How to save money as a university student
University can be a financially difficult time in a young person’s life. Moving away from home, using public transports, academic expenses, all contributes to greater financial stress. By changing simple habits, it is possible to reduce this pressure and make the money “stretch”.
Create budgets
Budgeting expenses is a great way to keep track of the money you spend. Assigning a portion of the available value to specific expenses (eg groceries, transports, academic material) makes you limit the amount you will spend and, consequently, prevent unnecessary spending. A great way to do this is to use an Excel sheet, an expense tracking application or even a simple sheet of paper. The important thing is to plan what amount will be spent where and stick to it scrupulously.
Separate money
Separating money into categories, especially when you’re saving for something specific, is one way to ensure that money stays untouched. For example, if you are saving money for Christmas gifts or for a trip, creating a specific category for that purpose makes you put the money aside and prevents you from spending it in another way.
Search for discounts
As a college student, looking for discounts and taking advantage of all the benefits this status can bring is very important. Whether is grocery stores, clothing, academic books, the important thing is to be aware and make sure you don’t miss any opportunity. Checking online where you can find the best discounts is an easy and quick way to prepare your shopping. Make a list of the items you are going to buy, to make sure you don’t bring more than you need, and if necessary, shop at different stores to take advantage of the different discounts.
Use the library
If you’re a college student the library should be your best friend. Being able to have access to books for free is a huge way to save money. Being able to take the books home for a period of time, consult them only in the library if necessary, or even make copies of the necessary parts are some tricks that can save you hundreds of dollars. Taking advantage of the university library is also an advantage, as the type of content is more specific and suitable for the topics that students need, while in the local library the content is more generic.
Plan meals ahead
Food represents a large part of a college student’s spending. One trick to save time and money is meal planning. Planning the meals you will have during the week makes your shopping list stick to those specific items, preventing you from buying unnecessary things. It will save you money and time, as the process is much faster when preparing meals.
Eating out every day at university, as cheap as it may seem, can be quite expensive at the end of the month. To help with these expenses, one of the options is to take meals from home, already prepared, to eat at college. If possible, prepare all meals for the week and freeze them. You take out the portion you need daily and, in addition to costs, you also save time.
From the age of 18 to 22 was when I was in college and, at that time, my parents would give me an allowance every month. That allowance included everything from transportation, books and food. In order to save money and spare something at the end of the month, I would take food from home to eat at university instead of eating out or in the cafeteria. Doing this I was able to save a good portion of my money for my future.
Find a part-time job (if possible)
Having a part-time job as a college student is a way to earn some extra income to make ends meet. It is not an easy task to study and work at the same time, even if it is part-time job. However, if you can do that, you will notice a big difference in your personal savings. Look for jobs close to your area of residence or even remote work. A few hours a week can make all the difference!
