Unless you are born with a silver spoon in your mouth, surviving financially as a student can be relatively arduous. Life as a student at a higher institution may appear so difficult because you are most likely having to act and decide independently for the first time. Being inexperienced is not a disease, you only need the right materials to open your eyes. As a result, this article will be enlightening you on the top money management tips for students.
Money Management Tips For Students
Most students find it hard to maintain the money they get, not because they are not brilliant enough, but because they do not have the right information about money management tips for students. To spend wisely as a student, ensure to:
Make a budget
You need to plan. When planning on how to spend your money, you should ensure your expenses are not greater than your income. Rather, earn more than you spend. This is so that you won’t run into debt but rather have savings.
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So we would advise you to get a spreadsheet or even a book, to draw your plans for the following month on how you will spend. That is the first step.
Track your spending
Realizing how much you spend in the previous week by writing down your expenses can help you notice and work on the things that are not worth spending on.
Discern between needs and wants
There is a great distinction between need and want, which you should realize as long as you want to manage money. When an expense you want to make is a need, then not getting it can affect you significantly. As a student, it may mean that your GPA will have to come down as a result.
On the other hand, a want is something you just feel like getting, especially because you want to have a sense of belonging. If you must spend wisely, spend less on wants. Prioritize spending on needs.
Pay Tuition Fee Smartly
You are now learning to handle money wisely and you should act in line with that. The fourth tip on our list is to pay your tuition fee in school through the cheapest medium. Yes, it differs. Some schools may not charge you any additional fee when you pay in cash while others may do.
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A school fee payment that attracts 1.65% of the total fees when done with a credit card fee for instance can make you lose as much as $30 when you pay $3000. Imagine that.
Save Money on Textbooks
Do you know websites like Kijiji and some Facebook groups that sell already-used textbooks? As a student struggling to have a balanced financial life, this may just be what you need, because the money for getting already-used textbooks is cheaper. This cannot in any real way affect your studies as the ultimate aim of getting textbooks will be achieved regardless.
Moreso, unless it is necessary to get a hardcover, you can go for books online. You may get some textbooks you have to read for your course as free pdf files online.
Keep to your budget
The budget you have been advised to make at the beginning of this piece, should not be idle stuff. You must keep to it and ensure that you don’t spend on anything outside it, unless on a few occasions when the NEED be.
You may simply have to update it when things change and do not go as planned.
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Do the cooking yourself
You may not be able to cook the best meal for yourself as a student, especially if you are a guy, but you’ve got to help yourself financially by not wasting much money on food in restaurants.
There are several advantages to cooking by yourself, one of which is that you can choose what to eat. That may not always be the case when you visit restaurants.
Reduce impulse purchases
Learn to think we’ll before making any purchase you initially didn’t plan for. One of the problems students largely face financially is making impulse buys. This can have a significantly negative impact on your pocket. Think of the consequences you will face thereafter, before buying anything you find on the same spot.
Plan your meals
Do you realize planning your meal for the weeks ahead is a smart move to reduce impulse purchases? Anyway, it can help you spend and manage your money better.
This is effective because buying things in bulk at the grocery store reduces the price of items that will be sold to you.
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Don’t get into debt
Ensure all that is within your capacity to see that you do not get into debt. Getting into debt as a student can cause you great harm as you may have to repay with a high-interest rate.
But how do you survive on occasions when you have no choice but to take a loan? Get a part-time or remote job. Taking up some jobs as a student won’t have a significant impact on the time you are supposed to share with your academics. One such job is freelance graphic design. This can help you get some money that will save you in the days ahead.
A Frequently Asked Question
Students learning about the top financial management tips also often ask the following question.
The Importance of Financial Management Tips to Students
The following are the top important reasons why you need to understand the concept of financial management as a student. These tips will help you be in control of your money.
- It is a smart way to increase your savings.
- You can achieve your financial goals faster with financial management tips.
- It helps you avoid unnecessary expenses.
- It ultimately makes you appear richer.
In addition to this, you should remember your spending habits as a student is what will become of you when you are out of school. So your personal finance life should be important to you now.
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CONCLUSION
Lastly, one of the best ways to maintain a good financial life as a student is to seek and try to not miss out on free money. How do you get free money? Even though it is indisputable that money does not grow on trees and neither do they come to ideal ones, some students have been privileged to enjoy it for free. School awards and scholarships are a good source of free money for students. Scholarships can save you the stress of seeking thousands of dollars to study, and so can awards.
