It’s time to do away with the term “broke college student.”  Sure, you might have spent the last of your cash on textbooks (or beer), and are taking a one-credit course called, “bringing your change to Coinstar.”  But this doesn’t mean you can’t live the champagne life on a beer budget.  Below are three excellent ways to begin making your frugal college lifestyle a bit easier while working smarter — not harder.

 

Download College Student Apps

 

If you have a smartphone, install these apps immediately! First, check out DrinkOwl — quite possibly the best application on the planet.  DrinkOwl finds you drink specials and happy hours, while providing you with updated coupons at each locale.  This drinking application is free for both Android and iPhone, and is phenomenal for the broke, bored college student looking to plan a fun outing on a Friday night anywhere in any city.

 

Next, you’ll want to check out Scoutmob.  Scoutmob is an Atlanta-based startup company that provides location-aware coupons to your smartphone.  The app provides deals to local food and drink venues as well as shops.  Install the app, and the moment you enter any business that serves food, your GPS will buzz you to let you know if there’s a Scoutmob special of the week on the menu.

 

Finally, you need to get Amazon’s app for your next round of textbooks.  When shopping for books, simply take a photo of the bar code, and this handy app will immediately tell you how and where to find the book for cheap.  In addition, this app will help you sell back used textbooks for Amazon gift cards.  And if you’ve got an iPad, you can forgo the entire textbook buying process all together by searing Apple’s iBooks 2 store that includes digital versions of textbooks for super cheap.

 

Find a Ride

 

While you may be broke and possibly without much credit, you still need a car to get to class, go out on the weekends, get to work, take a road trip, etc.  Luckily, you can search online for cars, where you can possibly get an auto loan in as little as two minutes with an online application.  If your credit might’ve been hit during the recession, there are plenty of car companies that can offer auto loans for college students.  And if you begin financing your new car, you can help boost back your credit by making your payments on time.

 

Get a Job

 

Not to be confused with getting a “real job.”  But seriously, in order to have some extra money, you should work a little bit on the side.  But work can be defined in a number of ways.  There are many odd jobs that can fit with your class schedule to help score some cash with minimal effort.  Here are 7 quick ideas that, with a bit of research from Google, can help you get started:

 

• A research subject
• Surveys online
• Odd jobs for people on Craigslist
• Donate plasma
• Buy something and sell it for more
• Become a secret shopper
• Do a bit of street performing
• Thrift stores

 

Minimal effort too much?  If you’re more of the “no effort” kind of person, you can always flip over to CBS to catch the new reality show “The Job,” an upcoming cable TV show that features competition where unemployed workers fight it out for a mediocre position with a well-known company.  Some critics are accusing the show of using a recession to exploit people and good ratings, but overall it could be a great motivator and helper in giving you tips on how to get a good job.  Perhaps the show can teach you some tips on the ethics of working hard to get what you want?