Money Saving Tips for College Students

Consider the following tips to help you save money throughout your college years.

Campus Activities:  Campus activities like movie nights or math club usually mean free food.  Take advantage of these opportunities to be involved.  You may just make a new friend or two as well.

Buying Smart:  Consider buying store brand items instead of name brand and think about buying in bulk at stores like BJ’s, Costco, and Sam’s Club.  Also, look for some second hand stores and don’t feel awkward shopping there, you are not alone!  You may be shocked by what they have and how much things cost.  For example – one of our students last year found a Coach purse for $40!

Get a Job:  You may have been given the opportunity for work-study but even if you weren’t, you can still look for a part-time job on campus or close to campus.  Working while in college is highly recommended.  Not only is it a great resume builder and networking opportunity, but you can meet friends and make some money so you won’t be hassling mom or dad.  Some on-campus and work-study jobs may even let you do your homework or get studying done when you have down time.

Bank Accounts: There are a lot of different accounts out there and many banks have student checking accounts where there aren’t any fees or charges to keep a minimum balance.  We suggest that you find a bank that has a local branch for both you and your parents.  Your parents and you should each have a debit card and access to on-line management.  Setting up joint accounts with your parent(s) as the primary account holder will help them easily deposit money as necessary.  Link your checking and savings accounts to help with overdraft protection and to help you save money. Have your paychecks and all other funds directly-deposited into your savings, then transfer spending money to your checking account and try to spend only what you have in checking. This will help you save money now to fund future large purchases such as books, a computer, or maybe even a trip for Spring Break.

Credit Cards:  Be aware of credit card hooks such as free prizes, a percent off today’s purchase for opening an account, no interest for a certain number of months, etc.  A free T-shirt may sound great now, but not so much when compared to the amount of potential credit card debt you may incur and a mark on your credit report.  You can also look into Credit Unions or AAA, but if you do decide to have a credit card, we suggest having only one if possible.  Be sure to minimize your credit card debt even after graduation; don’t forget about your student loans you will have to pay off.  Also, typically if you are under 21, you will need to show that you are able to make payments (meaning you have some sort of income) or you will need a cosigner in order to open a credit card account.  If you are under age 21 and have a card with a cosigner but want an increase in the credit limit, your cosigner must agree in writing to the increase.

Being money conscious from the start can seriously help you throughout college and you’ll be very thankful once you graduate.

Any additional tips to share?  Leave your comments!

About Smart Track™ Toolkit: The toolkit is a web based service that assists families with everything from admissions and test prep, to student athletics and financial aid. Our intuitive software and on-demand workshops are key components to making sure students find their top choice colleges, and families can afford to send them there.

About the author: Laura Guarino is the Student Services Coordinator with College Planning Strategies, LLC. Laura has a degree in Human Development from Boston College and is currently pursuing a Master’s degree in School Guidance Counseling.  She is also enrolled in a certificate program in College Admissions Counseling.  Laura is at the forefront of the college admissions process for the families of CPS and The Smart Track™ Toolkit.

Connect with us

http://www.facebook.com/smarttracktoolkit

http://twitter.com/uchoosecollege

5 Things I Wish I’d Known About MONEY When I Started College

At Grockit, we’re all about education and getting you ready to move on to the next stage in your life.  But we’re not just teachers; we’re all former and/or current students, too, and we’ve got more than just test preparation tips to share with you!

There’s a good chance that you or your parents are making a significant investment in your college education from loans or savings.  The stereotype of the “broke college student” exists for a reason: many college students really are living on a TIGHT budget.  Learn from a few of the money mistakes I made in college so you can avoid them yourself!

            1.         Credit cards are not “free money,” and they can make your life miserable if you misuse them.  They might look innocuous, all decorated with Van Gogh’s Starry Night or your school mascot or whatever, but the interest rates will kill you if you’re not careful; get one for emergencies if you must, but try to pay it off in full every month and don’t let yourself get into the habit of thinking that new boots or late-night pizza orders are “emergencies.”

            2.         There are weird little opportunities to make a little extra cash all over the place at most universities and colleges.  Have a couple of hours to spare between classes one day a week?  You might be able to spend them as a model for the art school or a mock patient for med students.  Think outside the usual part-time job box to explore seasonal opportunities or small gigs that only crop up periodically.

            3.         Unless you become a celebrity or get a really plum job involving some kind of consumer goods, you will never again get as much free stuff offered to you as you do in college.  So take the t-shirts, the boxes of sample toiletries, and the promotional water bottles; a penny saved is a penny earned, right?

            4.         Speaking of free things, if you’re smart about it you can get a whole lot of free food just by going to extracurricular activities like lectures and club meetings.  It’s an opportunity to not only score some pizza (and it will almost always be pizza), but also to learn about something, whether it’s swing dancing or quantum physics, that you might never have discovered otherwise.

            5.         There are resources available to help you through the rough patches.  It probably won’t kill you to eat nothing but ramen noodles for the last two weeks of the semester, after you’ve burned through all of your loan money, but it’s not exactly great for you, either. And more importantly, it’s probably not necessary.  Many schools have emergency short-term loan programs in place to help students out of a tight spot, so if you need help, ask for it!

What kind of helpful knowledge have you picked up about your finances?  Share it in the comments!

About Grockit: Grockit is a fun and engaging learning community that encourages students to learn from group study, game play, expert tutorials and solo study. Students that prepare with Grockit have proven to achieve higher scores on college admissions tests.

About the author: Andrea Alexander is a current graduate student in the School of Information at the University of Michigan. She's been teaching test prep for about eight years and have picked up lots of helpful knowledge along the way. She specializes in the verbal aspects of test prep, since her education and career experience as an attorney, freelance writer, and editor have given her the background for that.