increase my chances of winning a business plan competition?

There cannot be a straightforward answer to this question, but there’s surely a method that can increase your chances of winning a competition—Using AI-powered business plan software.

Why? An AI tool will make you 10X more productive while writing a business plan and preparing financial forecasts. So you can spend more time researching the market and brainstorming business ideas.

Where can I find more business plan examples for students?

Upmetrics’ library of 400+ business plan examples could be an incredible source for students to find more industry-specific business plan examples. There are examples for almost every small business category, including real estate, retail, entertainment and media, food & beverages, and more.

About the Author

Ajay is a SaaS writer and personal finance blogger who has been active in the space for over three years, writing about startups, business planning, budgeting, credit cards, and other topics related to personal finance. If not writing, he’s probably having a power nap. Read more

Reach Your Goals with Accurate Planning

No Risk – Cancel at Any Time – 15 Day Money Back Guarantee

Ready to Kickstart Your Business Planning?

– Don’t Miss It

20+ SAMPLE College Business Plan in PDF | MS Word

College business plan | ms word, 20+ sample college business plan, what is a college business plan, what are the benefits gained from a college business plan, how to create a college business plan, where do public universities get their funding, what are some of the main types of universities, what are vocational or technical colleges.

College Business Plan Template

College Business Plan Example

Basic Business Plan

College Business Plan in PDF

College of Business and Administration Plan

City College Business Plan

University College Business Plan

Standard College Business Plan

College Preparatory Schools Business Plan

Secondary College Business Plan

College of Applied Biology Business Plan

National College Business Plan

College Multi Year Business Plan

Printable College Business Plan

College of Entrepreneurship Center Business Plan

College of Applied Arts and Technology Business Plan

College Business Plan and Budget

Draft College Business Plan

College of Medicine Business Plan

Sample College Business Plan

College Business Plan in DOC

1. executive summary, 2. college features and offerings, 3. marketing analysis, 4. marketing strategy, share this post on your network, you may also like these articles.

In this comprehensive guide, we explore the essentials of creating an effective Floor Plan. Whether you are designing a new home, renovating an existing space, or planning an office…

Nursing Care Plan

In this comprehensive guide, we explore the essentials of creating an effective Nursing Care Plan. Whether you are a nursing student, a new graduate, or an experienced nurse, this…

browse by categories

• Questionnaire
• Description
• Reconciliation
• Certificate
• Spreadsheet

Information

• privacy policy
• Terms & Conditions

• Start free trial

DISCOVER YOUR BUSINESS

Once you’ve found a business idea, Shopify has the tools you need to start, sell and grow.

20 Business Ideas for College Students in 2024

Starting a business in college opens up opportunities beyond what’s offered in the classroom. Browse business ideas you can implement from your dorm room.

While summers typically bring sunshine and a chance to relax or travel, for college students the season presents a different opportunity. Starting a small business while you’re still in college can help you reduce tuition debt and earn real-world experience in the summer months. It may even become a flexible side gig once classes resume.

Even better news: There are ways to design your summer around something you enjoy, where you make money online while setting your own hours. There is no shortage of clever small business ideas for college students. But which one is right for you?

Ahead, explore low-barrier business ideas you can implement with little to no upfront investment or experience. The future is bright for those who seize it! 

20 business ideas for college students

• Sell handmade goods
• Start a tutoring business
• Sell digital products
• Start a neighborhood service-based business
• Try dropshipping
• Become a content creator
• Become a reseller
• Sell print-on-demand goods
• Become a freelancer
• Create experiences
• Sell at pop-up shops and markets
• Run a summer camp program
• Offer technical services
• Start and monetize a podcast
• Create and sell student resources
• Start a community-focused business or non-profit
• Innovate and develop a new product
• Organize on-campus events
• Try affiliate marketing
• Offer branding and marketing services

Whether you’re fresh out of high school or you’re on break before your senior year of college, this is your moment. When else in your life will you have this much time—and youthful energy—to make a leap? 

There are plenty of profitable business ideas for college students that require no startup costs, and can even be run from your home (or dorm room).

1. Sell handmade goods

If you’re creative, take a break from the books to work with your hands and sell handmade goods . You can sell your products through an ecommerce store, online marketplace , or in-person events like a local market. There may be opportunities to sell or market your goods on campus, too. Check with your student administration for rules around commercial activity on school property. 

🧼 Success Story: How Katie Carson Build a Soap Empire on YouTube

Royalty Soaps was born after its founder—then a high school student—gained a loyal YouTube following for her soap-making content. 👉 Read Katie's story

2. Start a tutoring business

3. Sell digital products

This is one of the best business ideas for students living in cramped apartments or dorm rooms. All you need is a computer and your creativity. If you’re studying design, try creating templates or printable digital art to sell online . In a music program? Create beats or short music clips to license for commercial use. 

4. Start a neighborhood service-based business

5. Try dropshipping

6. Become a content creator

Angelina Li started making her own slime at age 14, documenting her experiments on TikTok. After she went viral, she built Fireflyslime , running the business while attending college.

If you’re already a minor superstar on a social media platform like TikTok , YouTube , or Instagram , consider leveraging your growing audience to make money. Do sponsored content or set up an ecommerce store to sell merch to your fans. If you’re starting from scratch, the key to building a following on social media is finding a niche market and creating consistent, engaging content that speaks to your target audience .

Get paid by brands you love with Shopify Collabs

Shopify Collabs makes it easy to find brands that match your vibe, build affiliate relationships, get paid for what you sell, and track everything in one place.

7. Become a reseller

8. Sell print-on-demand goods 

Selling print-on-demand goods is another great option for starting a business on a low budget, and it’s one of the easiest online business ideas for creatives. If you have artistic skills, you can print your designs onto anything from t-shirts to mugs. This business model is a great startup idea you can launch in your free time and run without much oversight.

9. Become a freelancer

10. Create experiences

As a hospitality student, you may consider testing your skills by creating experiences. Can you build and sell local experiences to tourists, for example? Think biking or culinary tours of your city’s favorite spots. University students can offer a unique perspective of the place where they study. In person or virtual classes can also fall under this category. Have a skill and a knack for teaching? Advertise DIY workshops or online marketing courses.

11. Sell at pop-up shops and markets

🥪 Success Story: How a Vegan "Meat" Brand Launched at a Farmer's Market

Brother and sister team Kale and Aubry Walch tested their recipes at a local market before building their own plant-based deli. 👉 Read their story

12. Run a summer camp program 

13. Offer technical services

Market your business with Shopify’s customer marketing tools

Shopify has everything you need to capture more leads, send email campaigns, automate key marketing moments, segment your customers, and analyze your results. Plus, it’s all free for your first 10,000 emails sent per month.

14. Start and monetize a podcast

15. Create and sell student resources

16. Start a community-focused business or non-profit 

If your goal isn’t to make money but to gain skills and experience, you could start a cause-based business that gives back to a charity or community organization that you care about. Otherwise, your for-profit business can still aim to donate proceeds to a cause of your choice. Consider worthy causes that are close to home, like providing support for students on financial assistance.

17. Innovate and develop a new product

If you’re in an industrial design program, you have access to the tools and software to help you develop a product. If you stumble upon a great invention that could solve a pain point, don’t wait until you graduate to bring it to market. Tap into campus resources to launch your business while you’re still in college.

👩🏾‍🦱 Success Story: An Art Major Developed a Product to Fill a Market Gap

Yelitsa Jean-Charles was dissatisfied by the options for dolls with Black hair. So she designed her own. She built her successful business, Healthy Roots Dolls, to teach a generation to love their curls. 👉 Read Yelitsa’s story

18. Organize on-campus events

19. Try affiliate marketing

Affiliate marketing is a great way to make money online with minimal effort, once you set it up. This is one of the best business ideas for students with already busy schedules. To get started, you’ll need an audience, whether that’s a loyal group of subscribers on YouTube or an engaged Substack email list. You’ll then embed affiliate links in your content, promoting another brand’s products and making a commission when it leads to a sale. 

20. Offer branding and marketing services

The benefits of starting a business in college

School can give you the academic backing to pursue your dream career, but starting a business teaches you valuable lessons you won’t find in a classroom. There are several benefits to pursuing a business idea in college—and it’s not too late to cash in on them.

Gain real world experience 

Sure, business school can teach you theory and formulas, but there’s nothing like doing business to learn the ropes. Experience helps make your résumé stand out from the competition. 

Learn hands-on skills 

Strengthen your skills in empathy, delegation, stress management , customer service , and more. Student entrepreneurs have a leg up on fellow graduates once they hit the job market. The skills you learn outside the classroom become just as valuable as those learned in class. 

Build your professional network

By the time you graduate, you already have a contact list full of people to approach for references, mentorships, and even jobs. This network can include faculty, other students, and members of the local business community . 

Try out an industry before you graduate

Studying fashion management? Run your own business selling clothes online to get a taste for the business. Have an interest in working with animals? Try your hand at starting a pet business , offering services to pet owners like dog walking or cat sitting.

Flesh out your résumé

As a new graduate, your CV may be pretty sparse. But if you run your own business in college, you can add “CEO” to your list of accomplishments.

Earn extra cash

Saving to pay expenses and minimize debt is a good idea if you want to lessen the burden after you graduate. A part-time retail job can also be a source of income, but when you’re the boss, the earning potential is up to you.

Enjoy an income source that works around your studies

The common struggle of scheduling a part-time job around studying and classes can add stress. Work on your business on a flexible schedule and then go all in on your summer break.

Gain job opportunities

Your experience running a business will expose you to other people and businesses in your industry. If you make a great impression, these connections could lead directly to job offers after you graduate.

Prepare for your future

One of the biggest takeaways from the FIRE movement is that the earlier you start planning for retirement , the earlier it can happen. Earning income through a small business in college means that you may be able to start saving and investing now. 

💡For parents and teachers: Know a younger student looking for a summer opportunity? Browse age-appropriate business ideas for students in Shopify’s guides to business ideas for teens and business ideas for kids and help them start a business that sets them up for success.

How do I start a business as a college student?

Which business idea for college students is best for you? In short, your startup should reflect your interests and leverage your strengths. Ask and answer questions like:

• What am I good at?
• What skills do I have that could benefit others?
• Can any of my hobbies or interests become a small business?
• What’s important to me and what are my values ?
• How much time do I have to commit to a small business?
• How much will it cost to start a business ?
• How can I leverage resources at my college to help me start a business ?
• What are my goals?

The answers to these questions will also become a foundation for your business plan and brand guidelines . 

Graduate ahead of the class

There are infinite small business ideas for students of all ages. College students should especially take advantage of this exciting phase of life to explore all possibilities for the future—and graduate with a leg up on your classmates. Whether you sell products or services online or find unique opportunities in your field of study, you could be making money now doing what you love.

Feature image by Alice Mollon

• How to Start a Dropshipping Business- A Complete Playbook for 2024
• 17 Unique Business Ideas for You To Try This Year
• How To Write a Return Policy (+ Free Template) (2024)
• AliExpress Dropshipping- How to Dropship From AliExpress
• 130+ Dropshipping Products To Sell for Profit
• 29 Life-Changing Business Opportunities To Try
• How To Write the Perfect Business Plan in 9 Steps (2024)
• 6 Tips for How To Be a Successful Dropshipper (Full Playbook)
• The 21 Best Business Podcasts to Listen to in 2021
• 14 Must Watch TED Talks for Entrepreneurs

Business ideas for college students FAQ

What is the best business idea for college students.

The best business idea to pursue while you’re still in college is the one that fits best with your schedule, skills, and interests. There are a number of services you can offer that would benefit your built-in audience of fellow students. Profitable business ideas with low upfront costs include on-campus tech services, print-on demand sales, and maker businesses.

What can I sell as a university student?

University students can sell anything, provided you check age restrictions for selling products like alcohol and understand local laws that govern the product or service you’re selling. Creatives can sell prints through a photography business or dabble in jewelry making. Sell your skill through consulting or paid online courses. The possibilities are endless!

What are low cost college business ideas?

Low cost business ideas for college students are those that do not require upfront inventory, specialized equipment, or other costs to get started. For a small fee, anyone can start a business by setting up a simple website to sell goods or services. Try the Shopify Starter Plan to get up and running right from your social accounts.

What’s the easiest business to start in college?

The easiest businesses to start in college is one with a business model that allows you to have a flexible schedule, a low barrier to entry, and low initial investment. These include affiliate marketing, selling digital products, virtual assistant services, and dropshipping.

Keep up with the latest from Shopify

Get free ecommerce tips, inspiration, and resources delivered directly to your inbox.

By entering your email, you agree to receive marketing emails from Shopify.

popular posts

The point of sale for every sale.

Subscribe to our blog and get free ecommerce tips, inspiration, and resources delivered directly to your inbox.

Unsubscribe anytime. By entering your email, you agree to receive marketing emails from Shopify.

Latest from Shopify

Sep 4, 2024

Learn on the go. Try Shopify for free, and explore all the tools you need to start, run, and grow your business.

Try Shopify for free, no credit card required.

Small Business Trends

18 business ideas for college students to consider and pursue.

For many, college is a time of learning and growth. Yet, it’s also an ideal period to explore business ideas for college students.

The drive to earn extra money and the entrepreneurial spirit can align perfectly in these years. Starting a business during this phase can significantly expand opportunities and empower students to immediately apply what they’ve learned.

Read on to discover some prime ideas tailored for those eager to embark on college business ventures.

Here’s a word from Adam Erhart about the “7 Best Businesses for Beginners to Start in 2023.” Some will look familiar, like pet sitting, but the ones like honeybee and goat rental services are truly unique! It’s a good watch and supplement to the article:

Why Should College Students Start a Business?

If you’re a college student, here are some benefits you can obtain by starting your own business:

• Earn extra money: What college student couldn’t earn extra money? Starting a business can help you cover tuition, books, or living expenses. With a particularly profitable business idea, you could even save serious money for graduation when you’re on your own.
• Get a head start on your career: Many people start their careers once they’ve graduated from college. But if your dream is to start a business, jumping into entrepreneurship during college means you’re even closer to your goals upon graduating.
• Build an impressive resume: If you’re interested in a more traditional career path, acting on startup ideas during college still holds many benefits. Potential employers may notice your ambition, creativity, and leadership, giving you a better chance of scoring your dream job.
• Take advantage of networking opportunities: You have access to lots of help while in school, from other students and teachers to business centers and student organizations. Connect with others who have connections to your industry to share ideas or partner on a new venture.
• Start in a low-risk environment: Many college students have loans or parental assistance covering living expenses during college. Once you graduate, you may have extra expenses, a mortgage, or a family that makes you risk-averse. Starting young allows you to really jump in without doing any major harm to your future.

Read more: A College Student’s Guide to Launching a Startup

Our Methodology: The Best Business Ideas for College Students

In guiding college students towards successful entrepreneurial endeavors, we employ a specific set of criteria tailored to their unique needs and constraints. Each criterion is rated on a scale from 1 to 5, where 1 denotes the least importance and 5 indicates the highest importance in our review process:

• Importance: 5
• We prioritize business ideas that require minimal initial investment, considering the budget constraints typical for college students.
• The business should offer flexibility to accommodate a student’s class schedule and academic commitments. Ideas that require less time commitment or allow for variable working hours are preferred.
• Importance: 4
• Business ideas that provide students with valuable skills and experience, contributing to their resume and professional growth, are highly valued.
• Importance: 3
• We assess whether the business idea has the potential for growth and scalability, either during the college years or after graduation.
• The idea should cater to a genuine market need or demand, and it should be feasible for a student to implement with limited resources.
• The business idea should have a clear path to generating income, even if it might not be immediate, to ensure it’s financially worthwhile for the student.
• Given the digital proficiency and online engagement of most college students, business ideas that leverage digital platforms or online marketplaces are considered advantageous.
• Importance: 2
• Ideas that incorporate ethical practices and potentially provide a positive social impact resonate well with the values of many college students.

By applying these criteria, we aim to help college students identify business ideas that are not only feasible and flexible for their unique lifestyle but also provide opportunities for personal and professional growth.

Ideas for Local Businesses Founded by College Students

There are many startup business ideas you can run in your college town. If you’re looking to serve others in person as a university student, here are some small business options.

1. Tutoring Business

If you excel in a particular subject, help your fellow students as a tutor. You can charge for Expanding your knowledge is a great way to both help others and earn. If you’re proficient in a particular subject, why not share your expertise?

By offering tutoring sessions, you can charge either per session or establish packages for longer periods. Don’t limit yourself to just college peers; high school students can also benefit from your insights, broadening your client base. This business has a low startup cost and can be a great way to help others.

2. Cleaning Business

Every space, whether a home or an office, requires regular cleaning. If you’re seeking a venture that’s evergreen, a cleaning business might be your answer.

Start by investing in essential cleaning equipment, and then promote your services to homeowners and businesses in your locality. With consistent service quality, you can establish a steady client roster and scale over time.

3. Essay Writing

For the eloquent writers out there, a business opportunity awaits. Students constantly face challenges in crafting the perfect essay. While you shouldn’t write assignments for them, providing templates, outlines, or even just guidance can be invaluable.

Moreover, offering editing services ensures their work is polished and ready for submission, adding another potential revenue stream. There’s almost no startup cost, and you can scale with additional services.

4. Delivery Service

The modern world thrives on convenience, and delivery services are in vogue. If you have access to a car or even a bicycle, start your own delivery business, with high market demand in many areas.

Deliver meals, groceries, or essential items around the campus or the local town. While apps can be useful partners, a more personalized approach with posters and word-of-mouth can also yield customers.

5. Plan Local Events

For those who find joy in bringing people together and orchestrating memorable events, an event planning service is a viable business. From birthdays to corporate gatherings, events are numerous and varied.

While much of your organizational work might be digital, being present on the ground, especially on event days, ensures everything aligns with your vision.

6. Personal Trainer

Physical well-being is on everyone’s list, making personal training a sought-after service. If you’re passionate about fitness and health, leverage that to help others in their fitness journey.

By collaborating with local gyms or offering specialized sessions at clients’ homes, you can craft unique workout plans catering to individual needs.

7. Photography Business

The world of photography is vast and constantly evolving. If you possess a quality camera and have a knack for capturing moments, this business might be for you.

Whether it’s covering local events, offering portrait sessions, or even landscape photography, the possibilities are vast. Additionally, the digital space provides avenues like online galleries or stock photo platforms to monetize your work further.

8. Food Delivery Services

In today’s fast-paced world, convenience is a key selling point, and food delivery taps into this need. If you wish to zero in on this niche, establish collaborations with local eateries that lack a delivery component.

Instead of just being the middleman, establish a business framework, either contracting with the restaurants directly or setting up a personalized delivery service where you charge customers a specific fee per delivery. There’s tons of demand for this service, and many digital platforms can support your growth.

9. Sports Coach

Sports play a pivotal role in many students’ lives, providing both physical fitness and discipline. If you possess athletic skills and a knack for teaching, consider venturing into coaching.

Local schools often seek skilled individuals to enhance their teams. Alternatively, offering private coaching sessions to student-athletes can provide a more tailored experience, improving their skill set significantly.

10. Pet Sitting Business

Pets are cherished family members for many, and ensuring their well-being is paramount, especially when owners are away. If you share a deep affinity for animals, this business avenue can be both emotionally and financially rewarding.

By providing a trustworthy and loving environment, you can watch over dogs, cats, or other pets in the comfort of their homes, providing owners with peace of mind during their travels. There are even digital platforms you can use to market this service and connect with clients.

Summary Table

This table provides a concise summary of local college business ideas:

Initial Investment :

• Low : Minimal financial outlay (like just promoting services online or using skills and tools you already have).
• Moderate : Some investment is needed for equipment, renting space, or initial inventory.

Target Market : A general classification of the primary audience that the business aims to serve.

Online Business Ideas for College Students

Online small businesses often allow college students to serve a niche market for a low initial investment. Here are some opportunities to consider if you’d like to start a business online.

11. Develop Online Courses

The e-learning industry is booming, with many individuals seeking knowledge online. If you have expertise in a particular subject or skill, consider structuring it into an online course.

Whether you’re conducting live classes or creating pre-recorded modules, the flexibility allows students globally to benefit at their convenience, all while you generate revenue.

12. Social Media Platform

The power of social media is undeniable in today’s interconnected world. If you possess technical skills, consider developing a niche social platform tailored for your university or a specific interest group.

Such a platform could operate on subscription models or rely on advertising, depending on your target audience and the value proposition.

13. Web Design

In this digital age, a strong online presence is crucial for businesses and individuals alike. If you have a flair for design combined with technical prowess, web design can be a lucrative avenue.

By offering customized website solutions, either charging per project or on an hourly basis, you can cater to a wide array of clients, from local entrepreneurs to larger corporations.

14. Sell Online

E-commerce is a dynamic sector with immense growth potential. If you have unique products or can source them, establish an online storefront. Whether you’re leveraging existing marketplaces or designing your own website, ensure efficient inventory management.

For those with limited space, drop-shipping or partnering with print-on-demand services can streamline operations, letting you focus on marketing and customer service.

15. App Developer

With the proliferation of smartphones, apps have become an integral part of our daily lives, presenting an incredible business opportunity. If you have coding skills and a unique idea, consider developing your own app.

This can either be a standalone product where users pay a fee or a freemium model with in-app purchases. Always ensure that your app brings significant value to encourage users to invest.

For those who might not want to launch an independent app, there’s a thriving market where businesses seek developers to bring their digital visions to life through contractual arrangements.

16. Market Research

In today’s competitive market landscape, businesses are in constant need of insights to tailor their strategies effectively.

By offering research services, you can assist them in gathering crucial data. This could range from online surveys that gauge consumer sentiment to in-depth focus groups that dive deep into product feedback or usability studies to optimize products.

Position yourself as a trusted intermediary between companies and the information they seek, and monetize this essential service.

17. Translation Services

In our globalized world, bridging language barriers is invaluable. If you’re proficient in multiple languages, leverage that skill by offering translation services. This could involve translating business documents, marketing materials, or even literary works.

As businesses expand internationally, there’s an increasing demand for professionals who can accurately and effectively communicate messages across diverse linguistic landscapes.

18. Transcription Services

The digital age has seen an explosion in audio and video content, from corporate webinars to podcast episodes. This surge has concurrently increased the demand for transcription services.

Whether for accessibility reasons, content repurposing, or detailed analysis, turning spoken words into written text is an invaluable service. If you possess keen listening skills and a fast typing speed, this venture could be a perfect match.

Ensure accuracy and timeliness in your transcriptions to build a reputation in this expanding sector.

This table provides a concise summary of online college business ideas:

• Low : Minimal costs, primarily relying on skills, online platforms, and minimal tools.
• Moderate : Some investment in specialized tools, software, advertising, or initial inventory.
• High : Significant financial outlay, particularly for development-heavy projects or infrastructure.

Target Market : Gives an overview of the primary potential clientele or user base for the specific business.

Local vs. Online Business Ideas for College Students

To assist college students in understanding the potential opportunities available, here’s a table showing the differences between local and online business ideas:

What Business Idea is Best for College Students?

The best college business ideas vary based on each student’s skills and goals. However, some options that can be both fun and profitable include web design, managing social media platforms, tutoring younger students, and running a writing service.

Read more: Small Business Ideas for Beginners

What Business is Most Profitable for Students?

The profitability of a student business idea can vary widely based on the market, business plan, and startup costs.

However, online businesses tend to be inexpensive to start, and thus can be quite profitable. Popular ideas include digital marketing, graphic design, and running a YouTube channel.

Image: Envato Elements

© Copyright 2003 - 2024, Small Business Trends LLC. All rights reserved. "Small Business Trends" is a registered trademark.

The Complete Guide to Business Ideas for College Students

Disclosure: This content is reader-supported, which means if you click on some of our links that we may earn a commission.

More than ever, young people are starting businesses. We’ve long since passed the days when starting a business in college was an outlier. Coming up with strong ideas that will launch a profitable business is more important than ever.

The life of a college student is hectic. While there may be some free time, most students have a full plate of work, classes, homework, and socializing. Starting an independent business with the right business idea can make a student’s crazy schedule easier to manage because it’s more lucrative and flexible than most part-time jobs. It’s also a great way to build a solid foundation for the future.

Finding the right business idea in college can be tough because founders and inventors still in school often don’t have enough real-world experience or connections to get investor funding, anticipate urgent pain points, or recognize whether their ideas are viable. This can lead to products that aren’t practical, wasted energy and time, and administrative and legal complications. 

Why College Business Ideas Are So Important

There are many benefits to starting a business while pursuing a college degree. It’s a chance to earn extra income with flexible hours. Running a business offers professional experience and a chance to try out different niches and industries. College can be challenging for hands-on learners, and starting a business in college provides an opportunity to apply the theories and ideas that come up in the classroom.

26% of entrepreneurs start two or more businesses in their life. With each business, owners and founders learn new tools and strategies that contribute to future success. A classroom can be the best place to test a risky idea. Coming up with business ideas in college isn’t a strategy for leaving school early; it’s an opportunity to make the most of your college investment. A college campus is also a great place to build a business toolbox. 

College startups offer an opportunity to hone skill sets that may be useful in the future. For example, if your business ideas are primarily mobile apps, you may want to take computer science classes to learn how they are made (not necessarily to make them yourself). Relevant college courses that relate to your business ideas can provide a better foundation for communication with your future team and help you set realistic expectations for your industry. 

