4 essential saving tips for students
Check out some savings tips for college students that can help you plan financially for this period.
In addition to academic challenges, it is common for university life to present problems related to finances. Whether for those who already earn their own money or who still depend on their parents, good financial management is essential so that it is possible to focus on studies, avoiding getting into debt, losing control of their accounts and even compromising the payment of their own college. Let’s go to the tips:
Economics tips for students
Organize your personal budget
Putting together a worksheet to organize your personal budget is the first step to saving over the course of university. Start by writing down your sources of income – i.e. how much you earn each month and what the source is (parents, internship, job, etc).
Mark, then, your fixed expenses, those that show little or no variation from month to month, such as rent, household bills and transport costs. Finally, remember to enter variable expenses related to food and leisure. The organization of this budget helps you to have a sense of how much you have to spend throughout the month, avoiding extrapolating your budget, especially with regard to variable expenses.
The organization of this budget can be done manually, especially if you have a good understanding of Excel spreadsheets. You can also rely on technology to help with this task. There are several applications that allow you to organize your finances in a simple and automatic way, helping to map your expenses and set savings goals.
Get an extra income
Working part-time or doing a paid internship are the best options for those who want to earn extra income and become more financially independent from their family. Internships are an excellent opportunity for university students, enabling them to better understand the job market and deepen their knowledge in their areas of interest.
Other ways of obtaining an extra income are also valid. Why not sell sweets between classes or offer private lessons in the subjects you are interested in? Freelance jobs are also a great option! Thus, you can guarantee extra money at the end of the month, make a purchase that you want and even, who knows, plan a trip.
save on copies
Copies of books end up hurting the university student’s budget. Throughout the semester, the need to follow the disciplines and read texts related to them means that many students have significant expenses with xerox. To optimize these expenses, a good option can be to organize a group for sharing materials in your course. In these groups, students who have already taken the course and even those who are still taking it can make the texts they have already read available to others.
Going to the college library is also a good idea, allowing you to pick up the books you need at zero cost. If you like to take notes on texts and demarcate the most important parts, consider buying a device for reading e-books. Despite the initial investment, they allow you to read PDF texts, mark important pages and save notes, avoiding the need to copy class materials.
schedule your free time
Variable expenses, mainly related to leisure, end up weighing on the university student’s budget, given that this is a phase of meetings with friends and frequent parties. Try to plan your free time according to your financial conditions. Avoiding the abusive prices charged by nightclubs and bars is a great way to save, for example.
In addition, whatever the city where you study, there are always options for cultural events that are free or offer discounted prices, helping to make your departure cheaper. If you study in another city, be aware of the monthly expenses with calls and visits. Try to plan them in a way that doesn’t hurt your budget.
