Where Students Can Find Freelance Opportunities

by
Kaila Mathis

In the age of the booming creator economy and shift to the future of work, young creators are constantly in search of the right platform to secure freelance opportunities. College students need a platform that provides the ability to gain new experience and get paid fairly, all without wasting time and money.

Read below about some potential options for your students, and visit our site below to dive into the benefits and downfalls of each.

Fiverr

Fiverr is an online marketplace that connects businesses with on-demand freelance talent. It allows freelancers to create their own profiles complete with content packages based on their skills and rates.

The Good

  1. Freedom: Fiverr allows users to set their own prices and tasks.
  2. Flexibility: The structure of the platform lets users accept projects they’re interested in, and deny those they’re not. It also lets them set expectations for project turnaround, so employers they work with won’t set unrealistic timelines.

The Not So Good

  1. High Volume of Competition: Fiverr is filled with almost a million freelancers competing to offer the lowest price per project - often meaning that creators will have to significantly lower their rates if they want to be considered.
  2. Less Experienced Freelancers Are At a Disadvantage: Profiles on Fiverr are often prioritized by the amount of work they’ve completed before, meaning students trying to break into the market are at a significant disadvantage if they don’t have a ton of deliverables to feature on their profile.
  3. Lengthy Profile Setup: In order to create packages and products, users are tasked both with lengthy package creation steps, and with skill-based assessments to verify their skills in those areas. This means creating a full profile can take hours before a freelancer is able to start making money.

LinkedIn

Most of us know LinkedIn: a social network for job-finding, allowing workers worldwide to connect, employers to search for potential new hires, and people looking for work to apply to open roles. It’s a platform that 96% of Gen Z does not use daily, partially because many were either required by their schools or told by their parents to create a profile.

The Good

  1. Easy Application Process: LinkedIn sorts and filters endless opportunities from companies around the world that students can easily sort through and apply to.
  2. Introduction to the World of Work: Through its discovery feed, LinkedIn allows students to gain insights on their future industries and relevant conversations.
  3. Connections: LinkedIn is a platform known for virtual networking, allowing students to connect with alumni of your school, professionals in fields they’re interested in, or whoever else they’d like to get to know.

The Not So Good

  1. An Outdated Structure: Gen Z is the most creative, innovative, and forward-thinking generation in the history of work - making it complete adverse to the text-heavy, overly-formal environment of LinkedIn.
  2. An Inefficient Profile Format: Freelancers need an online profile that allows them to easily showcase who they are and what they do - often in the form of content and projects rather than just job history and resumes. LinkedIn’s profile doesn’t capture much of the talent young creators have to offer.

Upwork

Upwork is a freelance marketplace, allowing users to find freelance gigs, manage projects with clients and build experience in the process.

The Good

  • Improved Rates: Unlike Fiverr, Upwork tends to get freelancers paid more reasonably for their work, resulting in creators earning anywhere from $20 to $600,700+ for individual projects in copywriting, web development, graphic design and more.

The Not So Good

  • The Fees: Upwork charges a 20% payment processing fee per project up until the freelancer reaches $500 from an individual client. This means high-paying projects can lose creators a whole lot of cash, and low-paying projects likely lose most of the profit margins.
  • An Oversaturated Market: Upwork’s crowded platform yields the same downfall as Fiverr — leaving available opportunities to seasoned freelancers and making it difficult for students to build a portfolio with new gigs.

CLLCTVE

CLLCTVE is the portfolio platform connecting creators to paid opportunities. Through our interactive technology, we match brands and creators based on unique to preferences for skills, interests, experience, location and availability.

  1. Build a Portfolio in Minutes: Creating and sharing a portfolio should be as simple as clicking a few buttons, so we created a technology that enables creators to merge content from all outside platforms in minutes, easily showcasing who they are and what they do without any of the hassle involved in alternative platforms.
  2. Made for Gen Z: Built uniquely for Gen Z creators looking to build a nationwide community of peers skilled across mediums, secure paid work with brands and build a diversified portfolio, CLLCTVE’s platform is the perfect environment for students to learn, grow and prosper.
  3. For Creators, It’s Always Free: No subscription payment, no project fees, no BS. CLLCTVE is made for creators, by creators, so the only users charged are the employers looking to hire them.
  4. The Matching Process: Picture LinkedIn and Hinge had a baby — allowing young freelancers to connect in a way that feels natural with them, and work directly with employers who share common values and passions.

Kaila Mathis
Kaila graduated from Villanova University in 2021 with a B.A. in PR & Advertising and Journalism, with a minor in Spanish. She is now the Growth Manager at CLLCTVE and a Freelance Writer for Adweek.
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