Learning new skills can also connect you to people who share your passion and help hone your business ideas. Starting a business in college can also make it easier to narrow your sights on the right job after graduation.

Even better, students have access to heavy discounts to set up technology for a new business.  Colleges may offer copying and printing services, free Wi-Fi, extensive libraries, and private online resources that make it easier and less expensive to launch a business. And there’s no better place than a college campus for word-of-mouth advertising.

How To Develop Business Ideas As a College Student

42% of startups fail because the business idea isn’t something customers need. Instead of running with any business idea while in college, focus on the right one. 

When you’re trying to find the perfect product to sell, there are three questions that you should ask:

• What do people need?
• What do you love?
• What do you know?

Let’s dive into each of these further.

1. What do people need?

Start with your daily life and any problems you run into regularly. Many of these problems won’t seem like a big deal, like the fruit you buy at the grocery store molding before you can eat it. But you aren’t the only one to encounter it. You could invent or find a dropshipped product that can slow the molding process and keep your fruit fresh to solve this problem. Or maybe you want to address financial planning and budgeting for students with an app.

As you’re looking for problems to solve, think about the industries the problem relates to and other related problems. Then keep brainstorming about what manufacturing and development might look like or the supply chain. 

It might feel like these concerns are too complex to worry about yet. Still, if you plan to start a business while in college, you’ll soon realize that thinking about any new ideas from every possible angle is necessary for success. 

Excellent planning can cut down on risk, open up exciting avenues for growth, and help build the relationships any startup needs.

The problem you aim to solve does not need to require a product. Perhaps you encounter an issue of time, such as needing someone to walk your dog during the day while you work.

Other examples of business ideas that may solve a problem include:

• App development
• Dog walking
• Virtual assistant
• Tech support
• Affiliate marketing

When looking for problems to solve, involve others. Ask friends or family members what daily issues they’d like to fix, mitigate, or solve. Research what people search for or buy online and what issues they aim to solve or prevent.

2. What do you love?

Another great source for business ideas is your hobbies and passions. The business idea will connect to the communities you are already part of. The challenges and pain points will be easy for you to understand because of your experience and expertise.

Launching a business is more than making money. It’s easy to bail on a struggling business when it’s not a passion project, so coming up with original ideas is a better strategy than pulling from a list of someone else’s college business ideas. 

The right business for college students won’t just turn a profit. It will be a mission to dedicate significant time and energy to. Maybe you made memes for fun in high school. You could build a business in social media management in college. Find an area you already have relevant experience in and turn it into a service you can offer for profit. Other passion-based business ideas might be:

• Creating or testing video games
• Starting a blog
• Running a podcast
• Editing term papers
• Creating crocheting, knitting, or sewing patterns
• Logo and graphic design

Think about the things you already enjoy and see if there’s a way to turn that into a profitable venture.

3. What do you know?

For some, the first step toward a new business idea will pop up while on campus. For example, suppose you were at a career fair and noticed that students asked for assistance with grad school applications or career advice. In that case, you might think about creating a career consulting and application review service for students on campus. 

There are a ton of business ideas that would work at any college or university. Make the most of college connections, classrooms, and concerns. These business ideas can work on any campus:

• Tutoring/teaching
• Event planning
• Personal training or exercise classes
• Moving and packing services
• Lawn care/landscaping
• Painting and general handyman services

Consider what you already know how to do and who you know that may be looking for help. Use these answers to identify where you can make a difference.

Quick Tips To Improve & Refine Your Business Ideas 

Whether you’re just starting or have been playing with business ideas for a while, these quick tips can help you hone your loose thoughts into a tight business idea to start while in school.

Find a niche

No matter what business idea comes out on top, there will be stiff competition. In addition to popular local businesses, any new company will compete with a rapidly growing online market. 

It may seem counterintuitive, but the most effective way to grow an audience for a new business is to select a small and specific segment of people to market to. For a baking business, this might mean limiting baked goods to custom-decorated cookies or wedding cakes. For a personal trainer, focus on a specific type of exercise or a single type of fitness you excel at, like strength training for endurance runners. 

Every industry can benefit from innovative ideas, and the deeper you go into an area of interest, the more potential problems and solutions will rise to the surface. 

Ask a mentor

An excellent resource for college business ideas is the campus community. College is typically a moment where there is more time to try new things, meet new people, and learn from experts in different areas of study. 

These qualities make any college campus a hotbed of exciting and valuable business ideas. Set up an appointment with a mentor or professor on campus, organize a meeting with like-minded friends to brainstorm ideas, or set up a spot on campus that’s ideal for meeting new people and collect their opinions about your latest product ideas.

If you can find an expert or professor in the field of your general business ideas, having a mentor can be extremely valuable for first-time entrepreneurs. 

Read reviews

If you have a niche but haven’t settled on “the” business idea yet, start reading product or service reviews in your area of interest. You’ve probably had multiple “Aha!” moments scanning reviews in the past but didn’t write your ideas down because you were too busy shopping! 

Reviews are also a great resource to refine and develop an idea that’s still in progress. Learn from someone else’s mistakes before investing your time and energy in a new college business.

Be sure to look at negative reviews, too. As you read through what actual users and customers have to say about products and services in the area you’re interested in, you’ll see where companies are doing things well and where there is a problem to solve or a challenge that needs addressing. Researching user experiences is part of a broader concept called market research, which includes identifying pain points.

Long-Term Strategies for the Right Business Ideas for College Students

While the above tips are things you can start doing right now to come up with business ideas, these tips and strategies are looking to your long-term success.

Practice giving and receiving feedback

Students in creative majors get a lot of practice taking criticism since most writing and visual arts classes focus on making projects and participating in classroom critiques. Most other majors don’t get as much of this experience, but it’s essential to learn how to accept and use critical feedback on your ideas, especially if they have significant personal meaning. 

Criticism can be tough to take and sometimes our emotional responses to criticism can overpower the value of the critical input that we receive. Try to remember that anyone offering feedback is a potential future customer. There’s a good chance that anything that you’re hearing in a critique will come up again once people are paying for your products.

Practice giving constructive criticism and asking for it back from others on your ideas, business plan, and more. Don’t get defensive. Instead, reflect on the feedback and see if it makes sense with what you’re trying to build and accomplish. 

Remember, just because you receive feedback does not mean that you’ll implement all of it. Think critically about all feedback and criticism you receive and identify what makes sense to use and what doesn’t.

Come up with a business plan

Do you want your new business to last beyond college, or is it just something for right now? Starting any business is a commitment, so it’s smart to think about the long-term costs and benefits of each business idea. 

As you evaluate each of your business ideas, ask yourself:

• What will it take to scale? (tools, resources, labor, etc.)
• What are the risks?
• Will you need to hire help to make it work?
• Does the idea require skills and knowledge you don’t have yet?
• What kind of funding will the idea need? 

As you are getting ready to launch your new business, take the time to write a real business plan. Business plans include details like your market research, your specific products and/or services, your sales and marketing strategies, your plan for funding and investments, and more. You may not think you need one yet, but having a detailed business plan increases your chances of success with your new company.

You can use business plan software to assist in this step. A great software we recommend for beginners is LivePlan . LivePlan will walk you through the entire business plan process piece by piece, and even includes templates so that you aren’t starting from scratch. With the tutorials and support for first-time business owners, you can’t go wrong with LivePlan. 

LivePlan’s Standard package is just $15 per month and includes step-by-step instruction, a pitch builder, over 500 sample plan templates, financial forecasting, and financial statements. Plus, it comes with a 60-day money-back guarantee.

Start small and grow slowly

An initial great idea doesn’t always lead to a great business. What can seem like tiny details in the planning process can have a significant future impact on the product, marketing, and sales. Take some time to experiment and test ideas before jumping on your first inspiration.

The right business idea for a college student like you won’t be the best business idea for everyone. A valuable business idea should be fit for your unique skills and abilities. It should be something you can create and run in the extra time you have available during the school year and holiday breaks. You’ll also want it to be something you enjoy or care about enough that you will put your business ahead of the friends and activities outside of school that are also vying for your time and attention.

When a business sees early success, it can feel like every moment should go toward growing the business. But if your business idea gets big too fast, you’ll be unable to balance school and work, and both will suffer. Look for ideas with growth potential that you can start small, like a t-shirt business on campus. As school becomes less demanding and your marketing and business operations skills improve, you’ll find the right time to add new products, expand to other campuses, or start utilizing social media.

As you start coming up with business ideas, this guide for starting a business for under $100 will walk you through creating a business plan, naming your business, and setting up hosting and a domain name.

The most budget-conscious way to launch a new business is to start an ecommerce site. This simple guide, How to Start an Online Store and Make Your First Sale , has everything you need to start selling with your new business idea!

And after launching your business, don’t sit on branding! Here is a guide to building your brand and why it is your most powerful marketing tool.

Make your website better. Instantly.

Keep reading about operations.

How To Start A Handyman Business When You Don’t Have Much $

Starting a handyman business is easier than you think, even when your budget to launch one is limited.  It comes down to seven steps— establish…

How to Set Up a Virtual Phone System in 15 Minutes or Less

Setting up a virtual phone system is easy—it takes just three steps and less than 15 minutes.  Sure, you can spend a lot longer getting…

NimbleWork Review

Finding a management system that integrates smoothly with your company’s workflow can be a daunting task. With so many options available, how do you know…

ONLYOFFICE Review

Working on the cloud has many advantages, but you may prefer having all your software housed under your own servers. That way, you have total…

Oyster Review

Hiring top talent is hard enough on its own. Doing it across borders can seem downright impossible. Navigating complex legal requirements, tax regulations, and labor…

Best Virtual Mailboxes Compared

A virtual mailbox gives online businesses a physical address to receive mail and packages. This is a very straightforward service Among the six virtual mailbox…

Best PEO Companies

PEO services take a lot of the burden of HR, employee and benefits administration, and more off of your organization’s plate. We looked into many…

Funding Circle Review

Funding Circle is a lending platform that aims to help small businesses secure the finances they need. The service offers several perks that attract entrepreneurs,…

Replicon Review

Whether you’re a new business with a small workforce or a large enterprise with thousands of employees, there’s one common, underlying necessity for teams of…

Looka Review

Making a good first impression on customers is crucial, so your company’s branding needs to be spot-on. Looka helps you do this by harnessing the…

Best Email Hosting Providers Compared

Just like a website, emails need hosting too. Most hosting plans come with email hosting baked in, but that’s not always the case. Furthermore, where…

Xoxoday Review

Happy employees equal happy customers, and happy customers equal business success. To help you cultivate happy employees, Xoxoday offers a trio of innovative employee engagement…

KnowledgeOwl Review

What if you had a digital library of helpful content that was easily accessible from anywhere, at any time? KnowledgeOwl offers this, functioning like a…

Traqq Review

Tracking your team’s work hours and monitoring their activities takes a lot of time. Filling out spreadsheets and calculating payroll manually is even more difficult…

Wepik Review

Let’s be honest—most of us like free stuff. Unfortunately, it’s pretty difficult to find anything that’s actually free anymore. And it’s even harder to find…

Over 300,000 websites use Crazy Egg to improve what's working, fix what isn't and test new ideas.

Last Updated on November 6, 2023

College Student Business Plan Template – Free Access

Harry Foster

Published on May 09, 2024, updated on Jul 19, 2024

Throughout undergraduate studies, there are abundant chances to engage in entrepreneurship competitions. These events not only enhance personal experiences and foster well-rounded skills but also hold the promise of transforming innovative business concepts into reality. Yet, for students unacquainted with professional jargon like market dynamics, operational frameworks, profit strategies, and risk assessment, crafting a comprehensive and polished business plan can pose challenges and bewilderment. This article, coupled with the collaborative online tool Boardmix Whiteboard , outlines the process of crafting a top-notch business plan tailored for college students. Its goal is to aid those gearing up for competitions or nurturing entrepreneurial ambitions.

1. Cover and Table of Contents

The cover and table of contents create the first impression when others review our plan. Therefore, accuracy is crucial.

- Cover: The cover should reflect basic project information, including the project logo, name, responsible person, affiliated school, advisor, and team members.

- Copyright Statement: A separate page for a more formal appearance.

- Table of Contents: It's recommended to include hyperlinks for easy navigation, saving time for reviewers during online evaluation.

2. Market Pain Point Analysis

This section explains the rationale behind our product. We need to integrate and explain current market issues, target user needs, reasons behind these issues, market size, and prospects. A clear and specific analysis of the market status will make our proposal more persuasive.

- Market Issue Description: Use cases, reports, stories, and data to illustrate the pain points vividly.

- Market Reason Analysis: Elaborate on the essence behind the issues, detailing each point.

- Market Size and Prospects: Identify the population or scenarios that need solutions and assess the prospects through data research. Boardmix Whiteboard offers a wealth of market analysis case resources for beginners.

3. Product Introduction

After clarifying market pain points, we need to explain and organize the solutions our team can propose, adhering to principles of specificity, clarity, and focus.

- Product Technology: Describe the technology used, functionalities, and problems solved, including technical parameters, approaches, and outcomes.

- Product Images: Provide physical, model, or operational flow images with explanatory text.

- Product Advantages: Highlight the product's innovation, market, and technical feasibility. Use Boardmix's built-in Competitive Analysis Template to compare our product with competitors on performance and price, making advantages more apparent.

4. Business Model Introduction

This section introduces the feasible operational model constructed by the entire team, centered around the product. It includes user pain points, customer segmentation, unique selling points, solutions, channels, key metrics, competitive barriers, cost analysis, and revenue analysis. A more intuitive method is to use the Business Model Canvas to introduce the business model.

5. Marketing Strategy

To make a product known to the public and market, we need to plan marketing strategies.

- Target Customer Analysis: Analyze who our target customers are, including their numbers, demand levels, and purchasing power.

- Promotion Strategy: How can we make customers aware of our product? What means and channels can we use?

6. SWOT Analysis

SWOT is a strategic analysis method representing a company's internal capabilities (strengths, weaknesses) and external environmental factors (opportunities, threats). Using it for project analysis can better illustrate the feasibility of implementation. Boardmix includes a built-in SWOT Analysis Template and case resources.

Try Boardmix for Free

7. Risk Analysis and Response

Conducting risk analysis and developing contingency plans are crucial to prevent business plan failure. Potential risks include financial, market, technical, transactional, and management risks.

8. Financial Data and Financing

- Equity Structure and Financing Needs: Clarify the current equity structure, share distribution, reasons for holding shares, and expected financing in terms of share percentage and amount. Specify how the funds will be used.

- Financial Data Tables: Include profit analysis, sales forecasts, etc.

9. Team Member Introduction

- Project Members: List professional expertise, positions, and specific responsibilities. Include relevant achievements if applicable.

- Advisors: Research expertise in the project's field and industry, influence, achievements, and specific responsibilities.

10. Future Plans

It includes short-term and long-term plans with achievable goals.

11. Appendices

It includes certificates, patent introductions, other relevant project materials, research data, project practice images, etc.

This marks the completion of a thorough template for a university student entrepreneurship plan. Organize your materials in line with the provided information, and you're bound to make a lasting impression.

In the process of entrepreneurial planning, conducting extensive business analysis and planning is essential. Boardmix Whiteboard stands out as a robust and feature-rich online whiteboard software designed to foster creativity.

It simplifies the creation of diverse graphics and charts, offering an array of templates for knowledge organization and idea clarification, thus proving highly user-friendly for university students and beginners alike.

Additionally, Boardmix facilitates real-time collaborative editing, enabling online meetings, brainstorming sessions, and presentations, thereby enhancing team collaboration.

Furthermore, Boardmix boasts a wealth of high-quality case studies spanning enterprise management, marketing, operations, and various scenarios, serving as a valuable free learning platform. Boardmix Whiteboard is currently available for personal use at no cost. Give ti a try today!

Using the Business Canvas Model to Create Business Strategy

Understanding Class Diagram with Example

Exploring Ecomaps with Examples and Technologies for Better Analysis

Business Plan Template for Students

• Great for beginners
• Ready-to-use, fully customizable Subcategory
• Get started in seconds

Thinking of starting your own business as a student? We've got you covered! ClickUp's Business Plan Template for Students is the ultimate tool to help you turn your entrepreneurial dreams into reality.

With this template, you can:

• Develop a strategic and detailed plan for your business idea
• Outline your objectives, marketing strategies, and financial projections
• Structure your organizational hierarchy for effective management
• Impress potential investors and stakeholders with a professional and well-thought-out plan
• Stay organized and focused on your goals throughout the entire business development process

Don't let your student status hold you back from achieving your business goals. Get started with ClickUp's Business Plan Template for Students today and pave the way for your future success!

Business Plan Template for Students Benefits

When students use the Business Plan Template, they gain a competitive edge and set themselves up for success by:

• Structuring their business ideas and goals in a comprehensive and organized manner
• Presenting a professional and well-thought-out plan to potential investors or stakeholders
• Creating a clear roadmap for their business, ensuring they stay on track and achieve their objectives
• Developing a solid understanding of key business components like marketing strategies and financial projections
• Gaining valuable experience in business planning and management, setting them up for future entrepreneurial endeavors.

Main Elements of Students Business Plan Template

When it comes to creating a solid business plan, ClickUp's Business Plan Template for Students has got you covered. Here are the main elements you'll find in this template:

• Custom Statuses: Track the progress of your business plan with statuses like Complete, In Progress, Needs Revision, and To Do, ensuring that every step is accounted for and easily manageable.
• Custom Fields: Utilize custom fields such as Reference, Approved, and Section to add important details to your business plan, keeping everything organized and accessible in one place.
• Custom Views: Explore different views like Topics, Status, Timeline, Business Plan, and Getting Started Guide, enabling you to visualize your plan in various formats and dive deep into specific areas of your business plan.
• Collaboration: Collaborate seamlessly with your team by assigning tasks, leaving comments, and attaching files directly within ClickUp, streamlining the entire business planning process.
• Integrations: Integrate with other tools such as Google Drive, Dropbox, and Slack to streamline your workflow and ensure all relevant documents and communication are easily accessible.

With ClickUp's Business Plan Template for Students, you'll have all the tools you need to create a comprehensive, well-structured business plan that will impress potential investors and set you on the path to success.

How To Use Business Plan Template for Students

Creating a business plan as a student can be a daunting task, but with the help of ClickUp's Business Plan Template, you can break it down into manageable steps. Follow these six steps to create a comprehensive business plan that sets you up for success:

1. Define your business idea

Start by clearly defining your business idea. What product or service will you offer? Who is your target audience? What makes your business unique? Use the Docs feature in ClickUp to brainstorm and outline your business concept.

2. Conduct market research

Next, conduct thorough market research to understand your industry, competitors, and target market. Analyze market trends, customer preferences, and potential demand for your product or service. Use the Table view in ClickUp to organize and analyze your research data.

3. Outline your business structure

Determine the legal structure of your business and outline its organizational structure. Will you operate as a sole proprietorship, partnership, or corporation? Define the roles and responsibilities of key team members and any necessary partnerships. Utilize the Board view in ClickUp to visualize and assign tasks related to your business structure.

4. Develop a marketing strategy

Create a comprehensive marketing strategy to promote your business and attract customers. Identify your unique selling propositions, target marketing channels, and budget for marketing activities. Use the Calendar view in ClickUp to plan and schedule your marketing campaigns.

5. Create a financial plan

Develop a financial plan that includes projected revenue, expenses, and profit margins. Determine your startup costs, pricing strategy, and sales projections. Use custom fields in ClickUp to track and calculate financial data accurately.

6. Set goals and milestones

Set specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound (SMART) goals for your business. Break them down into smaller milestones and create a timeline to track your progress. Utilize the Goals feature in ClickUp to set and monitor your business goals.

By following these six steps and utilizing ClickUp's Business Plan Template, you can create a comprehensive and well-structured business plan that will guide you towards success in your entrepreneurial journey.

Get Started with ClickUp’s Business Plan Template for Students

Students who are aspiring entrepreneurs or learning about business management can use the ClickUp Business Plan Template to develop a comprehensive and structured plan for their business idea.

First, hit "Add Template" to sign up for ClickUp and add the template to your Workspace. Make sure you designate which Space or location in your Workspace you'd like this template applied.

Next, invite relevant members or guests to your Workspace to start collaborating.

Now you can take advantage of the full potential of this template to create a solid business plan:

• Use the Topics View to organize your plan into different sections such as Executive Summary, Market Analysis, Marketing Strategy, Financial Projections, etc.
• The Status View will help you track the progress of each section, with statuses like Complete, In Progress, Needs Revision, and To Do.
• The Timeline View will allow you to set deadlines and milestones for each section, ensuring you stay on track.
• The Business Plan View will give you an overview of the entire plan, allowing you to see how each section fits together.
• The Getting Started Guide View will provide you with step-by-step instructions on how to use the template effectively.

Customize your business plan further by utilizing the three custom fields: Reference, Approved, and Section. These fields will help you keep track of external resources, approval status, and the specific section each task belongs to.

Monitor and analyze your progress using the various views and custom fields to ensure your business plan is comprehensive and well-structured.

• Business Plan Template for Jollibee
• Business Plan Template for Strategic Planning
• Business Plan Template for Woolworths
• Business Plan Template for Ui Designers
• Business Plan Template for Shoe Retailers

Template details

Free forever with 100mb storage.

Free training & 24-hours support

Serious about security & privacy

Highest levels of uptime the last 12 months

• Product Roadmap
• Affiliate & Referrals
• On-Demand Demo
• Integrations
• Consultants
• Gantt Chart
• Native Time Tracking
• Automations
• Kanban Board
• vs Airtable
• vs Basecamp
• vs MS Project
• vs Smartsheet
• Software Team Hub
• PM Software Guide

Table of contents

Earn money while studying: 15 business ideas for college students.

Have questions on formation, banking and taxes?

Schedule a FREE consultation with a formation and compliance expert today 📞

With the rise of the gig economy and the increasing demand for entrepreneurship, college students have a unique opportunity to turn their passions and skills into profitable ventures. 

Whether you’re looking to make some extra cash, build your resume, or simply explore your entrepreneurial spirit, numerous business ideas can be executed from the comfort of your dorm room or campus. 

In this article, we’ll explore the best business ideas for college students, from building your personal brand online to offering technical services and tutoring. 

Is It Possible to Start a Business While Being a College Student?

Yes, it is possible to start a business while being a college student. You can start a business with relatively no cash . The internet has made the process easier than it used to be. You no longer need a physical storefront or a large investment.

Instead, you can leverage your creativity, skills, and knowledge to create a successful business from your laptop or smartphone. Whether you’re looking to sell products online, offer services, or simply build your personal brand, there are numerous opportunities for you to get started.

Why Start a Business Even as a College Student?

Starting a business as a college student has numerous benefits. Firstly, it allows you to explore your entrepreneurial spirit and test your ideas in a low-risk environment. 

Secondly, starting a business can help you develop valuable skills such as leadership, communication, and time management, all of which are highly sought after by employers. 

Thirdly, it can provide you with a source of income, allowing you to gain financial independence and freedom. Finally, starting a business can allow you to make a positive impact in your community and the world, by solving problems and creating value for others.

15 Business Ideas for College Students

The entrepreneurial spirit can strike at any time, and finding creative ways to make money while still in school can be a great way to gain valuable experience and financial independence. 

Here are 15 business ideas that are perfect for college students, whether it’s during the school year or over the summer break:

Build Your Personal Brand Online 

With social media platforms and blogging websites, it’s never been more convenient to build your personal brand . Create content around your interests, expertise, and experiences to build a following. This can help you monetize your online presence through affiliate marketing, sponsored posts, or even offering your own products or services.

Sell Items at Pop-Up Stores or Online

Use your creativity and entrepreneurial spirit to source unique items, design your own products, or thrift for treasures to sell at pop-up stores or online marketplaces like Etsy or eBay. This type of business is flexible and can be adapted to fit your busy college schedule.

Resell Different Items of Interest

Buy popular items at a low price and sell them for a profit, either online or in person. This could include limited edition sneakers, collectible items, or trending products. Keep an eye on market trends and demands to make the most of your reselling venture.

Pet Sitting

If you love animals, pet sitting is a great way to earn some extra cash. Offer your services to friends, family, or neighbors, or sign up on websites like Rover to connect with clients. This is a flexible and enjoyable option, especially during breaks when people may be on vacation.

Babysitting

Babysitting is a classic way to make money while still in school. Offer your services to family, friends, or neighbors, or use websites like Care.com to find clients. Babysitting is in high demand, particularly during evenings and weekends, making it a perfect side gig for students.

Cleaning Business

Start a cleaning business and offer services such as house cleaning, dorm room cleaning, or even laundry services. This business idea is flexible and can easily fit around your class schedule. Plus, it’s always in demand, as people are constantly looking for help with cleaning tasks.

Become a Freelancer

Freelancing allows you to offer your skills in areas like writing, graphic design, web development, or social media management. Platforms like Upwork or Fiverr can help you find clients and build your portfolio. You can also set up an LLC as a freelancer to reap the benefits of tax advantages. 

Offer Technical Services

If you’re tech-savvy, you can offer services like computer repair, software installation, or smartphone troubleshooting. Advertise your services on campus, online, or through word of mouth. This is a great way to put your technical skills to use and make extra money.

