When you hear the phrase "dream job," you probably think of something that happens after years of school and hard work—or maybe some kind of great, life-changing opportunity that only happens to a few lucky people.

But why wait that long? There are a lot of creative ways to earn money for school, even while you're still going to class and studying for exams. Check out these examples of college students who've found ways to earn college cash and follow their dreams.

Ryan Dalton gets pumped every time he stands in front of an audience with his college choir. He's also discovered that it's just as thrilling to stand behind the audience—for his campus job as a sound technician.

As a sound tech, Ryan is guaranteed a seat at his school's rock and pop shows. He spends a lot of time adjusting knobs on the soundboard for that just-right mix of music. Ryan says there's just something very cool about shooting for the perfect sonic blend of beat, bass and melody.

During his freshman year, Ryan started hanging around the upperclassmen who handled the school's stage controls. Before long, he was spending his Friday nights eating pizza and watching his new friends adjust the hundreds of controls for lights, speakers and special effects.

"It was awesome," says Ryan. "I knew I wanted to do it."

So one night he asked the tech guys if he could give it a try. His friends were more than willing to see what Ryan could do. Before long, he became an important part of the sound and light team. In Ryan's way of thinking, he'd landed a dream job.

"I dig my job," Ryan shouts as he fiddles with the rows and rows of knobs in front of him. "How many people get to hang out with rock bands and wear whatever they want at work?"

Ever since her first whiff of freshly ground beans, Betsy Ortmann has loved coffee shops. "They're the perfect places to meet friends or be anonymous, to hear great music and drink great stuff," says Betsy. "If I want to know the personality of a community, I find the local coffee shop."

Betsy also believed students at her school needed this kind of atmosphere on campus—someplace to hang out and get connected with something other than their computers. She dreamed about starting her own coffee shop on campus. But on a student's budget, she was sure her dream would never turn into reality.

Then she found out about a special school grant for students who wanted to start their own on-campus businesses. She applied and got it.

Betsy threw herself into researching what it would take to run her own coffee shop. She then used her grant money to purchase equipment. Before long, a dorm lounge was transformed into The Essence of Bean—complete with a fireplace, couches and a piano.

Betsy spends two evenings a week running the shop, working to the sound of steaming milk and chatting friends. She loves whipping up lattes that could be framed as works of art. And with a few extra bucks in her pocket, she feels pretty successful in the coffee shop business. In fact, she's even hired another student to help her out. Along with an ever-expanding menu, The Essence of Bean also features live music. With lights twinkling, friends chatting and acoustic guitar playing in the background, Betsy's dream has become reality.

As part of his financial aid package, Tung Do received a work-study job. Tung was thankful. It would help pay for his tuition. Even so, his job in the cafeteria didn't excite him all that much. So he started talking to some of his profs about other work-study possibilities. When he talked to his gym teacher, he almost saw the guy's face light up—especially when Tung said he had experience working in a weight room. Turns out the gym teacher had been looking for an assistant.

Almost before he knew it, Tung had a new job in the gym and workout room. Not that everything about his job is glamorous. He has to do stuff like sweep the floors and wipe sweat off the workout equipment. But he also gets to run the gym's front desk—something he enjoys because it allows him to interact with students and faculty.

"I get to talk to everyone who comes in," Tung says. "When we see each other around campus, we'll say 'hey.' It's a great way to meet people, especially since I live off campus."

Then when his work shift ends, it's easy to drop into the weight room for his own workout—a great job benefit.

While not everyone gets to choose their work-study job, Tung believes it never hurts to ask. It could just lead to a fun job that'll earn you some extra bucks.

As Kristen strums the final chord of a song, the audience claps uproariously. She blushes self-consciously, quickly checks to see if her guitar is still in tune, and then begins her next number. It's Friday night, and while most students are out having fun, Kristen Graves is on the job.

She really doesn't mind sitting on stage instead of in the audience. "I don't consider this a job," Kristen says after the concert. "When I go to 'work' I'm excited. It's fun."

She writes many of her own songs, using her own life experiences and faith as the inspiration for her lyrics. Some tunes are playful, some mellow. But all are from her heart. And while writing and playing certainly brings Kristen personal pleasure, she loves sharing her gift of song with others—whether or not it includes a check at the end of the night. Along with paid gigs on campus, she serves as a volunteer each summer at an orphanage in Mexico. She enjoys bringing a smile to a child's face through a simple song.

She also likes to challenge others to use their own talents and gifts. "You gotta just go for it," she says, "and know that God has given you whatever talent you have so you can use it."

Katie Harrod stands outside the cafeteria, handing out cups of coffee and a little awareness on the side. She's the on-campus representative for Peace Coffee, a company that sells fair-trade, organic, shade-grown coffee to businesses, schools and individuals.

Katie loves giving educational talks to groups on and off campus. And in her presentations, she enjoys explaining why she's excited about Peace Coffee—an organization that buys coffee beans directly from the farmers in foreign countries, giving them a fair wage for their hard work. She's also quick to point out that Peace Coffee "uses no harsh chemicals in the product."

For Katie, her job really is about more than a paycheck. In fact, she started off as an unpaid volunteer. She became such a good spokesperson that Peace Coffee decided to turn her volunteer work into a paid position.

"I'm committed to this cause so much, I was happy to do it without getting paid," says Katie. "So when they offered me a salary, I said to myself, 'I get to talk about stuff I love and get paid doing it?' I mean, what job could be better than that?"

Copyright © 2003 by the author or Christianity Today International/Campus Life magazine.
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