Borrowing money is worth seriously considering.
This only makes sense under certain conditions, mainly the expectation that you will make enough money later (like after getting a degree), and have access to the required credit (so student loans, a wealthier cosigner, or an informal loan). It might help to imagine that you are paying a fee to a third party (the expected interest payment) to transfer some money from a wealthier future-you to poorer current-you, and accepting a risk of larger costs if future-you makes less money than you expected.
If having free time now increases your earnings later (have better grades, graduate earlier, learn more skills, meet more people) this can be a great bargain even on strictly financial terms. Even if it's a financial wash, you might accept a heavy fee when making this inter-temporal-wealth-transfer in order to avoid doing the boring jobs and have a more pleasant time.
As an aside, there's some sort of tragedy where the people for whom this option makes the least sense are the quickest to take it, and those who would actually benefit from it have absorbed the admonitions aimed at the first group, and feel that they're being financial prudent by avoiding any sort of debt, even when doing so makes them worse off in the long run.
I'm currently taking time off from school to focus on my eduction. I'm reading (a lot), mastering some skills, and finishing some projects.
It takes money to live, so I need money. I was considering what my options were for jobs that would keep me engaged, and I thought I'd ask LessWrong.
Constraints:
1. I don't yet have a bachelor's degree. I am however, an intelligent and courteous student at a prestigious university, who doesn't drink smoke or do drugs.
2. I need at least $800/month (500 for rent, internet, and bus fares; 150 for food; 150 for savings).
3. I'm looking for less than 16 hours a week, or the taking time off to focus on learning becomes sort of mute. However, that is on average; it is feasible for me to work many hours one week and than little to none the next.
Optimization criteria:
1. Something interesting, especially something where I would learn something new. This may come in all kinds of forms (for instance, puts me in close contact with the sorts of people I wouldn't usually talk to), including some that I haven't thought of yet. It may even be a new approach to a generic job that makes it challenging or engaging. Jobs that will let me just sit and read without distraction, or even just listen to audio books while I work, would be great.
2. The fewer hours I have to work, the better.
I'm currently running experiments (mostly surveys) for a decision research lab. The work itself a little boring, but I do get to spend some of my time around marketing Ph.d students who are interested in behavioral economics and I get paid $12/hour. It works, but I'm open to other options.
Any ideas?