Besides scholarships, federal financial aid, and loans, students planning to study abroad can also pursue other creative forms of funding,    

Clubs, Organizations & Networking
Are you part of an organization on or off campus? Ask your group or network to help you raise money by sponsoring a bake sale, car wash, fund raising party, garage sale, etc. You can also use artistic or athletic skills to put on a concert, art show, dance event, or sports event to raise funds.

Part-Time Work
Consider babysitting, dog sitting, house sitting, painting fences, gardening, or other part-time work that may be available around your community.

Place of Worship
Connect to your place of worship and ask if they will be willing to help you raise money for your study abroad program.

Crowdfunding
This is becoming a popular fundraising method that relies on networking and social media. The goal in crowdfunding is to raise small amounts of money from a large number of people. Here are a few things to keep in mind if you are considering crowdfunding:

• Before deciding on a site, do your research. Take a look at the fees associated with each site, the time length, site rules and preferences, etc.
• Set an attainable financial goal.
• Once you decide on a crowdfunding site, think about why people should support your goal to study abroad. What is the value? Consider what you will gain from this experience.
• What will you do for your donors in exchange? Will you keep an updated travel blog that your donors will have access to? You can create additional small incentives as well (such as offering postcards, hand written letters, photos, etc).
• How will you present yourself? Make your page easy to read. Be sure to emphasize the positive aspects of your experience. Come up with ways to spread awareness and attract support. Start by sharing your page with your inner circle (close friends, family, employers, etc). Slowly branch out to distant relatives, family friends and social media. Encourage your network to help you spread the word. You can start a blog, open more social media sites, create a YouTube video, and contact local businesses in your community to spread the word.
• Provide information regarding your crowdfunding site and why this is an important fundraising opportunity for you.
• Give yourself a specific time line and emphasize the time-sensitive aspect of the campaign.
• Pay attention to your donors. Express appreciation to your donors via your social media page.
• Get creative and evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of your page. Post videos of yourself and photos of aspects of your study abroad destination culture that you think is unique and interesting. If your page is initially not successful, evaluate your actions by assessing what is working and what isn’t working. You have control of the page and can make edits as needed.

 
Some popular crowdfunding sites to get you started:

Go Fund Me
Fund My Travel
Go Get Funding
 

This listing does not constitute an endorsement or recommendation.