To excel as a tutor, you need to first identify the subjects or areas in which you have expertise and passion. You can then advertise your services on campus, through social media, or by joining online platforms like Wyzant or Tutor.com. When working with students, be patient, empathetic, and prepared with effective teaching strategies. 

Essay Writing

You can offer your writing skills to help students with essays, research papers, or other writing assignments. This is a great way to utilize your writing skills and make money in your spare time.

Translation Services

If you’re fluent in multiple languages, offer translation services to individuals or businesses. This can include document translation, language tutoring, or even providing interpretation services at events.

Become a Local Reviewer

As a local reviewer, you will assess and write reviews for products, services, or events within your local area or community. Offering your services as a local reviewer, include providing honest reviews of local businesses, restaurants, and attractions. This can lead to paid partnerships, sponsored content, or even free products and services in exchange for your reviews. 

Delivery Service

With the rise of food delivery apps and online shopping, there’s always a need for reliable delivery drivers. Offer your services as a delivery driver or courier for local businesses or sign up with apps like DoorDash or UberEats. This is a flexible gig that can work around your class schedule and help you earn extra cash.

Organize Student Trips

If you love planning events and have a knack for organizing, consider organizing student trips. This could be anything from weekend getaways to spring break trips. Work with travel agencies or plan the trips yourself, and charge a fee for your services. This business idea allows you to explore new places while helping fellow students create lasting memories.

Run a Summer Camp Program 

During the summer break, consider organizing and running a summer camp program for kids. This could be a day camp focused on sports, arts, or academics, or even an overnight camp. This business idea requires careful planning and organization, but it’s an excellent way to gain leadership experience, work with kids, and make money during the summer months.

8 Steps to Start a Business

Once you’ve settled on a business idea and a suitable business name , it’s time to take actionable steps to bring your idea to life. Here are eight direct steps to help you start your business:

• Create a Business Plan: A business plan helps you focus on your objectives and serves as a guide for decision-making as you grow your business. You need to have a business plan to better manage your business.
• Choose Your Business Structure: Decide on the legal structure of your business, such as sole proprietorship, partnership, limited liability company (LLC) , or corporation. This decision affects taxation, personal liability, and legal requirements.
• Register Your Business: Choose a unique and memorable name for your business and register it with the appropriate government authorities. This may include registering your business name, obtaining an Employer Identification Number (EIN), and registering for state and local taxes.
• Obtain Necessary Licenses and Permits: Depending on your business type and location, you may need to obtain licenses and permits to operate legally. Research the requirements in your area and ensure you comply with all regulations.
• Open a Business Bank Account: Keep your personal and business finances separate by opening a dedicated business bank accoun t. This makes it easier to manage your business finances and track your expenses and income.
• Secure Funding: Determine the amount of capital you need to start your business and identify potential funding sources, such as personal savings, loans, grants, or investors. Create a detailed budget to guide your financial decisions and help secure the necessary funding.
• Get Business Insurance: Protect your business from potential risks and liabilities by obtaining the appropriate insurance coverage. This may include general liability insurance, property insurance, or professional liability insurance, depending on your business type and needs.
• Promote Your Business: Develop a marketing strategy to attract customers and build awareness for your business. This may include creating a website, leveraging social media, networking, and using traditional advertising methods. Continuously analyze and adjust your marketing efforts to maximize your business’s growth.

Become a College Student Entrepreneur

Starting a business while in college is not only possible but also highly rewarding. Whether you want to earn extra income, gain practical experience, or explore your passions, there are plenty of business ideas that are perfect for college students. From building your personal brand online to offering technical services to tutoring, the possibilities are endless. 

However, it’s important to take note of your finances as your business grows. doola’s bookkeeping services can help ease the financial management aspect of your business, allowing you to focus on your passion and drive your business forward. With doola , you can stay on top of your finances and make informed decisions for your business.

What is the best business idea to start for students?

The best business idea for students depends on their skills, interests, and available time. Popular ideas include tutoring, freelancing, pet sitting, or selling items online. Choose a venture that aligns with your passions and schedule.

What is a profitable small business for students?

A profitable small business for students is one with low overhead costs and high demand. Freelancing, tutoring, or offering technical services are examples of businesses that can generate significant income with minimal upfront costs.

What are low-cost college business ideas?

Low-cost college business ideas include offering services like tutoring, pet sitting, or freelance work. These ventures require little to no initial investment and can be easily scaled as the business grows.

Free e-book

How to form a US LLC in 5 minutes

A beginner-friendly guide on the basics of LLCs. Learn about formation, banking, and taxes.

Schedule a FREE consultation with a US CPA today 📞

Keep reading

Start your dream business and keep it 100% compliant

Turn your dream idea into your dream business.

A beginner-friendly guide on the basics of LLCs. Learn about formation, banking, and taxes. Get ready to turn your dream idea into your dream US business.

Cookie consent

By continuing to browse this website, you agree to the storing of cookies on your device to enhance site navigation, analyze site usage, and assist in our marketing efforts. Learn more.

This free Notion document contains the best 100+ resources you need for building a successful startup, divided in 4 categories: Fundraising, People, Product, and Growth.

This free eBook goes over the 10 slides every startup pitch deck has to include, based on what we learned from analyzing 500+ pitch decks, including those from Airbnb, Uber and Spotify.

This free sheet contains 100 accelerators and incubators you can apply to today, along with information about the industries they generally invest in.

This free sheet contains 100 VC firms, with information about the countries, cities, stages, and industries they invest in, as well as their contact details.

This free sheet contains all the information about the top 100 unicorns, including their valuation, HQ's location, founded year, name of founders, funding amount and number of employees.

The Best 36 Business Ideas for Students on a Budget 2024

Description

Everything you need to raise funding for your startup, including 3,500+ investors, 7 tools, 18 templates and 3 learning resources.

Information about the countries, cities, stages, and industries they invest in, as well as their contact details.

List of 250 startup investors in the AI and Machine Learning industries, along with their Twitter, LinkedIn, and email addresses.

List of startup investors in the BioTech, Health, and Medicine industries, along with their Twitter, LinkedIn, and email addresses.

List of startup investors in the FinTech industry, along with their Twitter, LinkedIn, and email addresses.

When you are a high school or college student, you generally have huge batches of free time. There's no better way to spend them than becoming a student entrepreneur...

In the past decade, the world has seen many incredible businesses being started by college students (Facebook, just to name one).

Is it Possible to Start a Business While Being a Student?

The internet has removed many barriers that once prevented students from starting businesses. These days, there are no legal, financial, or knowledge restrictions holding you back from launching a side hustle while in school.

School and university demand many of your hours, but if you stay organized and make the best use of your hours, you will find time to both study and run your startup.

Best 36 Business Ideas for Students

1) sell used books.

Difficulty : Low

Investment : Low

Description : You finished your academic year, congratulations! Now check your desk… you have a pile of used books, right? In many cases, they end up in your house’s trash bins. However, there’s something better to do with them: sell them to younger students at a cheaper price than what a new copy is.

You'll probably, at least, make enough money to purchase the books needed for your next semester. The best of this idea is that it doesn’t require either any investment or much time.

Resources : Here’s an article on the 6 best places to re-sell old books and some tips on how to do it.

2) Flip Websites

Difficulty : Medium

Investment : High

Description : You buy websites that are exiting for a low price, grow them in 6 months to 2 years, and sell them at a much higher price for a profit. There are people who work full-time on this and make millions per year with their sites.

The key here is to buy a high-quality website at a low price. There’s a ton of information on what you should consider and check when doing it. At the same time, there are all kinds of free digital marketing courses that you will find useful if growing one of these websites.

Resources : Flippa , Empire Flippers, and Micro Acquire are three website marketplaces. Besides that, you should check out this article on how to find, evaluate and buy websites , as well as this review we've written about Micro Acquisitions course , which goes all about buying, growing, and selling sites.

3) Re-Selling

Investment : Medium

Description : There’s an ethical unresolved issue around re-selling sneakers, tickets, or whatever, but I’ve personally seen many people make loads of money buying items at a low price and selling them at a higher one. Re-selling works best with limited items (such as the mentioned tickets and some exclusive sneakers), as those who haven’t been able to purchase them are willing to pay more than their original price to have them once the item is out of stock.

The key when re-selling is understanding the market and anticipating which items will people be more willing to pay for once they run out. Note that it can be pretty risky; I know of a guy who bought 10 tickets for a concert and couldn’t re-sell them. He ended up inviting all of his friends for free with a huge loss.

Resources : This is a really inspirational article on how to re-sell sneakers and make a profit.

4) Writing Services

Description : Start a website that offers all kinds of writing services to students or businesses. It could be anything from sales & marketing copy, SEO content, essay writing, academic papers, or even simple proofreading.

There are already many trustworthy services online, and before starting out your own writing service, it is a good idea to work as a professional essay writer for a top website. After you have gained some valuable experience doing this, you can move on to creating your own essay-writing service. You could charge per hour or project.

+1 if the website invites other fellow students to offer such writing services and you charge a fee ;)

Resources : This article will help you decide whether you should or should not start freelance writing. If yes, make sure to check this one, which teaches you how to do it.

5) Play Cupid

Description : Set up a website or an app, exclusively for your college campus or local area, to let the singles meet. This will be much appreciated by the community and, with a small fee, the app could kick-off and be the Tinder of your campus or neighbourhood.

The app could, instead, be focused around networking. People could use it to meet other people and make new friends.

Alternatively, the app could also be focused around professional networking.

Resources : This Bubble template is a great and cheap point to start a dating app.

6) Motivational Apps

Difficulty : Hard

Investment : Medium 

Description : Motivational apps have a broad scope range. They could be for anything from academics to mental health.

Consider academics. The app could show events, seminars, or lectures and let the user log the attendance to these, getting award points in exchange. Such apps encourage improved productivity among students in a positive and fun way.

These rewards could be in the form of vouchers, coupons, or deals for any local service. For the sponsors, this would be a worthwhile advertisement option among the clientele too.

Similar apps could be designed for fitness, gym attendance, and other activities too.

The easiest way to monetize such an idea would be through ads.

Resources : There are many tools out there to build apps cheaply and fastly (even without coding). Check our Tools page .

7) Babysitting

Description : There will always be demand for babysitters and nannies. With both parents working and maternity and paternity leave shrinking in length, the market for this is only widening. If you have a knack with babies and have a pleasing personality, you are already good to go.

Resources : Here is a detailed article on how to properly set up your babysitting business and make the most of it.

8) Babysitting Network

‍ Difficulty : Medium

Description : You can create a sort of marketplace for babysitting. Other prospective babysitters could sign up for it and offer their babysitting services. Parents could select between the available babysitters and hire them through the platform. You could keep a commission.

Even if you are not able to do the babysitting job due to lack of time, you'll still make a commission from fellow babysitters who have signed up for the program.

Resources : Here is a long article on how to build and grow a nanny app.

9) Pet Sitting

Description : What’s better than babysitting? Pet sitting! Who doesn’t want to spend the whole day playing with dogs? There are busy workers and families taking holidays who need someone to take care of their loved pets.

There are two main ways to face this business idea. The most common one is to take pets for a one/two-hour walk every day/every two days. The second one would be to take care of pets of people taking holidays, for one to four weeks.

Resources : The Balance Careers has a huge series of resources for pet sitters.

10) Local Reviewer

Description : Every time we want to buy a product, the first thing we do is to look online for product reviews. Sure enough, all big cities have their own dedicated websites for such reviews from multiple sources. But what about small places or even campuses? There’s a huge opportunity there.

Start a website that reviews the local accommodations. You can make this exclusive for the campus itself or other accommodations in the area that students could rent out. This would work as a credible source rather than just word of mouth. There could also be options added to include listings and discussion forums. You can monetize this through advertising.

Resources : WPBeginner has a long article on how to build a review site using WordPress, which would probably be the cheapest and fastest way to do it.

11) Swap Website

Description : Swap websites are used to swap, sell, and borrow goods and services. For example, if a person needs something but only for a single use, it is best to rent it out rather than buy one.

On campus, there is more than one person who is willing to do that, but it is lacking a way to find that person. Such a website would simplify this while enabling people to save a few bucks.

Call it a new age barter system; especially on campus, there would be a lot of demand for this. Start this locally and then expand it later. There are loads to borrow and exchange from academic services, bikes, books, and even clothes. You can monetize it through advertising.

Resources : Here’s a list of 36 bartering and swapping websites to get some inspiration. We’ve also interviewed the founder of a shutdown swapping site who shared all the mistakes he made throughout his journey.

There are loads to borrow and exchange from academic services, bikes, books, and even clothes. You can monetize it through advertising.

12) Design Services

Description : All kinds of businesses have design tasks. So, you can create a site that offers different types of design services, such as logos, flyers, packaging, or even websites, and niche down to local businesses or even other students starting their own startups. This is a great startup idea for students and you could charge per hour or per project.

When you are a student, it can be hard to get businesses to trust you. There are many ways to achieve it, such as showing them previous high-quality work, offering one free project, and connecting them with your previous clients.

Resources : You may be asking how to build a portfolio if you’re just starting and have never had clients, right? Here’s a tool that generates fake client briefs for you to design and showcase in your site.

13) Digital Marketing Services

‍ Difficulty : Hard

Description : Digital marketing has grown a lot in the last decade, with the emergence of eCommerce and online businesses. The businesses that don’t digitalize themself and ignore working on their internet profile and presence are missing a huge percentage of clients.

There probably are many local businesses looking for help on their digital marketing strategies. You can reach their owners and provide them with a free consultation to show you know about the subject. You could help them with local SEO , social media management , and Google Ads / Facebook Ads campaigns, among other strategies.

Resources : Make sure to check out Acadium , a tool connecting businesses looking for digital marketing work to be done, and students who are willing to learn and do that work. They provide great free digital marketing courses on different topics.

14) Development Services

Description : Having a website is a must for any kind of business, and most local ones tend not to have one. There’s a huge opportunity there.

Learning to code is super accessible for everyone. There are thousands of free development courses, books, articles, and videos, so “I don’t know how to code” is definitely no longer an excuse. And if you don’t want to learn, you can even build a website without coding. This site was built with Webflow , a powerful visual web design tool.

Resources : Google “free web development course” and you will get 3.2B results… I think that’s enough ;) You should also check this complete guide on web development freelancing.

15) Cleaning Services

Description : Publish an online ad offering cleaning services in your neighborhood. Do a great cleaning job and build trust with your clients. Ask your clients for a referral and you will soon be cleaning the houses of all your neighbors.

That’s actually what Kisten Hadeed did and the origins of Student Maid, a really successful cleaning company in Florida. You can charge per hour and keep initial investment really low by asking clients to supply you with the needed equipment. 

Resources : This article from Entrepreneur.com teaches how to get started in this industry.

90% of startups fail. Learn how to not to with our weekly guides and stories. Join 40,000+ founders.

16) Pool Cleaning Services

Description : Cleaning pools is an alternative to the already mentioned cleaning neighbor’s houses business idea. It’s definitely not as easy, as it requires to be educated on what you’re doing. You might even need legal permissions to work on it, depending on where you are based. On the side, it requires some investment in equipment and products to be able to carry out the job.

Both the difficulty and investment issues come with a big chance of making great money. You can easily get paid $40-60/hour. Note that the business would mainly run during the summer seasons.

Resources : This article provides detailed information on how to set up and grow a pool cleaning business.

17) Moving Service

Description : Both neighbors and students need moving services eventually, whether it's because the academic year has finished and the student is moving back to their homes, or because a neighbor has rented a new house. You can make money (at least $200/moving) if you find it easy to pack items and move boxes.

Resources : Here’s a long article on how to start a moving company, some tips for growing it, and the recommended price you might want to charge.

18) Transcription Services

‍ Difficulty : Low

Description : Transcription services are needed in all kinds of fields, such as law, medicine, and businesses. It also doesn’t require either fixed hours or many skills. On the side, there are many forms of transcription, including video podcasts and recorded lectures, so you will probably be able to select the niche that interests you.

No formal training is needed in order to be able to do transcription services. Good listening abilities, great knowledge of English grammar rules, and fast typing skills would be a perfect combination to get high-quality work done fast.

Resources : Here’s a motivational story on how Benjamin Walker grew a transcription business to +$1M/year.

19) Translation Services

‍ Difficulty : High

Description : Offering translation services isn’t as easy as offering transcription ones. You will need to be bilingual in both languages and know the grammar rules of the two of them. Businesses may not be really willing to offer advanced translation work to students, but they might be if it is basic and unimportant translations.

You could start by translating lectures, books, and articles for professors. There’s a ton of high-quality content in other languages - professors might want to share it with their students but they can’t as it isn’t in the student’s native language. That’s where you can help and charge per word translated.

Resources : Here’s a whole content site dedicated to the business of translation.

20) Photography Services

Description : If you love taking photographs, you can take your hobby and talent into a photography freelancing business. Both students and local businesses may need your services whether because they want to update their Tinder profiles or because they are looking to promote their recently-launched products.

In the beginning, you can start offering all kinds of services, but as you grow the business, you will probably realize there’s a ton of competition and you will need to niche and focus on one segment or one specific photography service in order to be different than the rest.

The biggest issue for this kind of business is the cost of the photography equipment, which, if you’re moving from one place to another, can break and make it even more expensive.

Resources : Make sure to check this guide from Bplans on how to start a successful photography business.

21) Photography Portfolios

Description : Good photography skills need to be appreciated before they get lost in that Instagram page. Any campus will have a few fellows with exceptional skills in photography and videography. It would be easy to make a database of students who are interested in and create a platform to sell their work to others.

The platform could charge a fee to either the photographer or the customer. On the side, it could also work hand in hand with a photography club giving more chances and connections to both sellers and buyers by offering more exposure.

Resources : Here’s a no-code template to build such an app.

22) Food Delivery Services

Description : Create a platform to deliver quick eatables, like sandwiches and smoothies, made by local businesses. Start by targeting firms with employees in younger age groups, who often go out to grab a meal during lunch breaks. This is a gold mine, with food deliveries for simple items that don't break their wallet, the business would be exponential. With options to schedule deliveries made earlier to arrive at lunchtime, this could actually be a problem solver for the firms.

Take a step further and make these homemade too. This way, it is not necessary to rely on multiple third-party services. The food will be authentic, tasty, and have a personal touch to the service.

Resources : Steven Long was the founder of Chowdy, a Toronto-based food delivery startup making $110k/month which had to shut down due to some legal issues. Ali Jiwani is the founder of MealSurfers, a Canadian food startup that made an exit when it was making $7k/month. Make sure to check those two stories and learn from both the wins and mistakes of each.

23) Deliver Food Hampers

Description : How often have you thought about that mac and cheese your mom makes so deliciously. Or even wondered when you are finally going to eat something healthy?

Well, the lack of time or will to go to a grocery store and cook something is in the least probable category. And the parents are well aware of this too. So design an app where parents can make such orders for kids that would be delivered to them. 

This will have the personal touch and love of a package coming from home itself. You could monetize it by taking a shipping fee.

Resources : Entrepreneur.com has a complete article about food hamper businesses. You should check it out!

24) Blogging

Description : Is there anything you really enjoy talking about? Are your friends tired of listening to you talk about it? Then start a blog about that topic, build an audience, and monetize it through ads and premium content.

 The startup costs of building a blog are super low nowadays (with a domain and hosting would be enough, so less than $50/year) and the information to grow such a site is free all over the internet.

When we started this site, we had 0 knowledge of how to grow it. Nowadays, it receives +150k users every month from all over the world. Note that it took us 3 years to build such an audience. Consistency is key when blogging.

Resources : GrowandConvert is a content marketing agency that has an amazing blog related to creating and publishing content on the internet. Backlinko is another blog that publishes content-related articles, particularly about the search engine optimization of these. 

25) Video Classes

Description : Visual media often makes things easier. That is precisely the reason why we are all so hooked up on Youtube, without having a clue why we are watching a cat playing piano at 3 am. The thought is simple, won’t lectures be so easy to understand with such visuals? With a creative mind and some graphic design skills, it could be put to use for this.

The idea is to make a visual representation of any lectures and offer them to tutors and students. It would make studying so much better and more straightforward. You could monetize it by pricing every video or through a monthly subscription.

Resources : Here’s a great guide on how to make videos look professional without investing much money.

26) Class Notes

Description : We all know those students who are pretty lazy to actually take notes or those others who tend to miss classes under any kind of excuse, right? Those students would be your niche market if you set up a class note business.

There are some people who are really great at taking lecture notes, being able to summarize the information in a nice-looking and concise way. If you are that kind of person, you should consider re-selling your notes to other students. You could sell them independently per class or in packages of all the notes related to one exam or to one semester.

Resources : Make sure to check this well-known book , in which Sönke Ahrens shares his unique technique to take smart notes that are easy to study and learn from.

Description : Where there are students, there are tutors. If you stand out in one subject, you can probably teach it to someone else who struggles to understand it. A common trouble-maker subject is Maths, but note that there are many math tutors as well.

Schools and professors tend to be helpful with students starting their tutor businesses. Some schools even have a database of tutor students, so make sure to check if there is one in your school. The monetization model would be per hour; you can charge anything between $10-$100, depending on the subject, the concepts taught (how advanced they are), etc.

Resources : This article is super inspiring for anyone starting a tutoring business. The writer shares how he is making $1,000/week as well as lots of recommendations and mistakes you should avoid.

28) Organize Trips

Description : It is a known fact that most of the group plans for a trip but never happens. The WhatsApp groups have seen hundreds of failed plans. It is the time that someone takes responsibility and get things done.

Organize trips to various destinations which could be for events, festivals, or even just weekend trips. You can charge a commission or a fixed amount for an all-inclusive deal.

Resources : Here’s a detailed guide from Bplans on how to start a travel agency.

29) Event Organizer

Description : Lots of students enjoy parties and socializing, so why not capitalize on it? Everyone is willing to spend $10, $30, or even much more on a great party. These can take all forms and shapes, from organizing a small meetup at a nightclub to running Project X 2.

What will you need? Excellent communication skills to convince everyone they can’t miss such a party (social media is a MUST to promote it!) and advanced organization abilities to make sure everything is in the right place at the right time.

Resources : Here’s a long article from Capterra explaining how to turn those small parties/events you have maybe carried out in the past, into a profitable business.

30) Campus Newsletter

Description : This is quite a unique business idea for students. If your campus doesn't have a newsletter already, it is time to start one. The source of money from this could come from advertisements from local businesses or even other student startups.

The newsletter could be sent as emails rather than printed versions or both. As a third party, a student can even make a deal with the college to create brand awareness among potential students using the letter. It could be used for promotional purposes, branding, and lead generations outside the campus too.

Resources : Here’s an article on 7 tips to create a school newsletter.

31) Campus Podcast

Description : Instead of a campus newsletter, you could do a podcast. It could be an interview podcast, talking with students and professors, or more like a solo podcast, talking about the news, events, and things going on in the campus.

The equipment needed is pretty cheap, with the possibility of recording even with your phone. As for monetization, it could be done through sponsorships from local businesses or premium content for those who love the podcast.

I haven’t personally seen this on many campuses, which makes me think this is one of the most innovative and unique business ideas for students on the list.

Resources : Here’s an article on the 5 steps required to start a school podcast.

32) Language Course

Description : Do you excel in any language? Do you enjoy teaching other people? Then you should set up a Skype language course and sell classes to people from anywhere in the world while staying in your home. You could easily charge $20-$60/hour and work part-time on it.

Growing your client base is all about building an online presence and getting referrals from your existing customers. In the beginning, you could boost your initial customers by providing them with a free 1-hour call.

Resources : Here’s a long guide for beginners on how to make $30/hour teaching languages and 6 places to get your first clients.

33) Bookkeeping

Description : You don’t need to have a finance degree in order to be able to manage a local business’s bookkeeping records. An online course or even just some Youtube videos would be more than enough to start with. As all businesses require such work to be done, you probably won’t have big issues finding your first customers.

The initial investment costs are super low, as you can ask the business owner to supply you with the needed tools. As for monetization, most bookkeepers charge per hour and the amount depends on the complexity of the tasks ($30-$100 or more).

Resources : Here’s a detailed video on how to start a bookkeeping business in 2021.

34) Jewelry Business

Description : This is a great startup idea for students because jewelry making isn’t as hard as it sounds. You can easily learn about it through online courses and Youtube tutorials. You will then need to practice a lot until you start getting great results. Profit margins can be really high when you achieve a nice looking product.

There’s a ton of competition in the jewelry space so you will have to identify a niche. Social media (particularly influencers) are among the most usual strategies carried out by this kind of businesses.

Resources : Shopify has a detailed guide on how to start such businesses. Besides that, a few years ago we interviewed , on this site, the founder of a jewelry business that shut down and then emerged again with a new business model just to start making +10k/month.

35) Baking Business

Description : Selling cakes, cookies, bread or other baked goods can be another startup business idea for students. You can easily post an online ad or some leaflets around your campus. Make a client happy, and you will have 3 new ones. The food industry works a lot with word of mouth.

There are two main ways to monetize this. The first would be to prepare the goods based on requests from customers. The second could be to produce 100 cookies, rent a bike, and wander around the campus and neighborhood looking for hungry people. The chosen price for the cookies would be cheaper than if it’s a requested job.

