10 Benefits of Being an Academic Freelancer

Being a freelancer is an excellent option for anybody who loves to write. Academic freelancing, in particular, can be quite lucrative. If you enjoy academic writing, you’re not afraid to crank out a good paper; you understand your citation formats, and you are known for being able to articulate your ideas clearly and accurately, then it might be a good idea to consider a career as an academic freelancer. 

Collect your best writing, make a portfolio, and begin building a clientele. Here’s why you should consider pursuing the life of an Academic Freelancer. 

1. You make your own schedule. Maybe you prefer to work in the morning, or maybe you do your best over a cup of black coffee at midnight. Maybe, your favourite show comes on at 3pm, and that’s when you want to take a lunch break. With freelancing, you can do just that. You can wake up at 5am and get all of your work done by noon. You can make your weekend a Wednesday if you want. Basically, with freelancing, you have a lot of options. Of course, sometimes your flexibility will be greater than at other times. It all depends on your clients and workload density. But, of course, it is far more flexible than a standard office job. 
2. You expand upon your knowledge of the world. As an academic freelancer, you are constantly building and expanding your knowledge base. While you may be an expert in certain subjects, chances are good that you will occasionally need to write about others. This allows you to learn about a subject you otherwise never would have learned about. You learn far less in a few years time in a stable office job than you would as an academic freelancer, where you are always focusing on something new and exciting. 
3. The pay is great. While the average hourly salary for a freelancer is about £20 an hour, the rate for academic freelancers is even higher than that. Considering the flexibility of the job, very few people would scoff at £20/hour; however, academic freelancing poses even greater financial benefits due to the nature of the work. 
4. The world is your office. You can work in your pyjamas at home. You can work at your favourite coffee shop. You can work on a balcony in Paris. As an academic freelancer, you can work from nearly anywhere as long as there is a strong internet connection. Additionally, you can gain clients from anywhere in the world, meaning that you get access to a large variety of projects. This also increases your chances of making more money. 
5. You can choose your own projects. If you work in an office, you have little to no say about the projects that you are assigned. With academic freelancing, you can choose what essays and topics you want to focus on. You can dismiss a project that is not in your area of desired focus, or if it pays too little. 
6. You develop a well-rounded skill set. As an academic freelancer, you learn about a variety of topics, but you also develop a wide variety of skills. Not only do you hone your writing skills, you also develop a high-level of interpersonal abilities that allow you to interact with different kinds of clients. You also need to learn how to manage money and your business effectively and independently. 
7. You have control over your workload. There are a number of reasons to want increased control over the amount of work you do. Maybe you want to work more in the winter or less in the summer. With academic freelancing, you can do just that. Or, you can decrease your hours if the projects you have pay more.
8. You are your own boss. This may be one of the greatest benefits of freelancing. If you have a traditional job and your boss is bad, you’re pretty much stuck with him or her unless you find something new. With freelancing, while your clients may sometimes be difficult, you have more control over the situation because you can refuse to work with him or her. 
9. You’re healthier. There are a number of health benefits to working from home as a freelancer. For one, you are not in constant contact with other people, so you are less likely to catch colds or the flu if it’s going around. Additionally, you can set your sleep schedule and rest when you need to, and you can set your exercise schedule to make sure you work out with greater frequency. 
10. You’re helping students. Students typically hire academic freelancers to write their papers from scratch because they are overwhelmed by how much work they have, they speak English as a second language, or simply because they have not yet built the writing skills to succeed in the college world. You are making a huge difference in the student’s life by providing him or her with a well-written piece of work. 

Working as a freelance academic is an excellent lifestyle choice for the person who isn’t afraid of academic writing. While academic writing can be difficult, it can also be a joyful process for the person who has mastered the art of it. The flexibility the job provides, as well as the mental benefits of continuously learning and developing new skills, are incredible gains for the right candidate.