Earn Christmas Money and Discounts as a WGU Student

You're a struggling student, cringing at the thought of the invisible people at Taskstream taking the holidays off this close to the end of the month. You haven't even started your Christmas shopping because you're busy hitting "refresh" and waiting for a revision or that email that cause you to mentally hear the angels singing...you know the one, the one that says you passed the task? Well, as long as you are worrying about your school work, you don't have time to worry about Christmas money. In lieu of that, here are a few tips to help you save money, and maybe even earn cash back for yourself and/or local schools.

Do Shop Cyber Monday

Cyber Monday is coming up and it looks like a good day to put the school work on hold and get all the discounts you would get if you dared to venture into the stores on Black Friday. Create an email account that's just for ads. Sign up for newsletters and set alerts for the terms "Cyber Monday" so you can get all the best deals. Then sign up for discount sites like Groupon where you can get coupons that will help you realize even more savings.

Use WGU Discounts

You get some discounts just because you are a student at WGU.

AT&T: AT&T offers 8% off data plans for their phones, but they frequently offer free phones as well. They also happen to be the only cell phone company that reports to the credit bureau. If you planned to sign yourself or one of your children up for a new plan, why not offer a new phone as a Christmas present?

Dell: Dell offers up to 10% more savings to WGU students than they do the general public. Combine those savings with any Cyber Monday deals to get a new computer for school, the family, or just to upgrade.

Combine Charity and Shopping

Have you been too busy to get to any local school fundraisers? If so, no worries because you can earn cash for yourself and your local schools just by shopping. Just go to For the Schools and create an account. When you use For the Schools to shop at one of their many partner stores, you'll get cash back if you want to, and so will the school of your choice. It's a way for you to kind of have your own mini fundraiser without having to leave the house.

Keep an eye out for other discounts as well. For example, if you're doing demonstration teaching, enjoy the 20% discount offered by Barnes and Noble to educators, or even the discount offered by Apple for educators.