Resources : Here’s a detailed article on how to set up and grow such a business. You should also watch this video from the founder of a “late-night cookie delivery service” in his college city.

36) Youtuber

Description : Becoming a YouTuber looks like a easy and lucrative career. Many see it as a great business plan idea for students because you make videos on a niche that you enjoy and then make money off them through ads and sponsorships. But the reality is that becoming a well-known YouTuber is not an easy feat. 

Behind every famous one, there is a long, painful journey of hard work. Start by creating content and keep iterating from there with the help of your audience. It won't be an overnight success, but if you keep going for some time, you'll see amazing results.

Resources : Here’s an article about a checklist to become a successful Youtuber.

How Can a Student Start a Business?

Or in other words, how do you become a student entrepreneur?

The list of business plan ideas for college students mentioned above is nonsense if you don’t now take action toward the chosen business.

If you are a Business student, you probably have an idea of what are the steps that involve setting up and launching a business. However, all kinds of students read this article, so here are some common steps that entrepreneurs carry out:

1) Decide on the idea

All of the business ideas for college students on the list are really interesting ways of making money, but you definitely can’t work on them all.

To decide which to focus on, make sure to think about what you enjoy doing in your free time, what you excel in, and what would you be willing to keep doing even if it doesn’t bring money (or it means negative numbers). We have compiled a list of both online business ideas and offline business ideas so you can pick the one that best suit your needs and skills. We hope we came up with some innovative startup business ideas for students that you would have never imagined.

Make sure to also consider your initial investment. Some featured in the list are business ideas for college students without investment or little resources, while some others will require a few hundred or thousands to start.

Note that some of the above are business ideas for students in university (or would work better with them) and others are business ideas for students in school (those that don’t require much money and getting physically involved).

2) Decide on a niche

Nowadays, there are businesses of all sizes and shapes. Building one has become so easy that the internet is full of websites, millions of videos are uploaded to Youtube every second, and thousands of LLCs are formed every day.

This means that there’s a lot of competition in any industry. The best solution for students who don’t have enough resources to invest in research and development and build a unique product or don’t have the capital required to set up a huge factory and win over competitors through economies of scale (= low pricing), is to focus on a niche.

A common niche could be to geographically limit the business so that you just focus on people within your neighborhood or your college campus. Another could be to focus on people with certain interests and likes.

3) Choose a name and a brand style

Here’s a detailed article on how to choose a name for your startup. The key is to brainstorm many, evaluate each option, and ask for feedback from your partners.

As for branding, here’s another article on how to build the brand of a business. There are free tools to do it. Don’t spend much money/time on it, at least at the beginning.

4) Launch the business

It’s now time to push the LIVE button for your business.

This needs to happen as fast as possible so that you quickly validate whether it is worth it to keep pushing towards that business idea or it’s better to move to a new one from the above list of entrepreneurship ideas for students.

There’s a common issue entrepreneurs face when launching new startups that’s called “ paralysis by analysis ”. They keep improving the product, adding features, changing the design, etc, and spend months and months without launching it.

This is exactly what you need to avoid, especially if this is your first business. 90% of startups fail (I’m sorry to be the one to tell you this), so you need to launch fast, validate early, and move to another business if it didn’t work.

5) Market your business

You pushed the LIVE button and you didn't get any sales, right?

The “build it and they will come” phrase is a completely unreal myth . It will take you blood, sweat, and tears to get your first clients.

Do some advertising, go outside your home and deliver leaflets (there actually are some unique business ideas for students at home above, in case you’re too lazy), knock on your neighbor’s doors, send cold messages to potential customers that you found on Facebook groups, etc.

6) Make sure your customer is happy

Many of the college business ideas tend to market themselves by word of mouth and referrals. That is why it’s essential to make sure that each of your clients is happy with the results.

Interact with your customers, ask them what they think you could do better next time, provide them with a discount if any parts of the job were done incorrectly… there are so many ways to make your client happy, even if the price of the service is high or the quality of the work wasn’t the best.

If the business is going well, you will soon find yourself with many tasks under your belt and little time to work on them, along with studies and extracurricular activities.

That’s when you might start considering hiring your first employee. In order to avoid the risks of going into negative numbers during a bad month, you can work on a commission-based wage.

In this stage, the selection of new team members is essential. Remember that word of mouth can be a key way of promotion and marketing. If you hire someone who has zero knowledge of the tasks they are required for, delivers low-quality work, or mistreats clients, you will soon find yourself ceasing operations.

Now It’s Your Turn!

There is no direct and simple answer to the question of how to start a business in college.

As smooth as the above startup ideas for students may sound, they will all inevitably require a lot of dedication and perseverance.

There is an abundance of resources at your fingertips, from valuable classes to school technologies, and access to professors. So make use of them in the best way possible, and if the idea still doesn’t seem feasible, lay the groundwork for it.

You would be getting practical knowledge and work experience before finishing the course. Even if it fails. Remember that college is the time to blossom and experiment, and it is only the beginning of your life journey.

If you have any questions, have other small business ideas for students you think we’re missing, or want us to help you with your new startup, make sure to reach us at [email protected] !

Which Business is Best For Students?

Here are some of the best businesses: flip websites, re-sell sneakers or tickets, baby or pet sitting, deliver writing, design or development services, start a blog, sell your class notes, become a tutor, organize others’ trips, organize parties, and create a campus newsletter or podcast.

What Kind Of Business Can a Student Start?

Students can start all kinds of businesses, but it’s really common that they start a service-based one, such as house cleaning, pool cleaning, food delivery, content writing, content transcription, graphic design, and website development, among others.

First, decide your business idea and choose the segment of the market that you’ll be serving. Then, choose a business name and design your business’ brand. Once it is launched, market your business in your neighborhood or campus. Finally, hire employees and scale it!

90% of startups fail. Learn how not to with our weekly guides and stories. Join +40,000 other startup founders!

An all-in-one newsletter for startup founders, ruled by one philosophy: there's more to learn from failures than from successes.

100+ resources you need for building a successful startup, divided into 4 categories: Fundraising, People, Product, and Growth.

20 Business Ideas For College Students 2024

Link Copied

Share on Facebook

Share on Twitter

Share on LinkedIn

Cash on my mind!

Looking for business ideas for students while in college is a sign that you are already looking to make it big in the future and is indeed quite a rewarding experience. Starting out with a business can teach you many life skills, such as time management, money management (students dread this term, we know), and so much more. This insane rise of technology our generation has seen has been unprecedented, which also means huge chances of growth!  In this blog, we will be sharing 20 business ideas for students in 2023 that suit your interests and passions while also having the potential for growth. Strap in, as we are in for a long ride - the future is bright for college entrepreneurs!

1. Make money from social media

As one of the top small business ideas for students during college, we have all grown up surrounded by the advent of social media. Keeping apart the random snaps you send your friends, social media can also be transformed into a source of income. With corporates and businesses all around the world looking to connect with Gen Z via their primary mode of communication, the potential for growth in social media is unsurprising. To get started, students should identify a niche they're passionate about and create a social media account around that topic. Once they have a following, they can start making it as a startup business ideas for students through sponsored posts, affiliate marketing, or by selling products related to their niche. Since you are a student, this blog can help you understand how Social Media shaped Gen Z in recent years .

2. Pet-sitting services

Pet sitting can be a pawsome way for students to earn some extra dough! It's one of the most amazing business suggestions for students that allows you to spend time with furry friends and get paid for it. For starters, you can ask the neighbourhood family if they would like to opt for you as their pet-sitter for the night, and, eventually, word-of-mouth and clever marketing can help you garner various leads. Additionally, you get to hang out with cool fur babies and chill while the owners come back. How cool is that?

3. Sell on creative marketplaces

Looking for a side hustle that won't take up all your study time? Why not sell your wares on creative marketplaces as startup ideas for students? Whether you're a know-it-all at creating beautiful handicrafts, a designing magician, or a passionate photographer, you can utilise your skills to make money! Do not slack on your academics,  the key to success is finding the right balance between studying and selling!

4. Publish a magazine or blog

Perhaps a business suggestion for students that many may have already considered before is publishing a magazine or blog. This is one of the common business ideas for students that does not require as much effort as the others, but what it does require you to do is unleash all your creative potential. You do not need to be a hardcore journalist to begin. This is one of the small business ideas for students that expect you to choose your own niche, hone your writing skills, and learn more about search engine optimisation. All you have to do then is write a repository of relevant articles and content that you feel your audience would like to read about, and you're all set! 

5. Upcycling

Remember donating or throwing away the books you don't have use for anymore, or perhaps that old piece of furniture that didn't suit your house's aesthetics anymore. Well, what if we tell you can turn a profit from all those things and more? With upcycling business ideas for students, you can upcycle times you do not need any more such and turn them into items with more value. Have a lot of soda cans lying around? Stack them up and engineer them into a stool! There are so many things you can upcycle and transform into business suggestions for students with artistic and utility value.

6. Create food hampers

Isn't it so fun receiving a cute basket filled with exciting goodies and snacks? You can make one too with such similar business ideas for students. Creating food hampers requires some initial investment as well as a creative eye, but with their selling value, you can make a great profit by creating some interesting-looking food hampers. You can ask your friends and family if they need some hampers for an upcoming event, and chances are you'll probably receive a bunch of leads. Use these business suggestions for students and become the new entrepreneur in town!

7. Buy and sell popular graphics

Why not try your hand at buying and selling popular graphics and icons as one of the most popular small business ideas for students? With the rise of online business ideas for students, the market for graphic assets has never been hotter! Items such as rare Pokemon TCG cards and other rare pop culture icons can be bought at low prices and flipped for huge sums of money. You don't even have to leave your dorm room!

8. Organise Student Trips

You have always been that friend who has carefully created the itinerary for the upcoming group trip, right? Time to put those painstaking efforts into a business of your own. You can start organising student trips as a side hustle. Start off by enquiring your own school if they can let you handle the organisation in exchange for some monetary benefits and see how things go from there. As you grow, you can start marketing yourself on the internet via SEO and social media!

9. Sell Audio or eBook versions

With the rise of e-commerce and technology, there's never been a better time to turn classic literature into cash! You can easily convert out-of-copyright works into audio or eBook formats and then sell them on popular platforms. You will not only be bringing old classics back to the forefront but also making good money while doing so! 

10. Become a Model (for Stock Photographs)

Constantly receive compliments on how good you look? Or perhaps how comically expressive you are? Those are all great qualities that can help you become a great stock image model! With modelling business ideas for students, becoming a stock photograph model is often the first step to a glistening career in the industry. Reach out to your nearest stock image agencies and submit your portfolio now!

Business Ideas And Best Deals On Your Stay

Book through amber today!

11. Web Design And Development Business

Are you tired of ramen noodles and instant coffee tech-nerds? Wish to explore business suggestions for students? This is your chance to turn your coding skills into cash (excuse the joke)! Whether you're into HTML or CSS, you can start your own web design and development business and make a mint while you study. Put your tech skills to the test and consider this as one of the perfect business ideas for students and for you. 

12. Offer transcription services

For students who have a keen ear and a quick typing speed, offering a transcription service as one of the business ideas for students could be the perfect side hustle! With the rise of online learning, there's never been a better time to turn your listening skills into a business. You can offer your services to fellow students, professors, or even to businesses and organisations. You get to brush up on your lecture material while you work, too! With a little bit of hustle and an acumen of transcription expertise, you'll be making money in no time!

13. CV design freelancing

Offering a CV design freelancing service could be one of the perfect startup ideas for students! With economies all around the world booming. You can bet a ton of people are looking to boos their chances of getting their dream jobs with a killer CV. You can offer your services to fellow students, alumni, or even local businesses. You will also get to brush up on your own CV skills for when you have to apply for a job yourself, too!

14. Translation Services

Multilingual students, this is your chance. With the globalised world we live in, there's never been a greater need for such small business ideas for students to provide clear and accurate communication across languages. You can offer your services to individuals, businesses, or even online platforms. You not only get to help out your clients, but you also brush up on your own linguistic skills, which sounds like a win-win!

15. Photography Services

The world is enamoured with those who capture life at its finest, and photography is a skill that lets you do that. With social media and the cutthroat competition of posting the perfect photo, there's never been a higher demand for skilled photographers. You can start by offering your talent to friends and family, local businesses, or even event planners. You get to turn your passion for clicking pictures into a successful business while you graduate! With some creativity and an eye for business opportunities, you have one of the best business ideas for students. Photography also makes an appearance in our blog on the top 10 creative side hustles .

16. Blogging

Your search for sharing your writing skills and earning money while doing so is not a dream anymore! Companies and individuals all over the world are looking to post high-quality human-written content; do not miss out. You can blog about anything that interests you, whether it's fashion, food, travel, or just your daily musings. You get to turn your writing into a steady source of income! Wait no more to share your artistic abilities with the rest of the world.

17. Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) Business

offering search engine optimisation (SEO) services could be the perfect side hustle for you if you are in the know-how of boosting traffic for websites! The demand for SEO experts has never been higher as it not only gets your website more traffic but also offers it more reliability. Especially in today’s time, the appeal of an SEO expert is more than ever. Weave through Google rankings and offer your expertise on the same to fellow friends and family or even local businesses when starting out.

18. Start Affiliate Marketing Business

Hey there, studentpreneur, looking for a side hustle that won't hog all your free time? Why not try your luck with affiliate marketing? With just a few clicks, you can become your own virtual sales squad, earning a commission for every sale made through your referral links. You can spread the word on your blog, social media, or even just by chatting it up with friends and family. All you need to be familiar with is online marketing know-how, and you'll be living the life of a successful student business boss in no time!

19. Become a clothes reseller

Thrifting has been more popular than ever. Gen Z can be credited with rediscovering the art of thrifting the trendiest (not always, but it’s okay) clothes out there.  We bring you the best online business ideas for students you've been looking for! Give those old Vans another chance at life by upcycling and reselling them. Whether it's patching up denim jackets or giving t-shirts a new graphic, authenticity is what matters when you aim to create a thrifting business. Who says you can't make money while being environmentally conscious? 

20. Provide packaged meals

We all miss home-cooked food when away. Restaurants never give you the homely feeling you’re looking for. Why not fill that niche for your peers and family by starting a meal service, perhaps on campus? Making money while packaging your meals with love is a notion most can’t refuse, so the money-making potential is definitely there. Start your empire now with the best business ideas for students!

Things to know before starting a business

We're sure after reading these business ideas for students. You are itching to go out there and make a name for yourself in the niche you're interested in. Hold your horses, young Padawan. Consider these few rules, or rather, guidelines, before you go about your next business venture.

• Manage your expectations: We are in no way asking you not to dream big. But starting out, be realistic with your expectations of how successful you'll be. Even Bill Gates's first business venture failed! Don't give up if you face setbacks.
• Conduct legal business: All of these business ideas for students leave little room for illegal activity, but even then, make sure whatever you do is all done legally. Read the fine print.
• Identify a niche: Most successful startup ideas for students stem from a niche or inadequacy that others have failed to fill. Identify that niche and breakthrough!
• Prioritise your studies too: It is obvious that planning a business plan at such a young age, but make sure you do not slack with your studies.
• Financial management: Starting off it is understandable that you would start off small. So make sure when you implement these business ideas for students, you record every single investment and return. 

In conclusion, starting business ideas for students in college can be a great way to develop entrepreneurial skills, earn some extra income, and gain valuable experience. With the right idea and a solid plan, it's possible to turn a side hustle into a successful and sustainable business. The list of business ideas for students in 2023 provides a starting point for anyone looking to launch a new venture. Whether you're interested in fashion, technology, or something else entirely, there's an idea on this list that is sure to inspire you. Remember, the key to success is persistence, hard work, and the ability to adapt and pivot as needed. So, take these ideas and run with them – the sky's the limit. Check out this blog to learn how you can start freelancing as a student.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can i implement business suggestions for students with no money, which business ideas for students are the best, what are some cheap business ideas for students to start with, how can students make money through social media, what are some things to keep in mind before starting my startup ideas for students.

Your ideal student home & a flight ticket awaits

Follow us on :

Related Posts

How To Earn Money As A Student Online & Offline In 2024: 30 Easy Ways

20 Best Part Time Jobs For Students That Pay The Highest

10 Benefits Of Part-Time Jobs For Students You Don't Wanna Miss

amber © 2024. All rights reserved.

4.8/5 on Trustpilot

Rated as "Excellent" • 4800+ Reviews by students

Rated as "Excellent" • 4800+ Reviews by Students

8 Business Ideas for College Students [+How to Start]

How would you describe a perfect business for students? Let me guess—

Low barrier to entry, little upfront investment, and fast return?

Well, I’ve just described a lemonade stand. 

But if you’re looking for a more sustainable source of income than lemonade cash and are willing to put in some effort into your business, you’ve come to the right place.

We’ve brainstormed and researched tens of small business ideas for college students. We picked the ones that you can easily do from home, are low cost, and have the potential to be profitable. 

In this article, you’ll find:

• 8 best ideas for starting a college business
• A how-to on starting a business as a student
• Advice from student entrepreneurs and a business advisor

If this isn’t what you’re looking for, get inspired with these stories:

• How My Dog Accessories Store Doubled Sales
• How I Made $23.000 in High Ticket Sales
• How To Sell Underwear Online Using Influencer Marketing

Business ideas for college students like you

To help you get started, here is a list of college business ideas that go beyond babysitting and cleaning services:

• Becoming a social media influencer
• Pet business ventures
• Side gigs for students exclusively
• Flipping various items
• Flipping websites
• Affiliate marketing
• Advertising
• Dropshipping

The suggestions are adaptable so you can use your own skills and interests to make them work.

Hopefully, you’ll walk away with a small business idea you can start at home and scale up when you’re ready.

1. Become an influencer on social networks

Why is influencer marketing on top of the list of entrepreneurship ideas for college students? 

The short answer is— users trust influencers , brands allocate their budgets to influencer marketing , and you can really make money doing it , even if you’re a micro or nano influencer. All these factors make it the best business for students at home.

But making money from influencing others to buy the stuff you advertise takes building authority, trust, and connections. So, it doesn’t happen overnight.

The key is to choose a niche you feel comfortable in. You have to understand your target audience’s needs and likes so that you can deliver engaging content to them. 

As far as technicalities, optimize your profile on social media platforms—engaging bio and profile photos are a must. If you switch to a business account, you’ll have access to a lot more options.

Now, you can let brands you’re open to collab. 

Rather than waiting for them to find you, start reaching out and contacting potential businesses. You can create a pitch template and tell them what you have to offer. But don’t forget to personalize it—include a name of the brand and a sentence or two about what you like about it. 

The downside? You’re exposing yourself to criticism. 

Users may follow your content for different reasons. You need to find an effective way to appeal to your audience. For example, Anh started her Instagram page (@ medicalmyanne ) to show her journey as a medical student. She shares her medical experience and everyday life. Her posts include relatable memes, self-care tips as well as sponsored content.

2. Pet business

Influencers are all very nice, but pets can easily upstage them.

The pet industry is steadily growing , year by year. It’s forecasted to reach almost 110 billion U.S. dollars in 2021. Not surprisingly, there are many significant branches, from food and treats to accessories to services like pet insurance , pet sitting, walking, grooming, or poop scooping.

Whichever branch you choose, consider 2021 pet industry trends. The most important ones are:

• 31% of pet industry customers are Millennials, and 69% of them opt for natural and organic products
• 40% of dog owners and 25% of cat owners bought clothing for their pet in 2020
• 43% of dog owners and 41% of cat owners buy premium pet food
• 73% of Gen Zers and 68% of Millennials are willing to spend more on sustainable pet products

What does it mean for your business?

Millennials like to use technology to buy products and services, so you can develop an app that scratches their itch. Or you can incorporate technology to satisfy their needs. For example, if you have a website, you can install a chatbot that can book your services.

Get free chatbots and start earning money from your new business right away

Jano and Josue exactly knew how to take advantage of the trends. They founded a company called Whisker Bag that sells high-end cat travel bags and used live chat and chatbots to ramp up their revenue to $100k a year.

If you’re looking for a relatively small capital business for students, you can set up a dropshipping business (we’ll go through it in detail later). You could sell pet costumes, clothing, and accessories and cash in on important holidays—over a half of pet owners like to buy gifts for their companions. 

Last but not least, remember that the owners care about their pets’ health but also want to contribute to saving the environment. If you’re thinking about grooming services, natural or organic care products can be your company’s USP. 

Looking for more out-there college entrepreneur ideas?

Why don’t you develop a U.S. version of sustainable insect-based pet food ? It’s healthy for animals and reduces carbon pawprint.

3. Side business for students specifically

If you only have time for a side-gig, why don’t you use the resources that you already have? By that, I mean your own notes.

There are a couple of small business ideas for students in university who want to earn money by sharing their notes. Just listen— 

You can upload your lecture notes and study guides on online platforms and get paid when someone else downloads them. This includes handwritten materials and drawings. And if you’re really good at it, take your note-taking art to Instagram and become an influencer.

You can also offer note transcription and note digitization services.

There’s also traditional tutoring, where you pass on your valuable knowledge during one-on one-sessions. You can take it to the next level, though, and create a YouTube or a TikTok channel, podcasts, webinars, or online tutorials in your field of expertise.

Swetha Tandri came up with a YouTube channel Melodies for Math when she was in high school. It explains various math concepts through songs. At first, she wasn’t getting anywhere but she wasn’t going to give up on the idea so easily. She says:

The most important thing when starting a creative venture is to be consistent through thick and thin and to be open to trying new things. Swetha Tandri Creator of Melodies for Math

That’s why she decided to try new channels and it worked! Through posting daily on TikTok, Swetha amassed more than 64K followers on the @melodiesformath and has now 500 Discord server members, 1.68K YouTube subscribers, and even found her first tutoring clients. You can also use popular TikTok trends to reach new audiences.

@melodiesformath how to graph a function in just 16 seconds! #algebra #algebra1 #algebrahelp #algebra1help #mathsongs #mathhelp #melodiesformath #math #fyp ♬ Life Goes On – Oliver Tree

Remember that using online resources comes naturally to most students . The Covid-19 pandemic has accelerated the introduction of digital learning among younger students. To me, it’s a pretty good indicator of what drives learning these days.

4. Flipping items

The core of this business is to find used items and invest your own time and skills to resell the items for a profit. It’s for those who like garage sales , flea markets, or the thrill of bidding on auctions and online marketplaces. 

For example, you can source cheap items on the Facebook marketplace and sell through the Amazon FBA program . There are also dedicated apps for the best items to flip:

• Flyp and Poshmark for selling clothes and accessories
• Mercari has categories for electronics and home goods
• Decluttr to flip books, games, and most of tech
• SidelineSwap is great for sporting equipment 

And if you want to take your college business to a next level, you can build your own online store on an eCommerce platform . 

In the “buy low, sell high” business model the time is key—sometimes searching for a perfect flip can take a considerable amount of time, then there is restoration and marketing of the item.

It’s a perfect side hustle you can do at your own pace at weekends. It often doesn’t require a lot of investment. You can find some flips on a dumpster because owners don’t know the value or don’t bother to go through stuff they want to get rid of.

Beware though— 

Not everything sells fast. And some items take up a lot of space. So you may need to rent storage space and pay extra to ship large items. But don’t let that discourage you—

There’s a lot more competition to sell small items. So if you’re willing to handle large goods, you have a better chance to get a good deal. My advice is to build good relationships with freight companies and use an open marketplace uShip.com to find carriers. 

5. Flipping websites

The list of items you can flip isn’t limited to physical items. You can also flip digital products . It means websites, blogs, eCommerce stores, subscription services, domains, and so on. The process is similar to other forms of flipping.

You go to a website flipping marketplace , like the pioneer Flippa , do your research, and buy an existing website. Do a background check before sealing the deal, though. For example, you ask the seller to access their Google Analytics account to check traffic and assess the business profitability.

It can be a good part-time business for students in college, as long as you can invest some money upfront (anything from a four to five-digit number) and wait for the results. It can take at least half a year to increase the value of the website.

Alternatively, you can build a website from scratch , optimize it to generate traffic and then sell it. 

There are lots of ways in which you can improve your website . You can learn them by doing, but you’ll see better results if you already have experience growing websites.

Some domain names can be very lucrative, too. And it can be less challenging and risky to buy a whole website. There are a couple of business ideas for college students you can try:

• Develop a website based on your interests and list it for sale
• Create content for the website, put Google Ads on it, and make money whenever people visit your site or click on it
• Keep the domain and flip it when it becomes popular

6. Affiliate marketing

Starting an affiliation is another example of a good business for college students. It’s a great way of getting a passive income to get you through uni because you don’t have to be engaged full-time to make money.

Assuming you have a blog that already has 1,000+ visitors every month and the potential to attract more, it’s a good start for affiliation. You can also check Google Trends to check the traffic for your niche. The basics of affiliate marketing are simple—

You refer your website visitors to other businesses’ websites to buy their products or services. Every time someone buys something through your affiliate link with a unique code, you earn a small commission. You can also add affiliate links to your YouTube videos. 

But it starts to add up at a scale— 

The average global conversion rate in eCommerce is 2-3%. If you can match it, for every 100 visitors, two or three will convert.

The most popular program is probably Amazon Associates despite relatively low commission (roughly 1-10%). Not all affiliate websites look like a blog. Take This Is Why I’m Broke website for example— 

It’s a pretty simple design with large check-it-out buttons.

