Fundraising Ideas for College

• Find a local restaurant, business, civic center, or other space that will host your event for free. 
• Draw a bigger crowd by getting a band to play. 
• The cost of admission is a donation to your fundraiser. 
• Secure donated items or services (from local businesses or elsewhere) to use as giveaways at your event.
• You can even do an auction and have bidders pay for their items via a donation to your fundraiser.

Create a scavenger hunt by first creating a list of items that participants need to find to win a prize. 

• Ask a local restaurant or store to donate a small gift card for the prize, or craft a homemade gift yourself. 
• Charge admission to the hunt in the form of a donation to your crowdfunding campaign. 
• Most everyone enjoys a little creative competition, so rallying friends, family, and other community members to participate should be a snap.

People are often more compelled to give to a cause that gives back. 

• Find a local organization such as a food bank, homeless shelter, SPCA—ideally one doing work related to your major or your group’s interests—and sign up to volunteer. 
• For each $25, $50, $75, or $100 donated, pledge to volunteer a certain number of hours to your chosen cause.
• On your fundraiser page, post updates showing how many hours you’ve volunteered and the good you’ve done—be sure to add pictures and video.

Round up all the cyclists you know and host a bike-a-thon for your education. This is one of the healthiest fundraising ideas college students can try out!

• Ask participants to get sponsors to pledge donations based on the number of miles they ride. 
• Afterward, tally up the number of miles and ask sponsors for their pledges. 
• Provide fun prizes for different achievements, including one for the rider who raises the most money.

Host a mani/pedi day. 

• Invite people to purchase a manicure, pedicure, or both in advance by donating to your fundraiser. 
• Set the price for each service (including tips) with a participating salon or nail shop. Ask donors for a minimum amount well above those rates—the difference between the shop price and total donation will be the money you raise. 
• You may want to ask the shop to set aside their space for several hours for your event. You could also give people gift cards to use on their own time (which can expand the geography of your fundraiser).

Make simple holiday greeting packages that students can purchase by donating to your cause. This fundraising idea only requires a little bit of pre planning. This idea can be adapted to fit any season, not just the winter holidays. 

• Provide your fundraiser link for donors and encourage them to share it with their friends.
• For more holiday themes tips read Festive Fall Fundraising Ideas and Winter Fundraising Ideas.

Use your crowdfunding campaign as a convenient way to accept payments for traditional goods like bake sales, clothing sales, and car washes. 

• Make it easy for students to participate, even if they don’t have extra cash on them, and ask them to share their donation on social media to help spread the word.
• The more that people see your fundraiser, the more donations you’re likely to receive—whether they attended your event or not.

Members of the Greek community tend to have a wide circle of friends and acquaintances on their social networks, including students who may not have heard about the campaign. 

• Take advantage of your connections, both inside and outside the Greek community, and encourage unaffiliated friends to share as well. 
• Consider developing a hashtag to use across social media platforms in order to receive more publicity. 
• Find ways to make your online presence interactive. Try asking people to post the answer to a question related to your philanthropy on social media.

See if a local clothing store or sports outfitter would be willing to work with you. Host a sale in which the company agrees to donate a percentage of the proceeds to your fundraiser. 

• These types of sales can be held either in the store or out—items that don’t sell are simply returned. 
• Fundraisers like this give stores an opportunity to show off their merchandise like t-shirts and jeans, and provide you with a product that interests potential donors.

Arrange a scavenger hunt with a list of items around your university campus (maybe with a theme like, “College Life”) for participants to find in order to win a prize. 

• Craft a homemade gift or ask a local business to donate products or services as prizes. 
• Ask people or teams who sign up to participate in the game to donate a specified amount to your fundraiser.

Lip-syncing requires little more than lots of enthusiasm, making it perfect for even those short on talent. 

• Rally a few other friends, student groups, or fraternities and sororities to participate in a friendly competition. 
• Tap approachable faculty or staff to serve as judges. 
• Give bonus points for properly-executed dance moves and costuming. 
• You’ll need a sound system and a venue. 
• Pre-sell tickets online with a donation to your crowdfunding campaign, and offer tickets at the door for a slightly higher price.

Host a pancake breakfast, barbecue dinner, or other food fest. What’s on the menu? Think pancakes, grilled cheese, spaghetti—any crowd-pleasers that are easy to make and serve in mass quantities. 

• Invite everyone you know and advertise on campus in the weeks leading up to the event. 
• Collect online donations to your fundraiser as the entry fee.

Organizing a tailgate not only encourages school spirit; it’s a great way to spread awareness around your fundraiser: 

• Stake out space in a parking lot next to the stadium before a home football game or other big event. 
• Partner with the athletic department, other groups, or go it alone. 
• Do it up with a serious barbecue tailgate. Play some tunes. 
• Set up a cornhole game or other fun and easy activity that includes silly prizes. 
• Ask people to make a donation for access to the BBQ, drinks, and game gear.

When graduation looms, a little networking never hurt anyone. Do good while doing well with a get-together with college alumni. 

• Ask a well-known alum to serve as the keynote speaker to bring in the crowds, then allow participants to mingle with food, drink, and networking. 
• This is a plus for both students and alums, who get a chance to reconnect with friends while getting exposure to possible summer interns. 
• The price of admission should be a donation to your crowdfunding campaign. Link to your fundraiser page in the invitation, and take donations at the door with a smartphone or tablet.
• Follow up with more opportunities to connect (and donate).

Who doesn’t love to see their friends covered in pie filling? This is an easy fundraiser (well, for the organizers; maybe not so much for the folks on duty as targets). 

• Stand the “volunteers” in front of a tarp and provide ammunition with every donation to your crowdfunding campaign. 
• Pies or water balloons? Get creative. The messier, the better. 
• Don’t forget the towels.

A great way to help students and staff unwind before or after finals week is to bring the joy of puppies to campus. 

• Call your local animal shelter and see if they’d be interested in supplying the dogs and accepting donations. 
• Charge people for every 30 minutes of petting time. Less stress, more uplift, and greater funds for a great cause; it’s a true win-win.