You Don’t Need an MBA to Save Money Next Semester
Remember those first heady days of the fall semester when you thought the money you brought from home would carry you through to winter break? Well, now you know it costs a bit more to live away from home than you’d imagined.
But don’t despair. Once you’re back on campus, there are a variety of ways to not only save a bit of bank but to generate a little more, too — and none of them requires flunking out.
The Basics: Savings in Your Everyday Life
Let’s start with the simple stuff. Now that you’ve established your eating habits, perhaps it’s time to revisit how you’re eating, and what.
Ben Kittner of North Carolina–based College Performance Coaching suggests forming a cooking co-op if you have access to a kitchen. This way you and your roommates or friends can take turns preparing group meals.
Another option is to consider a less expensive meal plan. “Maybe you don’t eat breakfast or can eat cheaply in your room over the weekend,” says Stephanie Kinkaid, student life coordinator at Monmouth College in Monmouth, IL. “Save a few bucks by reducing the number of meals you pay for.”
Or how about making your own coffee? “Many college students spend lots of extra cash on coffee drinks from the shop on campus,” Kinkaid says. “With the advent of great at-home brewers, you can have a barista-style coffee in your own room at a fraction of the cost.”
As for other everyday items and school supplies — even technology — most major retailers offer deals and coupons online or via email in addition to seasonal and clearance sales, and daily deals. Keep an eye out so you can stock up when prices are right.
Textbooks: To Buy or Rent?
“Students should try their best to avoid buying their textbooks at their campus bookstores,” says Ross Riskin, a CPA and certified college planning specialist in Orange, CT. “Although this may be a convenient option for most, it is often the most expensive.”
“It used to be common practice for a student to go to the school bookstore and purchase a textbook for $200 and then resell the book for a measly $30 at the end of the semester,” Riskin says. Nowadays, students can recoup the majority of the cost by reselling them online. In some cases, they might even turn a profit, he adds.
“Obviously, renting textbooks is the cheaper and more efficient way to go, but students need to think about how valuable, important and relevant these textbooks will be for them in the future,” Riskin says.
Creative Work Pursuits
The surest way to have money is to earn money, and there are jobs available on campus that might fit nicely into your schedule. Kittner suggests checking to see if the athletics department needs help during sporting events. “You might even meet some prospective employers in the luxury boxes,” he says.
Kinkaid suggests you consider being a resident assistant, which might earn you a salary, reduced or free room and board and/or other perks.
Bethany Goldszer got creative in her part-time employment pursuits while a student at the University of Chicago. Now a college admissions consultant with Stand Out College Prep in the New York City area, she says she was too swamped with assignments to work a regular part-time job. So she sought out alternatives. “First, I became a mystery shopper, earning free meals, clothes and movie tickets,” she recalls. “Second, I participated in research studies around campus. Each paid between $10 and $20 an hour and had me do things like play games, look at pictures — nothing too serious. My highest paying gig, $150, required me to get an MRI, which lasted two hours. Finally, I structured my time around study breaks offered by student groups that always catered these meetings. I hardly ever paid for a meal outside of my meal plan.”
Managing that Money
And, of course, a little budgeting couldn’t hurt. For example: Have your college allowance sent to you in bite-sized chunks, says Michelle Perry Higgins, a financial planner, contributor to the Wall Street Journal and author of the upcoming College Poor No More: 100 $avings Tips for College Students, to be published next spring.
“Whether you’re getting your living expenses from your parents, a scholarship, a loan or a rich uncle, find out how to receive it in monthly installments instead of by semester, quarterly or yearly,” Higgins advises.
And “if you do take a student loan, open a separate savings account,” she suggests. “Don’t commingle these funds with your day-to-day living expense money. It’s just way too easy to blow through it.”
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