There are plenty of other programs you can try with a higher commission. It’s impossible to list all of them here but a simple google search in your niche should give you the idea.

For example, AdamEnfroy.com started out as a review site for online business software. It’s his full-time project. He’s found dozens of affiliate programs and, according to his first income report , they generated $2,906 of revenue after 5 months from launching the website.

7. Advertising

Another type of online business for students is selling advertising space. Banner ads are probably a more common way of monetizing your website than affiliation. 

If you have a website that was your passion project in high school, you can start looking at it from a different perspective and turn it into a college business idea. You may not like the way the banners look on your website, but once you monitor the income, you may change your mind.

You can go about advertising in two ways:

• Find and work with the advertisers directly
• Work with a middleman (so-called network) who brings advertisers to your website in return for a cut

Setting up network adverts using Google Adsense , InfoLinks or Media.net is dead easy. Just copy-paste a code into your site to create ads relevant to a visitor’s recent internet search.

Some networks require a traffic threshold and they will only accept you after your website is established and getting regular traffic. You earn extra cash every time visitors click on the advert (CPC) or per 1,000 impressions (CPM).

Most of them, including Google, limit the number of the network’s ads per page (usually three). They will also disable accounts that send invalid traffic, so for example when you click your own ads or send bots.

In most cases, you can run multiple ad networks on your site without violating the terms of service. But read the rules of each network before doing so. You’ll probably want to avoid inserting too many ads per site, anyway. If readers can’t find the content they are looking for, your traffic will drop, and consequently, you’ll earn less on the ads. 

There was one notable exception to the rule, though— 

The Million Dollar Homepage .

The site was started by a UK student in 2005 and became a phenomenon. The idea was to make $1m by selling advertising space that consists of a million pixels. Businesses could buy the pixels and link them to their websites.

Back then the idea was praised for its novelty. The site took off and raised a total of $1,037,100. The last 1,000 pixels were auctioned off for $38,100 on eBay. Now, it exemplifies link rot—links that used to work now point to dead pages. 

When you’re blogging you can combine different ways of monetizing your site for better income.

8. Dropshipping

Starting dropshipping on Shopify might be one of the best online business ideas for students with entrepreneurship skills. It lets you sell goods in an online store without directly handling or stocking them. It’s easy to set up, you don’t need a lot of initial investment, and you can see quick results.

All you have to do is to build a website on Shopify and connect it to products on AliExpress via the app Oberlo . Once your website visitor places an order, the order details are automatically sent to the supplier who fulfills it. The process is fully automated and takes a few clicks.

Shopify’s an easy eCommerce platform for beginners who don’t necessarily have web design skills. To succeed, you’ll need to know how to optimize your website to attract organic traffic and how to use Google Merchant Center via Shopify’s Google channel. 

You can start this type of business with literally $0.00 if you combine free trials and starter plans. 

But if you really want it to kick off, you’ll need to absorb some extra costs.

You can find out more about how Shopify dropshipping works and Shopify pricing before deciding if this is something you’d like to do.

Starting a business in college: how to succeed?

Finding an idea that works for you is the first step to becoming a successful entrepreneur. But if you’d like to succeed in any type of business, it’s good to follow tried and tested steps that make a student’s life less hectic.

1. Find a problem

As many as 42% of startup businesses fail because customers don’t need the product or service they offer. So finding a pain point is an essential ingredient to starting any successful business. 

True, but how? 

Start with yourself and your daily life— 

What do you like and dislike? What bothers you? What needs changing? Often, it won’t be a big deal—just a nuance. But there are always new challenges waiting for your business idea.

Sometimes the great business opportunity will come to you unexpectedly— 

When Austin Gappelberg was a university student , he noticed that losing dorm keys and cards was a serious problem among his fellow students. The replacement for the key cost $150.

That’s how he developed a minimum viable product (MVP) of a key holder . It goes in the back of a phone and prevents people from losing their keys. 

It’s brilliant in its simplicity!

2. Find a solution

Once you come up with a solution that scratches the itch, test the idea with your friends. Talk to the community to see if they would use it, and ask how much they would pay for using it.

Tyler Kennedy is a developer and founder of Dont Text , an iOS app for blocking spam texts. He says the best way to start out is to start. He says—

Do not wait to start, or you never will. And once you start, tell everyone about what you’re working on. I promise you, no one is going to steal your idea, so you do not need to keep it a secret. You have to tell people and get feedback. Learn what people want or how to improve what you’re doing. Tyler Kennedy Founder of Dont Text

In his experience, it’s also a good way of finding customers, even before you have anything to sell them. 

Don’t be afraid to use the “I’m a student” card. Reach out to local business owners, professors, and even random strangers who might potentially use your product or service. A lot of them will cheer you on and be happy to help.

When they want to use your business, you might be onto something.

You’re going to need a strong professional network in every stage of building your business. Check out any networking events, meetups, workshops, and societies that focus on how to be an entrepreneur in college. It’s a great place to meet and connect with like-minded students. 

3. Take the idea to the next level

Now, that you’ve run your business for a couple of months, and you’re committed to expanding it—Congratulations! You can get ready for the next challenges. 

Elizabeth Hay is an entrepreneur and a business consultant for the Penn State Small Business Development Center . If you asked for her expert advice at this point, here’s what you’d hear: 

If an entrepreneur is looking to scale, they really need to understand their unique value proposition and how they can grow their customer base without incurring a ton of costs. This is not as easy as it sounds, but the entrepreneurs who figure it out are very successful! Elizabeth Hay Entrepreneur and Business Consultant

Here’s a thought—

Can you maintain the same quality of service/product when your customer base grows? Is the infrastructure you created enough to accommodate growth? Finally, can you handle everything on your own or do you need a team to help you out?

In short, when it gets difficult to keep your head above the water, it’s time to think about how to scale your business. It means setting the scene to enable growth.

When things get busy, talk to your professors. See if you can use your business in place of classroom assignments.

4. Evaluate your business 

When student entrepreneurs come to Elizabeth Hay, they usually start out the consultation with a Business Model Canvas . This is a single-page worksheet with nine building blocks that contribute to a strong business model. It’s a quick way to do and assess a new business plan. 

Once you work through the Business Model Canvas, you can think up the next steps you should take. This will vary for each unique business.

Imagine your sales tripled overnight. 

In that case, would you be able to handle the increased orders and customers? How would it impact your profit and loss statement? What would need to change for your business to succeed?

If you want to be prepared, think up a sales growth forecast. Include the number of new customers, orders, and revenue you’d like to generate—the more specific, the better.

Do the same with the expense forecast. Expenses will go up for sure, and your job is to anticipate where and how. You can include the cost of new technology, hiring staff, implementing new systems to handle sales.

5. Get funding

To ensure the growth of your business, you need money to invest. There are many advocates of bootstrapping. It means funding it independently and spending money only on things you really need. If you can pull it off without outside investment, the reward may be huge.

But as with anything, there are pros and cons of bootstrapping — 

On the one hand, you have 100% of ownership and control of your business. You can stick to your vision and get bigger revenue when you succeed. Aside from that, you get a sense of undeniable achievement. 

It’s a good option for students who intend to keep the business after college. And it works well if you manage to produce a positive cash flow and profits from day one.

On the other hand, bootstrapping can lead to your business failure if you can’t ensure a steady cash flow. For many entrepreneurs, the outside capital can make or break the business. External financing gives you an extra boost to your marketing, service, or manufacturing that allows growth.

Bootstrapping means a lot of hard work and long hours without the help of seasoned shareholders or influencers. It’s also less budget for hiring talented staff.

So, how can you finance your college business?

You can find funding for your business in a number of ways. As a student, you can enter college competitions and grant programs that are unavailable to other entrepreneurs. 

Check if your college hosts any startup competitions. They can be pitch competitions, business model competitions, or new venture competitions, where the winners get cash prizes or other similar awards. Another option is startup loans , which can provide the necessary capital to kickstart your business without needing to win competitions or rely solely on personal funds.

ProTip! If your founding team is from different universities, you can qualify for grants in each of them.

Then, aim even higher. Search for regions and global grants and awards, like The Global Student Entrepreneur Awards (GSEA), that can really accelerate your business.

6. Prepare your pitch

If at some point in running your business you decide to get external funding, you’d better beef up your story-telling skills. 

You’ll need a pitch presentation to convince investors—professors, local business owners, and industry leaders—that your idea is great. Fortunately, you can use pitch deck templates, like the one created by the first angel investor in Facebook, Peter Thiel , or the one that secured funding to an Uber competitor, Cabify . 

Emily Ennis pitched and won multiple pitching events to raise seed funding when she was a student at Florida Gulf Coast University. She started her business Safe Driving Toolkit after she was involved in an accident herself. Her pitch depends on the audience she is pitching for, but that everyone loves hearing a good, impactful story. You can establish authority if you add a few facts and statistics. 

Here’s what happens next— 

Then I get into the money raised thus far and what we have done with it. Investors like to know that their money is going to good use, and it really helps to be able to show them that. If you have any prototypes or demonstrations to show or involve them in, it's wonderful and they love being able to visualize that even further. Lastly, I go over what I'm asking for and why. I show them the total, and then break it down on the slide. Emily Ennis Founder of Safe Driving Toolkit

Emily says it’s normal to fail to secure the funding at one competition or another. What if she wasn’t able to raise external funding at all?

I would have raised the money elsewhere, though it may have taken considerably longer and changed my idea a bit. Emily Ennis Founder of Safe Driving Toolkit

If you’re inspired and want to try presenting your idea at a pitching event, here’s how to create a pitch deck by a fundraising expert, Alejandro Cremades.

7. Invest in automation

The main idea behind automation is to simplify processes and make your work more efficient. Not having to deal with routine, repetitive tasks every day saves you a lot of time that you can spend on more complex issues instead.

What areas of your business can you automate?

You can use technology to automate marketing efforts , social media communication , and customer support . One of the leading trends in automation is using chatbots . They can handle up to 80% of standard questions , and their accuracy is constantly improving.

Even if you don’t need as much technology when you start a business in college, it will change as you grow. Most businesses don’t run off a single system. They use a dozen or more systems. 

So it’s vital to ensure that the ones you invest in first integrate with other automation tools. Otherwise, you risk communication and management problems in the future.

It’s never too late to evaluate what automation products are available on the market. See if the time you can potentially save justifies the expense?

8. Hire staff and outsource tasks

While the technology gives you the much-needed leverage, it’s employees that are your most valuable asset . On the one hand, you’ll need management that has bench strength —that is, skilled people who can easily take on new responsibilities. 

Family and college businesses often overlook the importance of bench strength. They usually make do with what, or who, they have to solve day-to-day urgencies. So why don’t you fill in new roles in a more systematic and thoughtful way?

On the other hand, you need employees to deal with customer service, deliveries, manufacturing, and so on. Determining how many of them you need can be tricky. Then you have to figure out the benefits and payrolls.

Scaling definitely requires recruiting and hiring. Sometimes you may find it easier and cheaper to find a reliable partner and outsource the work instead of hiring internally.

Read more: What Is the Most Common Industry for Small Businesses

Key takeaway

Whether you’re a freshman or senior in college, you may be considering starting your own business to make extra money, pay off your student loan , or gain real-life experience. Here’s what to remember about businesses for students:

• The best college business ideas materialize when you find a problem bothering people and come up with a solution. 
• Profitable businesses are built on solid research and analysis, such as Business Model Canvas.
• If you’re not sure how to start a business in college, talk to your professors, go to meetups, and join societies to discover more about entrepreneurial ideas for college students.
• There are many unique and easy businesses to start in college. It’s best if you do what you love and don’t give up after you fail.

If you fail in setting up a college business, see it as a process that leads you to a successful venture.

Share this article:

Monika wrote content about discovering innovative solutions in business, digital marketing, and ecommerce. She used the insights in her writing to help small and medium brands take their businesses to new heights.

Follow me on

Never Leave Your Customer Without an Answer

See in 90 seconds how LivePlan simplifies

financials for students: Watch

Garretts Bike Shop

Provide real–world business plan examples for your students, inspire confidence in future entrepreneurs and easily create your class syllabus using industry–best business plans., liveplan gives students access to actual business plans so they can practice business planning in and outside of the classroom., it's not just a classroom project. it's your students planning for their futures..

Teach by example

LivePlan's examples of actual business plans show students how they can identify opportunities, meet challenges, and plan their path to profits. Just like real-world entrepreneurs.

No spreadsheets necessary

With all–in–one spreadsheet–free forecasting and pitching tools–students can use LivePlan to build a realistic business plan with accurate projections and compelling pitches. Analyze scenarios. Track progress. Set goals. All in LivePlan.

Works seamlessly with your classroom setup

With LivePlan you can simplify syllabus creation. LivePlan can also be used alongside classroom tools such as Blackboard and Canvas. LivePlan's optional instructional resources can enhance your syllabus with materials that introduce lean planning principles, growth metrics, financial forecasting, and more.

Instructors looking for a great tool to help students develop business plans need to look at Live Plan. The step–by–step process walks students through the entire process from Pitch to Financials. As the Instructor you can also have online access to their plan and provide feedback and comments as the plan develops.

Mike Allen Business Instructor, North Idaho College, Coeur d'Alene, ID

Bring out the best in every student

LivePlan's business plan examples help students turn ideas into top–notch business plans for class projects and startups. The tools, features, and instructional content allow you to focus on bringing out the best in your students for every plan and project.

Before using LivePlan, my students were intimidated by the business planning process. LivePlan breaks it down into manageable steps and takes the mystery out of developing a business plan.

Amy Schulz NACCE Vice President of Education, Membership and Associate Faculty, Feather River College, Quincy, CA

I used LivePlan to develop a business plan for a class project. Turns out, the project became part of a business plan competition where I placed second out of over 200 entries.

Sheila Austin Student

LivePlan provides your students with the tools to

Know the competition

No business operates in a vacuum. LivePlan incorporates real–world industry data, so students can better understand competitors, plan businesses around industry realities, and confidently execute data–driven strategies.

Build business dreams together

From sharing feedback and engaging in discussions, to simultaneously working on different parts of the plan, students can easily collaborate in groups using LivePlan.

Create a plan that fits their needs

Whether small or big, LivePlan can build out the right–sized business plan for your classroom projects. In LivePlan, students can develop a simple lean plan that focuses their ideas, or create a full business plan with all the details and steps necessary to persuade investors, attract partners, and turn their idea into a profitable reality.

With so much happening in the classroom, you need a tool that works with you, not one that makes you do extra work. Used by educators, consultants, entrepreneurs, and students all around the world, LivePlan has been regularly improved and streamlined so it's easy to use.

Develop confidence in their plan and themselves

It's one thing to plan a business. It's another thing to know how to talk about a business plan. Students can develop talking points and practice their pitch in LivePlan so they can discuss their enterprise with confidence and authority.

With LivePlan your students exceed expectations

With LivePlan, students create business plans that:

• Guide them from concept to actionable plan
• Build the confidence necessary to be entrepreneurs
• Combine pitching, forecasting, and collaboration

LivePlan streamlines projects for educators

LivePlan eases project management in the classroom, so instructors can:

• Pinpoint feedback and suggest improvements
• Monitor project progress
• Teach business planning instead of managing multiple apps

Go beyond business plan examples

LivePlan easily integrates into business courses, includes all materials and curriculum to support classroom business projects, and comes with free phone, email, and chat technical support.

The students very much appreciate the guidance the LivePlan program offers. I love the ability to act as a contributor to their plans. The help resources are phenomenal and easy to navigate.

John Shaw Assistant Professor of Management, Davis College of Business – Jacksonville University, Jacksonville, FL

See how LivePlan can upgrade your student's education

Fill out the form below and our LivePlan Partnership Team will be in touch shortly.

Get Your Free LivePlan Account Today

Thanks an educator advocate will be contacting you shortly to set up your free liveplan account..

If you'd like to talk to us before then, please call 1–888–498–6136 Phones are open M–F, 8am–5pm (Pacific time)

Teachers and students love LivePlan

LivePlan really facilitated communication between students who were in a team on the business plan project. Students could comment on sections of their business plan and collaborate on what to change in their plan without having to meet face–to–face.

Amy Valente Assistant Professor of Business, Cayuga Community College, Auburn, New York

LivePlan helped us easily set up the business plan for our startup during our MBA. As soon as the other students saw it, they also wanted LivePlan. The time we saved on planning we could use for operational tasks. It was the ideal solution for us.

The product we produced by using Live Plan was exceptional, far exceeded our expectations, and came out so much better than we could have ever done on our own.

This product is a game-changer. It allows the non–MBA founder to unleash their potential through strategic planning and beautiful design. Highly recommended.

Answers Neuroscience

LivePlan is simply awesome.

Amit Agrawal

• Business Tips
• Small Business
• Sign in / Join

How to Build a Strong Business Network in New York City

Why MVPs are Crucial for Business Success

The Essential Guide to Packaging Supplies for Businesses

HR Consulting: How Expert Guidance Can Drive Business Success and Growth

What Disincentivizes Business Growth and How to Overcome It

The Impact of Hiring a Creative Staffing Team on Your Business

Rolled Up Holiday Pay vs. Traditional Holiday Pay: What You Need…

Are You Ready to Transform Your Career Path? Discover How Freelancing…

Employee Rights: Key Legal Protections Every Worker Should Be Aware Of

7 Ways to Appreciate and Motivate Your Employees

Bridging the Gap: A Comprehensive Guide to Bridging Loans

Can the Automotive Financing Sector Be Sustainable?

Which Loan Is Ideal For Low Credit Borrowers?

Invest Smart: Financial Management Strategies for Long-Term Wealth

Crafting Your Brand’s Blueprint: A Comprehensive Guide to Brand Strategy

How to Go Along with Step and Repeat Banner for Your…

Harnessing the Power of Niche Markets Through Media

10 Proven Marketing Strategies for Small Businesses

How Relationship Mapping Tools Help Streamline Sales Cycle

How Digital Transformation is Shaping the Future of Small Businesses

Mastering Google Display Ads for Small Business Success

How to Organize Travel Management for Small Businesses: Efficient Strategies and…

The Green Imperative: A Comprehensive Guide to Eco-Friendly Packaging Options

Navigating the Growth Spurt: A Guide to Managing Rapid Employee Expansion…

Embracing the Cloud: A Comprehensive Guide to Cloud Migration Services

AI-Powered Shelf Monitoring: Drive Sales, Reduce Waste, and Maximize Efficiency

Why Is Claims Handling Software Key to Enhancing Customer Satisfaction and…

The Future of Farming: Embracing Modern Agricultural Innovations

Exploring Open DAO: A Comprehensive Overview

How to write a simple business plan for students.

A business plan always has the same structure. Of course, if you plan to sell coffee, not to produce it, you will skip the “production” part, but other than that – you can’t skip anything.

Writing a business plan as a student , as a part of your college or university project, the best thing you can do is just to go into too many details. You have to save the structure, but you can describe your competitors in one abstract, not in five pages, with numbers and poll data.

Basic Business Plan Structure

Mostly, students are asked to make a marketing analysis and marketing plan more professionally than other parts, so we give more details about them.

Description of your business

Here is a brief overview of the experience of the entrepreneur, the date of creation of the company, the field of business, goals, and objectives of the work, available base, and resources.

Market analysis

List of competitors and their offers, estimation of demand, options of promotion and sale.

• Evaluation of the market. It is necessary to estimate the capacity of the market, the population, the number of potential customers. It is difficult to do this without complete marketing research. Therefore, you should look for the results of this assessment for your region. As a last resort, you can predict the estimated demand.
• Competitors. Make a list of your competitors who are already working in this market. Not only direct competitors that offer similar products and services but also those companies that produce alternative services should be considered. If you do not have a specialized tea boutique in your city, this does not mean that the market is free from competitors: you have to fight for customers with those department stores and supermarkets that also sell different types of tea.

Production plan

List of products (services provided) and their volumes, technological processes, necessary equipment and materials, cost calculation.

• Business processes. Write down the list of equipment, tools, raw materials, and materials needed to create your chosen range of products and services. Calculate the optimum production volumes your equipment can handle. Specify which employees and what kind of downloads you will need.
• Products. List the products, services, and work that you will offer your customers. Costs for the organization of business processes will allow you to find out the cost and to make a price list.
• Start-up investment. Calculate how much money it will take to start a project. Sum up the cost of all assets, fixed assets, repairs, materials, and other expenses that will be required to start production.

Organizational plan

List of necessary staff, organization of work, distribution of functions and tasks in the team, involvement of third-party organizations and specialists, personnel costs — calendar of activities for launching the project.

Marketing plan

Advertising channels and costs, ways to promote a company and its products (services), estimated marketing impact – sales volume, number of customers, and transactions.

• Promotion channels. Newspaper ads, radio and TV commercials, online advertising, creating your own site and group on social networks, advertising in local publics and forums, participating in trade shows .
• Target audience. Who to focus on when organizing sales. Who your client is by age, gender, occupation, income level. Where to find them and how to reach.
• Promotion cost. How much will it cost to find and engage? How often you will have to run ads, what are the appropriate options to choose?

Financial indicators

This is where the financial side of your business is reflected, namely: future costs (product purchases, rentals, hiring, etc.), revenue, net profit, profitability, and return on the project.

Risk assessment

A list of major issues that a company may face, their potential consequences, and a plan of measures to minimize them.

Project summary

The most important part is a compact presentation of the contents of the entire document on several pages, it is important here to place the accents correctly, taking into account the addressee and the purpose of preparing the business plan.

Even though it is only a business plan for students, not the one you would present to a real investor, try to make it look realistic.

RELATED ARTICLES MORE FROM AUTHOR

Estate Planning Solutions for Business Owners

DIY vs. Professional Car Service: What’s Right for Your Vehicle?

Ensuring Compliance: How Online Payroll Software Can Simplify Regulatory Requirements

Leave a reply cancel reply.

Why Understanding Software Development is Crucial for Your Business

How to Integrate E-commerce Data from Multiple Sources

The UX Factor: A Way to Elevate Digital Marketing Campaigns

Enhance Customer Communication with Direct Mail Solutions

College Business Plan

When you think of a college business plan , what is often the first thing you think about? The majority may say a business idea of setting up a college or a university for local and international students. Another may see it as a school that offers business as part of their academic course. What reason may it be or what idea you may have, it is always best to have and match it with a business plan. Making a college business plan will also matter and help you in the long run. With that, here are example templates you can download to start now. 

10+ College Business Plan Examples

1. college business plan template.

• Google Docs

2. Centennial College Business Plan

Size: 586 KB

3. Professional College Business Plan

Size: 895 KB

4. College Business Plan in PDF

Size: 122 KB

5. Developed College Business Plan

6. College Leadership Business Plan

Size: 167 KB

7. National College Business Plan

Size: 181 KB

8. Secondary College Business Plan

Size: 314 KB

9. Operational College Business Plan

10. College Business Operation Plan

11. Community College Business Plan

Size: 235 KB

What Is a College Business Plan?

A college business plan is a handy tool used in order to guide the user to better success and better roads. When you think of starting up a college, or adding a business course to a college, you will also need a business plan with it. A college business plan is seen as a means of gathering steps to making it work. May it be through a simple business plan or a complex one. Regardless, the main purpose of a college business plan is to gather steps or strategies to reach the main goal.

How to Create a College Business Plan

When you plan to make a college business plan, you think carefully about the steps that go with it. The most basic thing to see in a college business plan is the summary of your business and of course the marketing strategies. But these are not enough to make your business plan. To get a good idea, here are simple steps to create your college business plan.

Step 1: Always Plan Ahead

This may sound cliché but the most important thing to remember and to get started is to plan ahead . Do some brainstorming and get to know what you want in your business. This helps by making your college business plan better and can reap a better and positive result. Part of planning ahead is to plan for a title page, a title, or a goal you want to achieve. This can sometimes come off as the most difficult part of the entire business plan.

Step 2: Create Your Executive Summary

The next will be to create your executive summary . In this section of your business plan, you will be talking about your business, the timeline of your business, and any information that will help you explain about your business. Basically the executive summary gives you the opportunity to expound on your business and the description and nature of your college business.

Step 3: Discuss Marketing Strategies

Third step to your college business plan is to discuss marketing strategies . Marketing strategies help in maintaining your business goals. If you are not sure where to begin with your marketing strategies, you can always make a marketing strategies checklist . As this also creates ways in helping you figure out how to attract customers or clients to your business. They must also be practical for your business and your management team to do, or the whole marketing plan and strategies will be pointless.

Step 4: Check on Your Business Plan

From the first three steps to creating your college business plan, you may think that everything will be enough. You must be open to checking, updating, and reviewing your college business plan. The whole point of it is to make sure you are open to the ideas of updating progress reports you are going to be getting through the business plan milestones.

What is a business plan?

A business plan is a lengthy document that has a complete detail of how a business you plan to set up is recorded. The business plan is also seen as a tool or a roadmap to help you find out the best roads to setting up a successful business.

Why do you need to update your business plan?

The main purpose for updating your business plan is because every progress is important. Every single detail that may show positive or negative changes have to be reported in order to keep your business plan updated as well.

What factors are in a business plan?

The factors you need in order to complete a business plan are the most simple and basic things like:

• executive summary
• practical strategies and steps
• a practical timeline and milestones

When you think of a college business plan, you know for a fact that you will need to make the business plan in a practical manner. Your business plan must have everything that you need to make this a success. With that, download any of the examples to start your college business plan now.

