College can be a stressful time with students worrying about their academics, on top of which a lot of students worry about their finances. This blog will help provide some tips to improve your financial wellness while you are a student at college so that you can focus more on what matters the most, your degree.
Don't buy new textbooks
Textbooks are expensive but are also a necessity for a lot of classes. The ideal way around spending a lot of money on textbooks is to ask a senior or friend who has already taken the class you are taking. If that does not work, your next best option is getting a used textbook as those are substantially cheaper. Sites like Amazon, Chegg, and Thriftbooks are good places to find used textbooks. Lastly, if you only need the textbook for a semester or two, renting is a good cheaper alternative. Sites like Chegg and Amazon offer free return shipping on their rentals, to make it as convenient for the student as possible.
Don't buy a car
Owning a car can carry a lot of monthly expenses with it, car payments, insurance payments for the car, and then gas and maintenance are all part of owning a car. Instead, look at alternatives such as bikes or scooters, they are much cheaper and at times can be quicker in traffic-heavy areas. To get around campus, you can also check to see if your campus has Bird or Spin scooters. These are scooters that you can rent as a way to get from one point to another on campus. Also always check local transportation in your city as it is a cheap and efficient way to get around.
Use your university ID and email
The amount of services and items available to students at a discount is under-stated. Students can find discounts on things ranging from food to electronics. Be sure to check your university website for any deals they have with local stores in your area. Besides that, major companies like Amazon, Spotify, and Lenovo have special student deals that take their service price pretty low. For example, Amazon Prime costs $59/year with a student email, a steep 50% discount from the original price.
There are a lot of resources out on the web and with your university that students can explore to make the most of their student status. A good idea to track your finances more responsibly would be to download a financial planning or tracking app to know where your money is going, or where it should go. Navigating your finances as a college student is tough. Help yourself out by not doing it alone through the use of resources and technology.
