How to keep my goldfish from dying?

Against my advice, my parents bought me a set of goldfish for my dorm room. This would not be a bad thing if I had a proper tank to keep them in, but alas, I have only a one-gallon bowl. As you can imagine this is not an environment particularly conducive to goldfish survival. They were gasping for air at the top of the bowl which obviously was not a good sign, so I relocated them to the only other container I could find: my trashcan. Mind you, I filled it with water first and it is a good deal bigger than the bowl they were in before, but it does not seem like a good permanent solution. Being a poor college student I don't have much money to spend, but I really don't want my poor fishes to die. Suggestions?