Text prompt

• Instructive
• Professional

Create a study plan for final exams in high school

Develop a project timeline for a middle school science fair.

• Skip to main content
• Skip to primary sidebar
• Skip to footer

Additional menu

Business Idea Insight

Learn to develop a side business idea to launch

17 Business Ideas for College Students for 2022

Startup and business ideas for college students.

Starting a business in college can be a great way to make a living and pay for your way through school, if you do it right. Or, if you’re inspired by other great entrepreneurs who met their co-founders and launched the next biggest fortune 500 company, then starting a business in University may be your calling.

The great thing about business ideas for college students is that campuses can be the perfect place to validate a product or service offering too.

We are going to go over 17 business ideas. There is also both a range of small and large scale business ideas.

1. Voice-enhancement app

The voice-enhancement app would be a fun and cool app that people could download and use to enhance their voices for voice messaging. It would utilize their already installed messaging app, such as iMessage, and allow people to enhance their voices in cool and interesting ways, clip their audio files, and other fun features. They say audio is the next big thing as more and more people use it to type out texts, send regular voice messages, and use voice devices like the Amazon Alexa.

One co-founder would need to have a strong background in coding and software development, but this could easily be developed and launched from a college dorm room. If you wanted to take a different route, this could also be possibly created into an app that people could use. This idea would be worth validating if you want to try and create the next big social business idea!

2. Dorm cleaning service

Some people in college and university really miss having their parents or home maids clean their rooms. Now that they are at university, they may not want to clean their dorms by themselves. Leaving the perfect opportunity for you to charge them a fee to clean up the room.

It would be easy to do as you can simply market the business by going door to door in dorm buildings. Startup costs would also be very low since it costs could consist of cleaning supplies and a business license. After a while, and if you have a consistent clientele base, you could look into hiring other students to do the cleaning for you. The great thing about this idea is that it could be started from almost any college or university, and has the opportunity for expansion.

3. On-campus delivery service

There are many delivery services established that will delivery goods, packages, and food around cities, however, there are no or very few services that will deliver goods across campus. A professor may need a suit from the school dry cleaner delivered to the lecture hall. Or a group of students may need a bunch of food delivered to their dorms from the cafeteria. Saving them time so they can study. This would also be another business idea for college students that would be low-cost to start . You’d only need a bike, a strong bag for transporting things, and potentially a GPS if it was a large campus. This business idea could easily be expanded across other schools if you wanted to grow this idea beyond your own college.

4. Add-on online courses for college classes

If you have a strong interest and specialty in a set of college courses, you could create an online and easy to follow set of video courses that others could watch and learn from. Sometimes students need to hear the course information in different ways than the professor presents it, to fully understand the material.

Be careful though that you don’t copy the courses you just took, otherwise you could end up in legal trouble with the college. Your courses would have to have a different spin on how the material is taught. They could pay a simple fee for each course or a package deal if there were multiple courses. A background in video editing and course creation would come in very handy.

“Our extremely conservative estimate for the global tutoring industry is that it’s worth $100 billion (annually),” said Julian Dierkes, a professor with the Institute of Asian Research at the University of British Columbia (Source).

5. language transcription service.

If you are at a college or university abroad in a different country where they speak different languages, and you know both your home language and the native language in that country, you can start a transcription service.

By setting up a website where other people or companies can upload documents in one language, you could have an online portal of work that you can do in your dorm. When they upload it to your website, you could work on it, transcribe the document to their needs, and then send it back to them over your portal and a fee would be taken. This would be a great way to set it up so you don’t spend your precious time dealing with mail and hardcopy documents.

Again, this idea can grow into a large company if you hired other students to expand your workforce.

6. Research paper writing company

If you love to write and have a strength in writing research papers, this business idea for college could be perfect for you. Similar to the idea above, you could setup a website where other students from different universities around the state or country could send in their research paper requests, along with deposits for the work.

Then you could write the paper from the comfort of your dorm room and charge a fee for the end work. Many of these students will pay big money for a great finished product as it means they get a good grade when they really needed it.

However, one thing to watch out for is that some colleges and universities have policies about helping students in this manner. This is another idea that could grow with the help of other students.

7. Furniture Lending Service

Many college and university students move to their dorms with furniture specifically designed for their new room. But after a year they often end up throwing it out or selling it for pennies on the dollar as it usually does not accommodate other places well, and students don’t have time to sell the furniture. This means the students or their parents have wasted a lot of money on custom furniture of their dorm.

This college business idea would help stop that by allowing students to rent their dorm furniture. By working with local furniture shops around each campus, you can design furniture for each room and then charge a monthly or yearly fee to students. You could advertise to them online through Facebook or Instagram or Google to get them to know about your service before they come to the school.

8. Virtual assistant – professor niche

The virtual assistant is a great business model for college students as you can operate this business from your dorm room or house. As a virtual assistant, you would help other businesses and professionals with their online needs. This may be converting datasets in excel, transcribing audio, or simple data entry.

However, due to the current market competition for general virtual assistants, you could change your offerings to fit professors and college teachers. You could provide marking services, presentation preparation and development, and other tasks a professor would need done.

9. University/ College entrance consultant

As a new college or university student, you may now be qualified to help others get accepted into the schools you got accepted to when you were in high school. If you applied to several schools and got into them all, this will broaden your credibility.

For this business idea, you could set up a consulting service for wealthy families to coach their teen through the process of applying and getting accepted to their school of choice. A deposit for the work done, and a fee for the acceptance could be a good way to setup the payment systems. This could also be done online if you have the email packages and a great video calling system.

10. Senior companion service

There is no doubt that the 65+ community is growing around the globe. In some areas of the world, that group is poised to be the fastest growing demographic in the area! Meaning they will have a huge impact on business. If you are attending school in a place with a high senior’s population, this could be a great fit for you.

By advertising to the local communities about your service, you could charge a monthly fee to go and hangout with a single or group of seniors for the afternoon or evening. Possibly running chores for them in case they can’t or their family couldn’t anymore. This service would also have great potential to expand, as you can hire other students to take various shifts, and it would be a great way for them to meet others in the community while getting paid.

11. Textbook exchange service

The textbook exchange service is a classic college business idea that is hard to start and grow, but if done right, can have major rewards. This service would involve setting up an app or website where people from a certain school could upload their used textbooks for others to be able to buy or rent them.

Where this idea usually fails is that at the launch due to low stocks of the needed textbooks, and then the textbook buying season buys and the company runs out of money to sustain until the next semester.

If you are able to set up this website or exchange in advance with a great stock of textbooks, this would increase your chances of success. Similarly, if you chatted with the professors and teachers to confirm older versions of the textbook could be used for class, it would give students confidence that they can get the used book and still succeed.

This would be a great business to run as most of the work would be needed before the new semester, before any large assignments in class.

12. Notes Digitization service

If you can type fast, you could offer a note digitization service to other students, teachers, or university staff. This service could be charged on a per-word basis for you to type up handwritten notes into word documents, excel sheets, or even powerpoints.

If you like dealing with people in person and don’t want to run a business that is completely based online, this may be a great service for you to run. There would be a human interaction component, as you would always need to pick up the notes since they are a hard copy.

13. Dorm room greens service

I’m talking greens.

Many students want to have plants in their dorm, but may fail to keep them healthy, or simply throw them out after. Instead, you could offer a service where you can deliver and water the plants for them. Every few weeks or months, the plants could be switched out to a different plant at the student’s preference. You could also see if you could get help from the school to fund this since, as it would be costlier to startup with all the costs of plants, containers, soil, etc. Payments could be set up on a one-time or monthly subscription.

14. Campus electric scooter rentals

Campus committing doesn’t have to be boring and with this service, it won’t. The campus electric scooter rental would have 5-10 electric and push scooter racks located at various strategic points on campus. Students could then rent them for a per minute or single-use fee to get to their classes.

This is another larger scale business idea as the scooters would an expensive initial investment, but it has the potential to grow as you can expand to large cities with huge campuses.

15. Care-package subscription service

Many new university and college students miss home when they first move to school. And their parents miss taking care of them! This service would help solve that problem as parents could buy their kids care packages that could be delivered at certain times of the year. That way, the students don’t get as home-sick and they also get a great and healthy packed box of goods.

This business could partner with local food chains and suppliers as it would help them get their name out as well, so supplies could be cheaper or even free. Secondly, the willingness to pay by many families may be quite high, so the price point could be higher than most other subscription box services.

16. New grad employment consulting service

Graduating from college or university can be very intimidating. Especially for those whos programs didn’t prepare them to get a job when they left their studies. This is a nightmare reality that many new grads face, and many of them end up getting a job completely unrelated to their studies just to pay the bills.

This is another college business idea that could be potentially funded by the university, as it gives the institution a good reputation of helping their students and their alumni landing job opportunities. To start this, you could put together a resume and cover letter training packages, as well as mock interviews and other classes related to getting the job in the field they want. A single class-fee could be charged here.

Although the employment rates have returned to their 2007 average, there are millions of graduates every year, so 2% to 4% of 10 million is a healthy market size of around 300,000 people that could use your help. This idea could also be adjusted for high school students that need a job, as that market is larger and would be a good place to expand.

17. The ethical phone company

The large phone producers like Apple, Samsung, and Google continue to push the boundaries of what is acceptable for a company to do to its consumers. From purposefully draining and gaming the batteries phone life around the launch time of new phones, and the unethical pricing you’ll pay to get your device repaired, it is time someone start an ethical phone company.

This company would involve creating a phone that is not $1,000, but instead around $300-$500, with parts that can be interchanged and replaced as needed. Additionally, parts wouldn’t be made for the purpose to break in 6 months either. This phone company would be ethical, and that could appeal to a very large mass market across the world.

It would also be a great business idea to start in college because you may have access to students in other programs like computer science and engineering so they could help you make this a reality.

If you liked these college business ideas, be sure to subscribe below so you can accelerate your entrepreneurial journey to the fullest.

Learn how to decide on and launch a side-business

Grab your sample copy of the Finding The Fit Ebook and see how you can find the right idea and launch it with the strategies taught in the ebook.

Business Plan Development Guide

(6 reviews)

Lee Swanson, University of Saskatchewan

Copyright Year: 2017

Publisher: OPENPRESS.USASK.CA

Language: English

Formats Available

Conditions of use.

Learn more about reviews.

Reviewed by Kevin Heupel, Affiliate Faculty, Metropolitan State University of Denver on 3/4/20

The text does a good job of providing a general outline about writing and developing a written business plan. All of the important steps and components are included. However, the text is light on details, examples, and rationale for each element... read more

Comprehensiveness rating: 3 see less

The text does a good job of providing a general outline about writing and developing a written business plan. All of the important steps and components are included. However, the text is light on details, examples, and rationale for each element of the business plan. Some examples from actual business plans would be helpful.

Content Accuracy rating: 4

For the most part, the content is accurate. The content covers all important aspects of drafting a business plan. I thought the industry analysis could use more information about collecting primary and secondary sources; instead, this information was referenced in the marketing plan section.

Relevance/Longevity rating: 5

Most of the content relies on cites as far back as 2006; however, when it comes to developing and writing a business plan nothing has changed. Thus, the content is current and there is no concern about it becoming obsolete in the near future.

Clarity rating: 4

The text is clear. There are no difficult terms used and the writing is simple. The text uses a lot of bullet points though, which gets tedious to read for a few pages.

Consistency rating: 5

The text does a good job of maintaining consistency in terms of framework and terminology. The text is organized where it's easy to find the information you want in a quick manner.

Modularity rating: 3

The text has a lot of bullet points and the paragraphs are dense. However, the use of subheading is excellent.

Organization/Structure/Flow rating: 5

The book is organized as if you're writing a business plan from start to finish, which is helpful as a practical guide.

Interface rating: 5

There are no navigation problems, distortion of images/charts, or any other display features that may distract or confuse the reader.

Grammatical Errors rating: 5

The text is free of grammatical errors. The sentence structure is simple with many bullet points, which helps to avoid any grammatical issues.

Cultural Relevance rating: 5

This book was written by a Canadian professor and provides references to Canadian sources. However, the information in this text can be used for U.S. schools.

This book is very short and provides a good, general overview about the process of creating and writing a business plan. It won't help a reader if he/she is confused about a certain part of the business plan. The reader will have to find another source, such as "Preparing Effective Business Plans" by Bruce Barringer, Ph.D. The book provides links to good resources and a finished business plan that the reader can reference. I would recommend the book for undergraduate courses.

Reviewed by Kenneth Lacho, Professor of Management, The University of New Orleans on 6/19/18

1. Text is relevant to Canada. Not the United States 2. Needs to cover resources available to entrepreneur, e.g., federal government agencies, trade associations, chambers of commerce, economic development agencies. 3. Discuss local economy or... read more

1. Text is relevant to Canada. Not the United States 2. Needs to cover resources available to entrepreneur, e.g., federal government agencies, trade associations, chambers of commerce, economic development agencies. 3. Discuss local economy or economic area relevant to this proposed business. 4. Business model ok as a guide. 5. Suggested mission statement to cover: product/business, target customer, geographical area covered. 6. Need detailed promotion plan, e.g., personal selling, advertising, sales promotion, networking publicity, and social media. 7. How do you find the target market? 8. Chapter 6 too much detail on debt and equity financing. 9. Discuss how to find sources of financing, e.g., angels. 10. Expand coverage of bootstring, crowdfunding. 11. Chapter 4 – good checklist. 12. Chapter 3 - overlaps. 13. Chapter 7 – 3 pages of executive summary – double or single spaced typing. Number all tables, graphs. 14. Some references out-of-date, mostly academic. Bring in trade magazines such as Entrepreneur.

Content Accuracy rating: 5

In my opinion, the content is accurate and error free.

Relevance/Longevity rating: 4

The material is relevant to writing a business plan. I wonder if the Porter, SWOT VRIO, etc. material is too high level for students who may not be seniors or have non-business degrees (e.g., liberal arts). Porter has been around for a while and does have longevity. The author has to be more alert to changes in promotion, e.g., social media and sources of financing, e.g., crowdfunding.

Clarity rating: 3

As noted in No. 9, the tone of the writing is too academic, thus making the material difficult to understand. Paragraphs are too long. Need to define: Porter, TOWS Matrix, VRIO, PESTEL. A student less from a senior or a non-business major would not be familiar with these terms.

Consistency rating: 4

The text is internally consistent. The model approach helps keep the process consistent.

Modularity rating: 4

The process of developing a business plan is divided into blocks which are parts of the business plan. Paragraphs tend to be too long in some spots.

Organization/Structure/Flow rating: 4

The topics are presented in a logical step-wise flow. The language style is too academic in parts, paragraphs too long. Leaves out the citations. Provides excellent check lists.

There are no display features which confuse the reader.

Grammatical Errors rating: 4

The text has no grammatical errors. On the other hand, I found the writing to be too academic in nature. Some paragraphs are too long. The material is more like an academic conference paper or journal submission. Academic citations references are not needed. The material is not exciting to read.

The text is culturally neutral. There are no examples which are inclusive of a variety of races, ethnicities, and backgrounds.

This book best for a graduate class.

Reviewed by Louis Bruneau, Part Time Faculty, Portland Community College on 6/19/18

The text provides appropriate discussion and illustration of all major concepts and useful references to source and resource materials. read more

Comprehensiveness rating: 5 see less

The text provides appropriate discussion and illustration of all major concepts and useful references to source and resource materials.

Contents of the book were accurate, although it could have benefited from editing/proofreading; there was no evidence of bias. As to editing/proofreading, a couple of examples: A. “Figure 1 – Business Plan… “ is shown at the top of the page following the diagram vs. the bottom of the page the diagram is on. (There are other problems with what is placed on each page.) B. First paragraph under heading “Essential Initial Research” there is reference to pages 21 to 30 though page numbering is missing from the book. (Page numbers are used in the Table of Contents.)

The book is current in that business planning has been stable for sometime. The references and resources will age in time, but are limited and look easy to update.

Clarity rating: 5

The book is written in a straightforward way, technical terms that needed explanations got them, jargon was avoided and generally it was an easy read.

The text is internally consistent in terms of terminology and framework.

Modularity rating: 5

The book lends itself to a multi-week course. A chapter could be presented and students could work on that stage of Plan development. It could also be pre-meeting reading for a workshop presentation. Reorganizing the book would be inappropriate.

The topics in the text are presented in a logical, clear fashion.

Generally, the book is free of interface problems. The financial tables in the Sample Plan were turned 90° to maintain legibility. One potential problem was with Figure 6 – Business Model Canvas. The print within the cells was too small to read; the author mitigated the problem by presenting the information, following Figure 6, in the type font of the text.

I found no grammatical errors.

The text is not culturally insensitive or offensive in any way.

I require a business plan in a course I teach; for most of the students the assignment is a course project that they do not intend to pursue in real life. I shared the book with five students that intended to develop an actual start-up business; three of them found it helpful while the other two decided not to do that much work on their plans. If I were planning a start-up, I would use/follow the book.

Reviewed by Todd Johnson, Faculty of Business, North Hennepin Community College on 5/21/18

The text is a thorough overview of all elements of a business plan. read more

Comprehensiveness rating: 4 see less

The text is a thorough overview of all elements of a business plan.

The content is accurate and seems to lack bias.

Content seems relevant and useful . It does not help an entrepreneur generate ideas, and is very light on crowdfunding and other novel funding source content. It is more traditional. This can be easily updated in future versions, however. "Social Media" appears once in the book, as does "Crowd Funding".

The book is comprehensive, but perhaps not written in the most lucid, accessible prose. I am not sure any college student could pick this up and just read and learn. It would be best used as a "teach along guide" for students to process with an instructor.

The text seems consistent. The author does a nice job of consistently staying on task and using bullets and brevity.

Here I am not so certain. The table of contents is not a good guide for this book. It does make the book look nicely laid out, but there is a lot of complexity within these sections. I read it uncertain that it was well organized. Yes there are many good bits of information, however it is not as if I could spend time on one swathe of text at a time. I would need to go back and forth throughout the text.

Organization/Structure/Flow rating: 2

Similar to the above. I did not like the flow and organization of this. An editor would help things be in a more logical order.

Interface rating: 2

The interface is just OK. It is not an attractice interface, as it presents text in a very dense manner. The images and charts are hard to follow.

I did not find any grammatical errors.

Cultural Relevance rating: 4

I a not certain of the origins of Saskatchewan, but I do feel this is a different read. It is more formal and dense than it has to be. This would be a difficult read for my students. I do not feel it is insensitive in any way, or offensive in any way.

I would not adopt this book if given the chance. It is too dense, and not organized very well, even though the information is very good. The density and lack of modularity are barriers to understanding what is obviously very good information.

Reviewed by Mariana Mitova, Lecturer, Bowling Green State University on 2/1/18

Though this textbook has a prescriptive nature, it is quite comprehensive. The author strikes a good balance between presenting concepts in a concise way and providing enough information to explain them. Many every-day examples and live links to... read more

Though this textbook has a prescriptive nature, it is quite comprehensive. The author strikes a good balance between presenting concepts in a concise way and providing enough information to explain them. Many every-day examples and live links to other resources add to the completeness of the textbook.

Content seems accurate.

Since the content is somewhat conceptual, the text will not become obsolete quickly. In addition, the author seems to be updating and editing content often hence the relevance to current developments is on target.

The text is very clear, written in clear and straight-to-the point language.

The organization of content is consistent throughout the entire text.

The textbook is organized by chapters, beginning with overview of the model used and followed by chapters for each concept within the model. Nicely done.

The flow is clear, logical and easy to follow.

Overall, images, links, and text are well organized. Some headlines were misaligned but still easy to follow.

No concerns for grammar.

No concerns for cultural irrelevance.

Reviewed by Darlene Weibye, Cosmetology Instructor, Minnesota State Community and Technical College on 2/1/18

The text is comprehensive and covers the information needed to develop a business plan. The book provides all the means necessary in business planning. read more

The text is comprehensive and covers the information needed to develop a business plan. The book provides all the means necessary in business planning.

The text was accurate, and error-free. I did not find the book to be biased.

The content is up-to-date. I am reviewing the book in 2017, the same year the book was published.

The content was very clear. A business plan sample included operation timelines, start up costs, and all relevant material in starting a business.

The book is very consistent and is well organized.

The book has a table of contents and is broken down into specific chapters. The chapters are not divided into sub topics. I do not feel it is necessary for sub topics because the chapters are brief and to the point.

There is a great flow from chapter to chapter. One topic clearly leads into the next without repeating.

The table of contents has direct links to each chapter. The appearance of the chapters are easy to read and the charts are very beneficial.

Does not appear to have any grammatical errors.

The text is not culturally insensitive or offensive.

I am incorporating some of the text into the salon business course. Very well written book.

Table of Contents

Introduction

• Chapter 1 – Developing a Business Plan
• Chapter 2 – Essential Initial Research
• Chapter 3 – Business Models
• Chapter 4 – Initial Business Plan Draft
• Chapter 5 – Making the Business Plan Realistic
• Chapter 6 – Making the Plan Appeal to Stakeholders and Desirable to the Entrepreneur
• Chapter 7 – Finishing the Business Plan
• Chapter 8 – Business Plan Pitches

References Appendix A – Business Plan Development Checklist and Project Planner Appendix B – Fashion Importers Inc. Business Plan Business Plan Excel Template

Ancillary Material

About the book.

This textbook and its accompanying spreadsheet templates were designed with and for students wanting a practical and easy-to-follow guide for developing a business plan. It follows a unique format that both explains what to do and demonstrates how to do it.

About the Contributors

Dr. Lee Swanson is an Associate Professor of Management and Marketing at the Edwards School of Business at the University of Saskatchewan. His research focuses on entrepreneurship, social entrepreneurship, Aboriginal entrepreneurship, community capacity-building through entrepreneurship, and institutional-stakeholder engagement. Dr. Swanson’s current research is funded through a Social Sciences Humanities Research Council grant and focuses on social and economic capacity building in Northern Saskatchewan and Northern Scandinavia. He is also actively studying Aboriginal community partnerships with resource based companies, entrepreneurship centres at universities, community-based entrepreneurship, and entrepreneurial attitudes and intentions. He teaches upper-year and MBA entrepreneurship classes and conducts seminars on business planning and business development.

Contribute to this Page

You are using an outdated browser. Please upgrade your browser to improve your experience.

• Online MBA Programs
• Advertising
• Artificial Intelligence
• Business Administration
• Business Analytics
• Big Data Analytics
• Business Intelligence
• Business Management
• Corporate Finance
• Computer Science
• Cybersecurity
• Data Science
• Entrepreneurship
• Financial Technology FINTECH
• Healthcare Administration
• Healthcare Management
• Health Information Management
• Hospitality Management
• Internet Marketing
• Non-Profit Management
• Public Administration
• Quantitative Analysis

Supply Chain Management

• Sustainability Management
• Sports Management
• Technology Management
• Business Certificate Programs Guide
• Military to MBA
• How to Pay for an MBA
• Is an Online MBA Worth It?
• 12 Month Online MBA
• Accounting MBA
• Best MBA Concentrations
• Cybersecurity MBA
• Best Online MBA Programs
• Entrepreneurship MBA
• Information Technology MBA
• Marketing MBA
• Risk Management MBA
• No GMAT Online MBA
• Human Resources MBA
• Best MBA Careers
• Dual Online MBA Options
• Entry Level MBA Salary
• Employer MBA Tips
• EMBA vs Regular MBA
• Online MBA Benefits
• Value of Online MBA
• MBA for Physicians
• MBA for CEO’s
• MBA for Product Management
• MBA for Entrepreneurs
• MBA Internships
• MBA for Veterans
• MBA for Nurses
• MBA for Private Equity
• MBA Scholarships
• MBA Networking
• Ace Your MBA Interview
• Your GMAT Score
• AACSB vs ACBSP Accreditation
• Brand Management
• Engineering
• Information Technology
• Management Consulting
• Non Profit Management
• Information Systems
• Marijuana Cannabis
• Operations Management
• Product Management
• Project Management
• Sports Marketing

How to Write the Perfect Business Plan

Created by Henry Steele

By Henry Steele - January 8, 2018

Are you planning to start a business or do you already own one ?

Sponsored School(s)

If the answer is yes, then you need a business plan .

This seems like an extremely daunting task, but if you understand your business, it won’t be hard at all. It’s simply a matter of organizing the information in a clear, concise manner.

The following article discusses how to write the perfect business plan, including the types of business plans most commonly used, top 10 do’s and don’ts, what goes into a business plan, the structure of your business, marketing and sales, your organizational and operational plan and much more.

What is a Business Plan?

To help you write the perfect business plan, we’ll provide you with an exact outline of everything you’ll need to include, so even if you think you’re too young, you’ll have no problem starting out.

The reason many business owners first decide to put together a business plan is that they simply have to. If you want to apply for a business loan, attract investors, or obtain any necessary licensing, business plans are a prerequisite.

Even if you don’t need financing or licensing, however, it’s still a good idea to have a well-thought-out business plan. If you need to hire any key employees, a strong business plan will help attract strong talent. Whenever you need to deal with professionals, such as a consultant or an accountant, your business plan gives them invaluable insight.

Finally, it’s a good idea to put a business plan together for your own sake . As you put the business plan together, you’ll have the chance to really conceptualize and evaluate your strategy. You’ll build proof that your idea makes both financial and logistic sense. Once you start working to get your business off of the ground, a strong business plan guides and helps you stay on-track.

Types of Business Plans

Business plans come in all shapes and sizes, but you can generally whittle them down to three key versions.

Shortened Business Plan

This is an easily digestible, much shorter version of your normal business plan. Typically, it will be between three and five pages. You should include your executive summary, financials, and any information pertinent to the person/s to whom you are presenting the plan. A shortened business plan is usually made with a specific purpose or recipient in mind, so it will be easy to figure out exactly what is and isn’t important enough to make the cut.

In-depth Business Plan

Your standard business plan, and the one we will be teaching you to write . Again, these come in handy when seeking to fund your business, attract employees or work with professionals, or simply to act as a guide.

Operational Business Plan

Unlike the other two business plans we have discussed, an operational business plan is meant for internal use only. This will not be distributed to anybody except for employees or professionals working on your company’s behalf. An operational business plan focuses on the company’s overarching goals, mission, and vision so that all department stay aligned. Your Marketing and Sales, Operational Plan, and Financial sections will be key here.

What Language Should I Use?

Top 10 Do’s and Don’ts

Before we dive into our business plan outline and describe each section, let’s go over some general do’s and don’ts you’ll want to keep in mind as you write your business plan:

Do: Provide Examples

Don’t: Overload the Reader

An in-depth business plan will contain lots of useful information and will likely end up being much more than ten pages. Because it’s so long by nature, you need to make sure to only include the most useful information in each section. Format everything carefully and correctly. Don’t use language that confuses or intimidates readers outside of your industry. The easier it is for the reader to absorb everything you’re presenting them, the more effective your business plan is.

Do: Proper Research

Don’t: Leave Any Stone Uncovered

Somebody who reads your business plan shouldn’t have any major questions left unanswered. Include complete information about what you are aiming to do, how you are going to do it, how much money is needed, etc. Use our full outline below to ensure everything is covered.

Do: Be Honest

Don’t: Hustle Just to ‘Get it Done’

Writing a business plan isn’t a task you’re completing and checking off your to-do list. Everything must be accurate, thoughtful, and well-articulated. Keep in mind: this will guide you as you operate your business and is the key to obtaining financing and/or pitching your business.

Do: Make it a Living Document

Don’t: Focus Solely on Your Product

You might think your business revolves around your particular product/s or service/s, but there’s so much more to it than that. Your business plan talks about how the actual business is run, so you might want to leave the technical specifications and granular details for another time.

Do: Show Your Passion

In the end, your business plan and your business are about you. While it’s important to maintain a professional tone, don’t be afraid to let your enthusiasm about your business seep through every page.

Don’t: Write Alone

How to Write a Business Plan

• Keep it concise.
• Know your audience.
• Perfect your executive summary.
• Focus and refine constantly.
• Gather and check all of your data.
• Be confident, but don’t go overboard.
• Be as clear and in-depth as possible.
• Enhance with graphics.
• Share and gather feedback from trusted advisors.

What Goes into a Business Plan?

When writing your business plan, you will need to put in a lot of time and research. Luckily, we’re here to walk you through all of that. A winning business plan contains the below sections, and you can use our sidebar to navigate to each of these:

• Introduction

Executive Summary

• Information About Your Business
• Industry Analysis

Marketing and Sales

• Operational Plan

Your Business Plan Introduction

Cover Letter

A cover letter is essential whenever you are presenting the business plan to somebody for a specific reason and should be tailored to each individual. Like any other letter, it should include names, dates, and a cordial greeting. In the first paragraph, explain exactly why you are presenting the business plan to the recipient. Take one or two paragraphs to discuss your business (an even more condensed executive summary, as we will cover in the next section). Finally, let the reader know you appreciate their consideration and would be happy to address any questions or concerns. Include any necessary contact information below your name and signature.

Your title page should be clean and simple. Here’s what to include in it:

• The title of the document (i.e. Business Plan, Business Proposal, Summary Business Plan).
• The name of your company.
• A sub-heading, if necessary (i.e. ‘Presented to ABC Investing Company’).
• Who the business plan was prepared by.
• The name of any other owners or key partners.
• Basic contact information.

Table of Contents

A table of contents is essential to make your business plan transparent and easy to navigate. It is unlikely that a serious potential partner or investor will read through your plan once and toss it aside, so you want to make it easy for them to return and pick up where they left off or revisit any key bits of information. If you are providing a digital copy, include clickable links to each section for the reader’s benefit.

The executive summary is exactly what it sounds like – a brief summary that describes the essence of what your business is and what it aims to do. Here’s how to write a winning executive summary:

• Begin with a single sentence that sums your business up. This is otherwise known as your value proposition.
• Describe what niche or problem your business fills or solves.
• Explain exactly how your business solves this problem in a way that the rest of the competition does not or cannot.
• A very brief (one or two sentences) summary of any other information from the following sections that would be critical to your business’ success.

Your Business / Company

Structure of Your Business

First and foremost, you’ll need to discuss the legal structure of your business:

• Sole-proprietorship: simple to set-up, but the owner is fully liable for any debts or obligations.
• Partnership: a general partnership is also simple to set-up, but all partners would be liable. Limited partnerships, or LPs, are a bit more complicated.
• Corporation: a corporation is owned by stockholders, so it is unlikely you will either want or need to structure as one. There are two types of corporations, which vary in terms of shareholder limitations and tax liabilities: S corporations and C corporations.
• Limited liability corporation (LLC): an LLC is generally the best of both worlds for small businesses. The owner’s’ liability is limited, and taxation is that of a partnership, which provides better flexibility over a corporation.

Once the legal structure is determined, you’ll need to break down the ownership of the business. Are you the sole owner? Do you have business partners? Has anybody purchased a share of the business in exchange for funding? Provide a brief introduction to any key executives or owners, outlining what strengths they have and how they will impact the business.

Finally, include a brief history (if any) of your business, and any pertinent location details.

Business Vision, Mission, and Values

This is one of the most important sections of your business plan. Here, you need to impart your passion for the business and really describe what you’re trying to achieve.

Business Vision

Your vision statement is all about the company’s goals. It serves as a template for exactly what you’re trying to achieve, both short-term and long-term. Don’t hold back when it comes to your vision: if your goal is to eventually dominate the Northeastern coffee shop scene, say that. A vision statement is your chance to think big.

Where a vision statement thinks big, a mission statement is more practical. Your mission statement should discuss your company’s purpose. Why does it even exist in the first place? This mission statement will act to provide organizational direction and help you achieve your vision.

The values are all about how you plan to operate your business in relation to the stakeholders. This includes investors, customers, and members of the local community. How do you plan to treat them? What are you doing to make their lives and the world they live in better?

Analyzing the Industry

Market Size

Here, you’ll describe exactly how large the market is. You should be able to find national figures with relatively little research. If you’re not serving a national or international market, discuss how large the population you plan to serve is. Extrapolating from the national information, how big do you expect your actual market size to be?

In addition, you should discuss any important trends. Is your market growing or retracting? If your market is growing, discuss how you project to fit into that growth and seize your market share. If your market is shrinking, discuss why you think entering the marketplace is worthwhile, and whether or not you project growth in the future.

Industry Focus and Trends

First, you’ll want to talk about the industry in general. This includes looping back to the market size and discussing whether it is growing, stagnant, or shrinking. Are there any overarching trends or cycles that will affect your business?

This is also a good opportunity to discuss pricing. What type of money does your average customer spend in your industry? What price point are you aiming for, and why is that a good strategy? If you aren’t competing on price, what reasons do you have to believe that somebody will be willing to spend more on your business?

Below, we will discuss two valuable business models you can and should use to discuss your industry further.

PEST Analysis

• Political: what impact could the government have on your business. Is there any pending legislation that could change how you operate? Would tax changes or tariffs cause a financial strain?
• Economic: would an economic downturn cause sales to tumble, or is your business relatively immune to economic factors? Furthermore, what do current economic trends (inflation, consumer demand, etc.) say about your short-term potential?
• Social: are there any relevant social or cultural trends that are shaping the industry? Is there a distinct seasonality to your business? Consider, for example, the impact of the Christmas season to retailers in the United States.
• Technological: how has technology shaped your industry over the past decade? Take a look at the future and make an educated guess on where the industry is headed, and how you’ll fit into that future.

Sometimes PEST is lengthened to PESTLE to include any legal or environmental factors as well. If you believe either will have a significant impact on your business, make sure to include it as well.

Porter’s 5 Forces Analysis

• Competition: we will go into this in more detail next, but for this model you should discuss how much competition there is, and how profitable they might be.
• Threat of new entrants: how easy is it for somebody to enter your industry? For a casino, it would be quite difficult (extensive significant licensing and upfront costs), but for a food truck, it would be quite minimal. The easier it is to enter your industry, the greater the threat is of somebody else entering and stealing your market share.
• Power of suppliers : if your industry has a low number of suppliers or suppliers that are dominated by much larger companies, you will have a problem sourcing on-budget and on-time. If you aren’t reliant on very specific suppliers, however, or if there is competition among suppliers, you can find yourself in an advantageous position.
• Power of customers: specifically, do your customers have the ability to drive prices down? If you expect to have a large number of small customers, your price will remain relatively stable. However, if you plan on having a small number of very important customers, they maintain the power to dramatically impact your pricing and profitability.
• Threat of substitutes: how likely is it that somebody will forego your offering for a comparable substitute. If you’re a restaurant, for example, Amazon’s grocery delivery business would be a substitute, since people may decide to stay home and cook for themselves.

Competition

It’s just as important to discuss how your competition is navigating the industry you plan on dominating. With a strong idea of where your competition is positioned and the strategic decisions they are making you will be able to determine where your own business fits in.

To begin, discuss what your competition looks like. Are there many small businesses vying for the same customers or are you competing against a couple of whales? List your most important competitors and summarize them. Discuss their location, products, pricing, market share, and any important strategic decisions they have made. Use this information to create a list of their strengths and weaknesses.

After discussing the competition, it’s time to think about where you fit among them. SWOT Analysis is the perfect model to do just that.

SWOT Analysis

Here is what a complete SWOT Analysis looks like:

• Strengths:  Exactly as it sounds. What do you do best? What do you do that the competition absolutely cannot?
• Weaknesses:  Be honest. Are there any resources you lack? Any skillsets that are missing? What isn’t as efficient as it could be?
• Opportunities:  Improving any of your weaknesses is a major opportunity. In addition to that, consider internal or external factors that might change and present a new business opportunity. Finally, are there any complementary products or services that you could consider offering to your customers?
• Threats:  What potential is there for your business to be damaged? Are there any industry or economic trends? Could your competition change strategies and harm you? Do any obstacles to success stand in your way?

Once you have completed the SWOT analysis, wrap this section up by talking about your own competitive strategy. Given your industry, the competition, and your own SWOT analysis, what decisions are you making to position the company to succeed?

Readers of your business plan definitely need to know how you’ll be marketing and selling your product or service.There are going to be three key elements of your marketing plan.

Customer Segmentation

• Demographic information – age, gender.
• Psychographic profile – what do they care about? What motivates them? What do they value? Where do they get their information?
• Socioeconomic profile – income, lifestyle preference.

Describe your target audience in great detail. The more you know about your customer, the easier it will be to market to them.

Advertising and Promotion Plan

After building a strong customer profile of your target audience, you should know what your customer cares about. Think about how your business fits into that, and strategize how you’re going to market to them. Use their demographic and behavioral information to determine the most appropriate channels to focus on.

Your brand should seep into all aspects of your business – the website, advertisements, and even the tone of communications with customers. Whatever strategies you have for these elements, make sure to lay them out.

Finally, include your company logo and slogan, if they already exist. If not, you should begin to think about them and use the rest of this section as a guide.

Sales Distribution Plan

How exactly do you plan on getting your goods or services into somebody’s hands? Do you plan on hiring a sales staff or will you handle it all yourself initially? Do you plan on doing inbound or outbound sales? What does the sales process look at each step of the marketing funnel?

You’ll also need to think about and discuss pricing. Discuss your pricing strategy and why it’s a good value for your customers. If you are going low or moderately priced, discuss how you can stay profitable and remain differentiated from the competition. If you are a luxury brand, discuss why somebody will be willing to pay more for your business than the competition.

Lastly, consider distribution. Are you going to allow customers to purchase directly from you? Will they have to go through distributors? Do you have any retail partnerships to leverage? These are important decisions that have a profound impact on a business.

Organizational and Operational Plan

Production Process

Here are some ideas of what you’ll need to outline:

• Raw materials – how much do they cost? Do prices fluctuate? Is supply limited in quantity or how quickly it can be obtained in a pinch?
• What machines, technologies, etc., do you use for production? What costs are involved in these? Are you renting or do you own them?
• What is your estimated daily output?
• How easy is it to scale up or down as necessary? How does this impact the cost per unit?
• Which methods of quality control do you employ, both pre- and post-production?

If you’re a service business, you might not have any physical inventory, but your employees should be considered as your supply. After all, without them, you won’t be able to provide your services to your customers. What strategies do you have to recruit and retain the best talent possible? Can you scale quickly through recruiting and training, overtime, or an increase in part-time help?

You should also look back at your sales distribution plan and consider the logistics of shipping any physical products. How often will orders be fulfilled? Do you have the ability to rush orders if necessary? How will returns or incorrect shipments be handled in a way that keeps everybody happy?

Here are the components you must include in your business plan’s financial information:

Forecasted Sales

Use all of the marketing data you’ve put together to determine what a reasonable sales forecast looks like. Project your sales for a period of two or three years, going one month at a time. Include seasonality whenever applicable. As you forecast sales, include exactly how much revenue you expect to earn from those sales, and the total direct cost of those sales. You’ll be able to use these figures to determine revenue and gross margin, which you should use to compare to industry and competitive standards.

Projected Expenses

Fixed costs are going to stay the same whether you sell one widget or twenty. For example, rent, electricity, insurance, marketing costs, and payroll (with the exception of commission and bonuses), will mostly stay the same no matter what sales look like.

Variable costs, on the other hand, will vary by each unit sold. This includes the cost of materials, shipping, coupons, taxes, etc. Most of this should already be covered in your forecasted sales report, but make sure that nothing is overlooked.

Make sure to consider that as you scale, some fixed costs may become variable. As sales increase, you may have to hire more employees, or move into a bigger office. Keep this in mind by always referring back to your forecasted sales and estimating your business needs as best you can.

Balance Sheet

Everything comes together on your balance sheet. This includes your projected sales and expenses, but also deals with assets and liabilities.For example, if you take out a loan, you’ll need to include the capital in your assets and the repayments, including interest, in your liabilities. Non-monetary assets, such as the property and machinery must also be included.

You can find a sample balance sheet here .

Cash Flow Statement

Month by month, you’ll track exactly how much cash you expect to leave your hands and how much will come in. Keep in mind that not all sales are paid fully right away. Consider how many sales will be paid in full at the time of sale, how many will be paid in 30 days, 60 days, or go completely delinquent.

Once you have your cash flow statement completed, run some quick analysis. Compare your projected expenses each month to the projected cash coming in each month. For any months that project to have a negative cash flow, ensure you have enough money on hand to cover the difference.

You may find two examples of completed cash flow statements here and here .

Customer Lifetime Value

Customer Lifetime Value is an estimate of exactly how much each customer you acquire will be worth total. A simple way to calculate this is by determining how many purchases a customer makes before churning, and multiplying it by the average amount of their purchase. In other words, how many purchases will they make before moving on from your business, and how much will those purchases be worth?

Let’s take a look at a real-world example. Let’s assume you’re running an oil change business, and you know your average customer gets three oil changes per year. With premium options and add-ons, your average sale is $38.50. Each customer spends an average of three years with you before churning (perhaps they have moved away or found another service they prefer).

In this example, your expected CLV would be $346.50. You know each average customer will make 3 purchases per year, for 3 years, at $38.50 each. 3 x 3 x $38.50 = $346.50, which is your CLV.

Why is CLV so important? Let’s take a look at unit economics.

Unit Economics

The formula for cost of acquisition is simple. Divide your total marketing spend by the number of customers you have acquired through all marketing channels. If you spend $25,000 across all marketing channels and acquire 1,000 customers, your average cost per acquisition is $25.00.

Tracking your marketing expenses isn’t the tricky part. Attributing each user to a specific campaign, however, can be. If somebody walks into your store after seeing a TV ad, for example, it can be hard to properly attribute them. Digital campaigns are a bit easier, as there are typically tracking links that make everything easy to calculate. You’ll have to do your due diligence and make your best-educated guesses here, using industry standards whenever necessary and possible.

You should also take the time to break out your unit economics into each marketing channel. This allows you to track which channels are performing well and which ones aren’t. If Facebook is attracting lots of customers but you’re spending so much that your cost of acquisition is higher than expected CLV, you might actually need to stop spending money there.

It’s important to be very clear about exactly how your business has been funded so far. This includes what you have received through investments, series rounds, or personal loans. You will also need to mention any personal funds that you have put into the business, and how much you have saved that you are willing to put into it in the future.

Once you have discussed the funding your business has received, it is appropriate to lay out exactly how much you’ll need. Make sure to also discuss exactly what any loans or investments will be used for and how that spending will be tracked.

Business Plan Resources

Business plan samples.

To reinforce everything we’ve discussed above, let’s take a look at some sample business plans that have already been put together for your review. We’ll discuss some key takeaways from each plan, helping you consider how your business is unique and what you’ll need to emphasize.

Coffee Shop Business Plan

A coffee shop is a nice, simple business to start our samples with. A coffee shop requires a small storefront, and the location is critical. Most people will gladly stop in for a nice cup of coffee but are unlikely to drive miles out of their way for one. Notice that because of this, the sales forecast is relatively stagnant, even after several years.

Click here for the sample business plan.

Restaurant Business Plan

A restaurant business plan will be similar to a coffee shop, but is a little more involved. Start-up costs are higher as it requires a larger storefront and a larger variety of equipment. Variable costs are higher as a quality meal costs much more than a cup of coffee. The sales forecast shows more growth, as people are more willing to travel for a good meal than they are a simple cup of coffee.

Food Truck Business Plan

Let’s consider a third food-based business to really drive home how businesses that appear similar will have important differences. Food trucks have a much different fixed cost structure than a coffee shop or restaurant, as they don’t have a physical location. Seasonality and location will have a huge impact on salespeople won’t want to stand outside for a burrito when it’s cold and snowy outside. With a much smaller staff, a food truck is also more likely to be open for lunch only, or closed a couple days per week.

Startup Business Plan

It’s good to take a look at a general startup business plan to get an idea of how to estimate costs, sales, etc. This sample plan is a take-out pizza joint. Notice that trends are important, as the business plan notes their market is a growing area and they are aiming to fill a niche for low to middle-income families, which comprise the majority of residents in their service area. They use a mixture of studies and geographic data to make conservative estimates, giving potential investors confidence that the business can be profitable if the strategies are successfully executed.

Photography Business Plan

A photography business is a great example of a company that is minimal to the extreme. Mostly, you will be relying on your own skills and experience. Minus initial equipment and the cost of your own time, expenses are minimal. Still, you see that it’s important to have a strong plan in place so that you understand how to position your services and who exactly you’re aiming to serve.

Business Plan Tools

Here are a variety of tools that make both writing a business plan and getting your business off the ground much easier:

If you want to quickly build your idea into a business plan to validate its value or just to get started, LivePlan is perfect. The business planning process is made simple, as you simply need to answer questions and are given plenty of examples, videos, and tutorials along the way. You can even use LivePlan to collaborate with partners or investors, testing ideas on the fly and seeing its impact on your business’ health.

Click here to take a look at LivePlan.

Rocket Lawyer

When you’re starting a business, it’s extremely likely you’ll need quick legal help. You might need advice on licensing, permits, or zoning. Or perhaps you want to discuss how to structure your business as an LLC. Rocket Lawyer can help. You’ll have access to their services for a monthly fee that’s less than a cup of coffee each day. There’s an even option to help incorporate your business by filling out a couple of quick forms.

Click here to take a look at Rocket Lawyer.

Like LivePlan, StratPad offers a cloud-based chance to build your business plan and strategy on the fly. StratPad offers a demo for their services and if you’re looking for funding will even match you up automatically with a financial institution that makes sense for your business. Our suggestion is to take a look at both LivePlan and StratPad and select the one that you like best.

Click here to take a look at StratPad.

If you’re looking for a simple way to create a professional business plan without all the bells and whistles, BizPlan is perfect for you. You’ll be able to create a stylish, professional business plan using intuitive drag-and-drop templates. Financials are easy to create using a user-friendly dashboard.

Click here to take a look at BizPlan.

A typo can derail your business plan and make you look sloppy and unprepared, no matter how much effort you put into it. Grammarly is a world-class spell checker that also checks for many of the most common grammatical error for free. There’s even a browser-based version that you can use no matter where you are. For a fee, you can subscribe to Grammarly Premium, which provides an even more granular check.

Click here to take a look at Grammarly.

Business Plan Templates

Now that we have an idea of everything you need to include in your business plan and which tools you’ll need to get started, it’s time to get started. Here are some websites with sample business plan templates you may use to make writing the perfect business plan a bit easier:

• Score.org has a variety of business plan and financial statement templates, including ones for both start-ups and established businesses.
• Microsoft Office’s website has many valuable business plan templates, including a checklist and PowerPoint Presentation templates for pitching your business plan.
• The S. Small Business Administration allows you to create a business plan with a free account that you can download and distribute as a PDF.
• Santa Clara University provides a 15-section business plan that can be downloaded one section at a time or all at once.
• Law Depot offers a business plan template tailored for you. Simply answer some quick questions and your template is instantly ready to download.

How to Write a Business Plan Conclusion

In the end, a business plan is a highly unique and personalized document. A business plan that is right for your business won’t be right for any other business in the world. By closely following the outline and strategies above, however, you’ll have a great base to begin crafting your own perfect business plan.

Bibliography:

• Berry, T. 15 Reasons You Need a Business Plan. Entrepreneur. Retrieved from https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/83818.
• CBM Group. What Is The Right Tone And Writing Style For A Business Plan? Retrieved from http://www.cbmgroup.co.uk/blog/business-plan-writing/what-is-the-right-tone-and-writing-style-for-a-business-plan.
• Discover Business. How to Write a Business Plan. Retrieved from https://www.discoverbusiness.us/business-plans/.
• Fontinelle, A.How To Write A Business Plan. Investopedia. Retrieved from http://www.investopedia.com/university/business-plan/.
• Franklin, B. The Three General Types of Business Plans. Business Power Tools. Retrieved from http://www.businesspowertools.com/2016/06/management-2/the-three-general-types-of-business-plans/.
• Gregory, A. Comprehensive Business Plan Outline for Small Business. The Balance. Retrieved from https://www.thebalance.com/a-comprehensive-business-plan-outline-for-small-business-2951557.
• Gregory, A. How to Conduct a SWOT Analysis for Your Small Business. The Balance. Retrieved from https://www.thebalance.com/swot-analysis-for-small-business-2951706.
• Hazlett, M. Basics of Unit Economics. Medium. Retrieved from https://medium.com/@markhazlett/basic-of-unit-economics-79f1d6cae085.
• Investopedia. Porter’s 5 Forces. Retrieved from http://www.investopedia.com/terms/p/porter.asp.
• Johnson, J. How to Write a Cover Letter for a Business Plan. Small Business Chronicle. Retrieved from http://smallbusiness.chron.com/write-cover-letter-business-plan-43209.html.
• Katz, A. Determining the Best Legal Structure for Your Business. Entrepreneur. Retrieved from https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/236450.
• Kolowich, A. How to Write a Business Plan: A Bookmarkable Guide (With Examples). HubSpot. Retrieved from https://blog.hubspot.com/marketing/how-to-write-a-business-plan.
• Lavinsky, D. Marketing Plan Template: Exactly What To Include. Forbes. Retrieved from https://www.forbes.com/sites/davelavinsky/2013/09/30/marketing-plan-template-exactly-what-to-include/#1ddaeeb43503.
• My Own Business Institute. Session 2: The Business Plan. Retrieved from https://www.scu.edu/mobi/business-courses/starting-a-business/session-2-the-business-plan/.
• Parsons, N. How to Write a Business Plan [Updated for 2017]. Bplans. Retrieved from http://articles.bplans.com/how-to-write-a-business-plan/.
• PESTLE Analysis. What is PESTLE Analysis? A Tool for Business Analysis. Retrieved from http://pestleanalysis.com/what-is-pestle-analysis/,
• Robbins, S. Why You Must Have a Business Plan. Entrepreneur. Retrieved from https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/74194.
• Ronick, D. 10 Business Plan Dos and Don’ts. Inc. Retrieved from https://www.inc.com/articles/201104/business-plan-dos-and-donts.html.
• Ronick, D. 10 Things A Business Pitch Absolutely Does (And Does Not) Need. Business Insider. Retrieved from http://www.businessinsider.com/10-survival-tactics-for-a-successful-business-plan-pitch-2011-4/.
• Shopify. The Ultimate Guide to Business Plans, Chapter 3: The Company. Retrieved from https://www.shopify.com/guides/businessplan/the-company.
• Wasserman, E. How to Write the Financial Section of a Business Plan. Inc. Retrieved from https://www.inc.com/guides/business-plan-financial-section.html

FEATURED ARTICLES

• How AI Will Continue to Disrupt and Drive Business
• Do You Need a Business Degree to Get Your MBA?
• Leveraging Your New Master’s Degree
• Company Culture: The Future of Human Resource Management
• 10 Things Every Business Student Should Know
• 7 Ways To Make The Most of Your First Semester…
• How to Get an Employer to Sponsor Your MBA?
• The Big Question: Should You Go to College?

FEATURED INTERVIEWS

• Eastern Oregon University MBA Interview
• University of Michigan-Dearborn Business Analytics with the Director of Graduate…
• Benedictine University Business Analytics

"It doesn't matter how many times you have failed, you only have to be right once." - Mark Cuban

• Terms of Use
• Privacy Policy

Copyright © 2024, Business Student.com. All Rights Reserved.

$10,000 Business Plan Competition open for 2024

The eighth annual Augustana College Business Plan Competition invites teams or individual students to present their ideas to a panel of business professionals.

The competition is funded by the Augustana Creative Enterprise Fund, which has been supported by a donor. All current Augustana students (who will be students in spring semester) may submit written business plans, and the best five plans will be invited to compete. 

The first-place award is $4,500; second place $3,000; third place $1,500; and $500 each to the remaining two teams.

Written business plan submissions are due to Doug Tschopp via email by Jan. 16, 2024  at 11:59 p.m. Teams will be informed on or about Jan. 30 if they are invited to the competition.

Teams then will have one week to update their plans and submit them to Doug Tschopp by midnight on Feb. 7, 2024. These written plans then will be sent to the final panel of judges to review before competition.

The final competition consists of presentations to judges, and will take place from noon-4:30 p.m. Feb. 24 on campus. The judges are CEOs, bankers, investors, entrepreneurs and consultants, as well as other professionals. No Augustana faculty or staff members serve on the panel.

The panel will make its decisions based on the merit of the idea, the research the team has done on the idea's feasibility, and the team’s persuasiveness.

Frequently asked questions

Q: How will the competition operate?

A: Presentations will take place in a conference room on campus. Each team will have 10 minutes to present their idea to the judges. This will be followed by 10 minutes of questions and answers. A PowerPoint or Google Slides presentation is recommended to highlight and explain major parts of the business plan.

Presentations may be videotaped and or photographed for media, publicity, and teaching purposes. Teams should expect these videotapes and photographs to be shared on social media, websites, and other locations to promote the college and the event.

Important note: Students who submit a business plan to the competition must be available to present sometime between noon and 4:30 p.m. on Feb. 24, and attend the awards ceremony afterward. The competition should be completed by 4:30 p.m. The top three teams will be asked to have their pictures taken with the judges after the awards ceremony.

Q: What does a business plan look like?

A: Business plans identify a problem that people or businesses have, and propose a solution in the form of a product or service. Business plans tend to have in-depth research about the problem, how it affects people/businesses as well as the industry. It is important to do research to show there is a legitimate problem that people/businesses will pay for a business’s product or services to solve.

Business plans also have financial estimates, generally for the next three to five years, of costs to start and manage the business, as well revenue projections. These estimates need to be researched in order to provide a convincing argument to how a business will be profitable.

There are many free sources to get templates for business plans and a guide  through the process. Competition organizes recommend using the business plan template from SCORE.

The business plan needs to include the names and ID #s of all people on the team on the front page. Please submit the written business plan as a PDF. Excel files of the plan's financials (not Google Sheets) also may be submitted.

Q: I am not a business administration student, can I compete?

A: Yes! We have had several non-business students win in the past! If you have a business idea we encourage you to submit your written business plan. However, you may want to consider partnering with business students to help develop your business plan. You can also go to the EDGE center in Olin for help.

Q: Can people outside of the college be on a team that includes Augustana students?

A: Only Augustana College students enrolled in the spring semester can present to the panel. Only current Augustana students will be awarded money if they do well in the competition.

Q: Am I required to use the award money to start my business?

A: No, you may use it as you wish. Award money will be split evenly among team members unless there is a written agreement signed by all team members requesting a different split.

Q: Who will be judging the submission to narrow the plans down to the best five plans that will be invited to present?

A: Staff members in the EDGE entrepreneurship center on campus will judge the plans.

Q: Are there any other stipulations?

A: Yes. If you win a monetary award, you will be expected to sign a document stating that you understand the following:

1. My financial aid package will be updated to include the competition award, which will be considered a resource when calculating eligibility for loans and federal work-study. The competition award may result in adjustments to loans and/or federal work-study. Contact the Office of Financial Aid if you have questions.

2. Competition award money will be credited to my student account and will first be applied to any outstanding debts that I owe Augustana College.

3. Any award may have tax implications, because this money will be considered taxable income. You will be paid through Student Accounts. However, if you have a legally established business, the full amount of the award money can be given to your business pursuant to filling out a W-9 and/or other appropriate forms.

Before you sign the document, you should note the following:

1. You have the right not to sign this document. If you do not sign, you forfeit any monetary award. However, you retain the right to state that you competed in the competition and your team won an award in your resume or other documents.

2. You have the right not to sign this document immediately. You have until the end of the work day immediately after graduation of this academic year to meet with financial aid to discuss how this award will influence your future aid package. If this agreement is not signed and returned to the business office before the end of the work day after graduation, you will forfeit any monetary award.

Q: How and when will I be paid?

A: You will be paid through Augustana’s payroll office; income taxes will be deducted from your award money (see previous question). 

Doug Tschopp

If you have news, send it to [email protected] ! We love hearing about the achievements of our alumni, students and faculty.

UTA College of Business welcomes newly admitted graduate students

Wednesday, Sep 04, 2024 • Thomas Johns : [email protected]

The University of Texas at Arlington held an Admitted Graduate Student event on August 29, 2024.

The event brought recently adm it t e d College of Business graduate students together to introduce them to the ir respective graduate programs. During the event, the students were able to network with their peers, meet their faculty and staff, and hear from alumni and current graduate students about their experience s .

Rebecca N ei lson, University of Texas college of Busines s Assistant Dean, speaks at a podium during the Admitted Graduate Student event August 29 , 2024. (Photo by Jalen Larry)

“ One of the things graduate students often miss out on is getting engaged in their community and really becoming part of the College of Business ,” said Scott Elbert, UTA College of Business Senior Director of Academic Advising. “This is a great way for them to start off their academic career by getting to know each other and getting to know their faculty and staff. We really want to give them the platform to get to know us better and get to know each other better.” 

During the event, a panel of alumni and current graduate students answered various questions about the graduate program experience. From questions about time management to course curriculum, attendees gained a deep understanding of what to expect from their respective programs.

To see this event in motion and hear from our participants and attendees, see our video highlight here !

“ This event is very valuable for newly adm it t e d students because it allows them to meet to people currently going through the programs so they can learn about the great opportunities the university has to offer, as well as programs and resources available to them, ” said Johanna Hernandez, UTA College of Business Graduate Alumni. “ My advice to newly adm it t e d student s is to connect with your community. Connect with your colleagues, reach out to your professors, and enjoying a program so you can have a better more enriching college experience.”

A panel of graduate students, Solano Caffarena (Left), Johanna Hernandez (Middle), and A ashish Choudhary (Right), answer questions relating to graduate programs at the Admitted Graduate Student event August 29, 2024. (Photo by Jalen Larry)

The goal of the event was to give recently adm it t e d g r a d u a t e s t u d e n t s a chance to meet their peers and faculty while gaining valuable tips and information about navigating graduate courses and pursuing a graduate degree. 

“ The student panel gave me a lot of information on what I should be doing through their experiences and what they learned. I also got to know the faculty and got to be introduced to a lot of them, familiar faces go a long way, ” said Cade Deborah, recently adm it t e d MBA student. “After tonight I feel a lot more confident about what I need to be doing in my program. Initially, I had an idea about the direction I needed to go, but after hearing the faculty and student panels experiences, its really reinforced those ideas.”

The Adm it t e d G r a d u a t e S t u d e n t event is an annual event, for more information on graduate studies at the UTA College of Business, visit Degrees & Majors - College of Business - The University of Texas at Arlington (uta.edu)

News & Events

• College of Business News
• The Business Maverick
• Business Week

• Colleges & Degrees
• Academic Calendar
• International Education
• Graduate Studies
• Accreditation
• Tuition and Fees
• Parking & Maps
• Careers with CSULB
• Alumni Home
• Alumni Volunteering
• Alumni Giving

Campus Life

• Centers & Organizations
• Commencement
• Student Life
• Office of the President
• Office of the Provost
• Administration & Finance
• Student Affairs
• University Relations & Development
• Information Technology
• Beach Shops
• Campus Directory
• Enrollment Services
• Financial Aid
• Schedule of Classes
• Student Records
• 49er Foundation
• Research Foundation
• University Policies

1250 BELLFLOWER BOULEVARD LONG BEACH, CALIFORNIA 90840 562.985.4111

Get Down to Business Day 2024 First time and Transfer Students

The College of Business Center for Student Success hosted their semi-annual College of Business Get Down to Business Day event. This is a collaborative effort to welcome newly admitted College of Business students. The new College of Business students have the opportunity to learn about College of Business resources, including the Center for Student Success (Advising and Tutoring), Student Center for Professional Development (SCPD) and Internships, Ukleja Center for Ethical Leadership, and Associated Business Students Organizations Council. They learned about the COB departments and majors, met with COB student organizations, and toured the COB Building to help prepare for the first day of classes.

Autism And The College Experience

• Share to Facebook
• Share to Twitter
• Share to Linkedin

By Marina Sarris / SPARK

When Sarah Sanders began college, she hoped she would be fine without the special education help she received in high school. Then she found herself struggling in biology class. Fortunately, a classmate served as her guide to the campus disability support services office, taking her there to register for help. “I wasn’t sure how the system worked since it’s so different from high school,” says Sanders, an autistic advisor to the SPARK autism study .

Many students struggle to adjust to the challenges of college: difficult classes, dormitory living, sudden independence, and a new social world. But for people on the autism spectrum, the transition can be more abrupt and dramatic.

For one, the individualized education programs (IEPs) that helped autistic students from preschool through high school disappear in college. Their parents are no longer able, or welcome, to advocate for them. Students’ struggles with communication, organization, and interpreting social situations can multiply exponentially in college, away from the watchful eyes of special educators and families.

“There are no bells to tell you to go to a different class, and no one tells you when to eat, do laundry, work, or sleep,” says Ernst O. VanBergeijk, Ph.D., MSW, who directed programs for students with autism and other developmental conditions at two universities.

About a third of autistic teens who had IEPs go on to college or vocational programs after high school, 1 but they are less likely to graduate than their classmates, 2 according to research.

Many autistic people can earn a college degree, but they often require a range of supports. 3 Do colleges offer the help that they need?

What’s the Difference Between High School and College Supports for Students With Disabilities?

As Sanders noted, the high school and college systems for helping students with autism differ greatly.

From birth until they leave high school, students with disabilities are guaranteed a free and appropriate public education under U.S. education law. Schools have the power to adopt changes that help students learn and succeed, including altering the curriculum and testing.

But the rules change after high school. The focus shifts from ensuring student success to preventing discrimination.

“Under the Americans with Disabilities Act, higher education is a privilege,” says VanBergeijk, an educational consultant. “The colleges only have to make accommodations to level the playing field and so they don’t discriminate against the person. But the student must be otherwise qualified.”

Colleges and universities that accept federal money must provide only “reasonable” accommodations to students with disabilities, and only accommodations that do not fundamentally change the requirements of their programs.

Such accommodations often include extended time on tests, a testing room free of distractions, a screen reader that reads books out loud, the use of a note taker or audio recorder for lectures, and seating accommodations. 4,5 Colleges do not have to provide tutoring.

A College Necessity: Advocating for Yourself

Unlike high schools, colleges require autistic students to ask for what they need. For example, students must contact the disability support services office, provide documentation of their disability, and request accommodations. In many cases, they also must notify their professors of their accommodations, although they do not have to say what their disability is.

Some students are reluctant to tell their colleges that they have a disability, according to one study. 6 Asking for help—a vital skill for adulthood—can be difficult for those on the spectrum who struggle with social and communication skills.

Sanders, who earned an associate degree, urges other autistic students to register with the disability support services office as soon as they can. Her grades improved dramatically after she received accommodations, such as a screen reader, a quiet exam room, and extra time on tests.

“I can’t stress this enough: please get acquainted with the disability services office,” says Sanders, who is now 29. “Ask for help because everybody there wants to help you succeed.”

The Changing Role of Parents

Parents must also adjust to changes when their teenager goes to college. When the IEP disappears, so does their role as their child’s advocate. College representatives probably will not talk to them without their child’s permission. When students run into academic trouble, parents will not be the first to know.

To help prepare their children, parents could gradually give them more responsibility in high school. For example, they shouldn’t always rescue them when they miss due dates or leave materials they need for school at home. 5

And IEP teams should consider phasing out modifications—such as doing less homework than others—that will not be offered in college, says Aleza Greene, Ph.D., director of the University of Arkansas Autism Support Program. “Also, parents should not encourage their child’s teachers to let them turn in everything at the end of the semester, because that doesn’t happen at the university level,” Greene says.

Needed: An “Interpreter of the Social World” for Autistic Students

Colleges are used to providing accommodations to students with learning or physical disabilities, but students with autism often have needs that extend beyond the classroom, VanBergeijk says.

“If you send a person to college who is deaf or hard of hearing, you provide an interpreter of the hearing world, but our people on the spectrum need an interpreter of the social world,” he explains. “The biggest issue is not academics. It’s navigating the social environment and having the independent living skills necessary to be away at college.”

Students may be accused of stalking because they don’t know how to show their interest in a potential date appropriately. They may irritate professors by interrupting and correcting them. Or they may become upset if someone sits in what they consider to be their seat, VanBergeijk says.

Students may need social or sensory accommodations for dorm living, such as a single room or different lighting. Whether colleges can provide that is “hit or miss,” VanBergeijk says. Colleges may interpret the Americans with Disabilities Act differently, and their attempts to comply may be affected by their size, budget, and mission, he says.

Sanders arranged to live in the “quiet dorm” on campus, which helped her avoid sensory overload from blaring music or late-night parties. “All colleges with dorms should have either a quiet hallway or a quiet building if possible because that’s really, really helpful,” she says.

The Community College Option

Sanders graduated from a community college, a popular option for those on the spectrum. More than 80 percent of college students with autism have attended a two-year college at some point. 7

Public community colleges, which often boast lower tuition and open admissions, may provide a “smoother transition to the academic and social challenges that can arise in a university setting,” according to one research group. 7 They may also offer tutoring and advising programs that four-year universities do not have, for example.

Students who focus on science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (called STEM) are more likely than peers in non-STEM fields to stay in community college and are twice as likely to transfer to a four-year university. 7

Finding Comprehensive Autism Support Programs at College

Some autism experts have recommended that colleges and universities go beyond the required accommodations by offering social skills groups, counseling, vocational training, and life coaching to autistic students who are seeking a degree. 3

About six dozen colleges in 29 states have programs that do at least some of those things, according to a 2022 study. 8 These programs may include academic coaching, mentoring, vocational help, social skills interventions, or social events—needs that disabilities services offices usually do not address.

Some of these autism support programs are free to students, but most charge an extra fee, beyond tuition. The average fee was $3,500 per semester, according to a study published in 2020. 9 Scholarships and state vocational rehabilitation agencies may subsidize costs for some students.

Marshall University, home of the West Virginia Autism Training Center, was among the first to offer an autism support program more than 20 years ago. The program begins helping students adjust to the campus before their first class starts, explains Mindy Thornton, who directs campus-based services for the center. Incoming first-year students can attend a five-week summer term that allows them to take one class, live in a dorm, and learn the rhythms of campus life.

Marshall’s program offers mental health counseling and social supports. Each student is paired with a graduate student who acts as a mentor. Students also receive an app that helps them keep track of assignments and due dates, class schedules, and even chores like laundry, Thornton says.

As they get closer to graduation, students receive help with job readiness, resumes, and interviewing. Preparing for work in their chosen field is important, Thornton says. “We wouldn’t want all the time and effort to be spent on getting a degree and then not putting it to good use.”

College Options for People Across a Wide Spectrum

College is available to students across the autism spectrum, including those who do not receive a traditional high school diploma.

Students with intellectual disabilities can receive federal financial aid to attend a comprehensive transition and postsecondary (CTP) program at more than 150 two- and four-year colleges in 42 states, according to ThinkCollege.net . The programs provide academic, vocational, and independent living skills.

ThinkCollege.net also lists scores of other educational and vocational programs for students with intellectual disabilities. These non-CTP programs are not eligible for federal financial aid, but they may be funded by school districts and vocational rehabilitation agencies for students with IEPs.

One Student’s Plan for College and Beyond

Community college figures into the plans that 20-year-old Travis King has for his future. King, an autistic participant in the SPARK study, is attending a transitional program through his school district that focuses on independent living skills for students ages 18 to 22.

“We get to go to restaurants, and learn how to order our food, and pay with our money,” King says. “I pay with either exact change, or my debit card, and always wait for the receipt. We also get to go shopping, and to learn how to find things, by doing a scavenger hunt.”

King plans to enroll in community college next year to earn a certificate in business and learn everything he needs to know to launch his career. “I am going to be an entrepreneur and open my own hot dog stand.”

With the money he earns selling hot dogs, he hopes to travel from his home in rural Washington state to his favorite city, New York, to see its subway, the Statue of Liberty, and recycling center. “I love New York.”

See a related SPARK article, “ How to Find the Right College for Autistic Students .”

Interested in joining SPARK? Here’s what you should know .

• Roux A.M. et al . National autism indicators report: Transition into young adulthood. Life Course Outcomes Research Program, Drexel University, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (2015) Report
• Newman L. et al . The post-high school outcomes of young adults with disabilities up to 8 years after high school. Menlo Park, CA: SRI International (2011) Report
• VanBergeijk E. et al . J. Autism Dev. Disord . 38 , 1359-1370 (2008) PubMed
• Hamblet E.C. National Association of School Psychologists’ communique handout. 42 . Article (2014)
• Department of Education Office for Civil Rights. Transition of students with disabilities to postsecondary education: A guide for high school educators . (2011)
• Elias R. and S.W. White J. Autism Dev. Disord. 48 , 732-746 (2018) PubMed
• Wei X. et al . J. Autism Dev. Disord . 44 , 1159-1167 (2014) PubMed
• Nachman B.R. et al . J. Autism Dev. Disord . 52 , 863-870 (2022) PubMed
• Viezel K.D. et al Fi Focus Autism Other Dev. Disabil . 35 , 234-245 (2020) Abstract

This is a content marketing post from a Forbes EQ participant. Forbes brand contributors’ opinions are their own.

• Editorial Standards
• Reprints & Permissions

Lewiston Sun Journal

Account Subscription: ACTIVE

Questions about your account? Our customer service team can be reached at [email protected] during business hours at (207) 791-6000 .

• Advertiser Democrat

SAVE plan lives up to its name

You are able to gift 5 more articles this month.

Anyone can access the link you share with no account required. Learn more .

With a Lewiston Sun Journal subscription, you can gift 5 articles each month.

It looks like you do not have any active subscriptions. To get one, go to the subscriptions page .

Loading....

To the Editor:

SAVE is the difference between crushing student loan debt and hope for many Mainers. About 180,000 people in Maine have student loans. They are our neighbors, teachers, recent graduates, nurses, and even our grandparents. Life doesn’t always work out the way we plan it. A lot of people, throughout their lives, struggle with student loan debt.

One lifeline for people with federal student loans is called Income-Driven Repayment (IDR). There are a couple of different IDR plans, that calculate your monthly student loan payment based on your income. The idea is that your payment is affordable, even if you have a high balance. Otherwise, people would fall behind on their loans and into default because the monthly payment amounts are just way too big. IDR plans have been around since the 90s, and there have been new IDR plans introduced over the years.

You may have heard about the newest IDR plan, called SAVE. SAVE is much, much more affordable than the other IDR plans that came before. For example, say you’re a single mom of one, who graduated from college, now makes $50,000, and has $33,000 in student loan debt (the state average). On an old IDR plan, you may have had a monthly payment of between $170-$255. SAVE brings that payment down to just $23/month.

But SAVE is in jeopardy- there are lawsuits challenging the SAVE plan. Overturning it would mean that many Mainers would no longer have access to an actually affordable repayment option. And in the meantime, people are being put into forbearances and have limited options or guidance on how to manage their loans.

SAVE is the difference between food on the table and a hungry kid, the difference between saving an emergency fund and struggling the next time a big life expense comes up. Advertisement

Pine Tree Legal Assistance provides information and legal help to student loan borrowers. Learn more about your rights and get answers to common student loan questions at https://ptla.org/student-loans#.

Sophie Laing

Student Loan Attorney

Pine Tree Legal Assistance

Comments are not available on this story.

Send questions/comments to the editors.

« Previous

This ‘n That

Next »

Maine to join IRS Direct File for 2025 tax season

Two deaths confirmed at Norway mobile home

Bus with college students kept from falling down 50-foot embankment in northern oxford county, bates college students narrowly avoid disaster in bus accident, update: jay fire destroys apartment building, injures 3 firefighters, photos: fire consumes jay apartment building, member log in.

Please enter your username and password below. Already a subscriber but don't have one? Click here .

Not a subscriber? Click here to see your options

• Premier League
• Champions League
• Europa League
• Schedule/Results
• United Kingdom

NFL Sunday Ticket student discount, explained: How to get YouTube TV's college student plan in 2024

Football is back, and NFL Sunday Ticket is one of the best ways to watch it.

While just about everyone has a certain team or even player they root for, it's worth keeping tabs on the entire league with the number of storylines at play in this NFL season.

The focus is on the Chiefs and their quest for a three-peat, but Aaron Rodgers' return to the field, Jim Harbaugh's return to the NFL, and the Lions' quest for a championship are among the headliners as the season gets started.

2024 NFL RANKINGS: QBs | RBs | WRs | TEs | Defense

Rookie quarterbacks will also be fascinating to watch, as three are set to start in Week 1 and more could soon follow if the Patriots decide to give Drake Maye a shot after an impressive preseason.

NFL Sunday Ticket is the way to watch every out-of-market game, and college students can once again get the package at a heavy discount. Here's what you need to know about how to subscribe. 

MORE: Early look at 2025 NFL mock draft

How to get NFL Sunday Ticket student discount

Students hoping to take advantage of the NFL Sunday Ticket discount can go to the  NFL's YouTube page  and click "Get NFL Sunday Ticket" to start the process of subscribing with a discount. There will be an option to sign up for the student discount, and the link will redirect users to a page that asks them to verify their status.

The NFL Sunday Ticket student discount allows students to subscribe for $199, or $209 with the inclusion of the NFL RedZone channel. That's more than half off the actual starting price of $479 for YouTube TV subscribers. Both prices are up significantly from last year, but the student discount is much less of a burden for young fans.

Anyone using a student discount on NFL Sunday Ticket can only watch on one device at a time, though one device can display as many as four games with multi-view.

What is YouTube TV college student plan?

NFL Sunday Ticket is available for college students at a much lower cost than it is for the general public, thanks to YouTube TV's student discount. YouTube TV introduced the discount after taking over NFL Sunday Ticket in 2023.

NFL Sunday Ticket allows fans to watch all out-of-market games live, giving viewers the ability to watch both their own favorite team out-of-market and every other team during the Sunday afternoon windows.

For example, a traditional cable subscription allows a viewer to watch only one or two locally broadcast games at a time on Sunday afternoons. Without NFL Sunday Ticket, fans are stuck with whichever games are being broadcast in their local market. With NFL Sunday Ticket, fans can watch whichever live game they want.

For college students, this can be especially critical. A student from Minnesota attending a school in Boston might not be able to watch the Vikings most weeks in their local market, but NFL Sunday Ticket allows them to watch any Sunday afternoon Vikings game. YouTube TV is making it much more affordable for students in those situations to watch all of the action this season.

PREDICTIONS: 2024 NFL season | Why Cowboys will miss playoffs | Why Chiefs will win Super Bowl

How much is NFL Sunday Ticket?

• NFL Sunday Ticket: $479 ($519 with RedZone)
• YouTube TV subscribers: $379 ($423 with RedZone)
• Student discount: $199 ($209 with RedZone)

It's unfortunately going to cost much more for non-students to purchase NFL Sunday Ticket once again.

Non-students can purchase the Sunday Ticket package for $479, or $519 with the inclusion of the NFL RedZone channel. The standard price is nearly $180 more than it was a year ago.

YouTube TV subscribers can get NFL Sunday Ticket for $379 along with the monthly payment for YouTube TV.

For students who take advantage of the discount, it will only be $199 to purchase Sunday Ticket, or $209 for Sunday Ticket plus NFL RedZone.

Do you need YouTube TV for NFL Sunday Ticket?

Fans don't need to have YouTube TV to purchase NFL Sunday Ticket through YouTube TV. A YouTube TV subscription, however, will make the package considerably cheaper.

For non-students, NFL Sunday Ticket is $379 for YouTube TV subscribers and $479 for non-subscribers. The cost is higher for each package if NFL RedZone is included.

Dan Treacy is a content producer for Sporting News.