In order to survive university with all your finances in tact, you need to take control (and more importantly stay in control) of your money. Far too many students are completely unaware of their financial situation at any given time, in fact according to recent figures 1 in 3 students don’t know how much money they have at any given time. To the frugal among us, this begs the question – how on earth do they know how much they are able to spend? The simple answer is they don’t and here in lies the problem.
Luckily, we have devised this simple 5 step guide to ensure your finances don’t snowball out of control and leave you with you with a massive university hangover-
1) In order to stay in control of your money, you need to actually check how much you have on a regular basis. It takes 5 minutes to log into your account and check your balance so you should be doing this at least twice a week. Remember, the more information you have about your finances, the better your purchase decisions.
2) Leave your card at home. Off on a night out? Make sure you leave your credit/debit card safely locked away. Draw your money out on campus first to prevent any expensive impulse ideas. You might need to plan ahead if you don’t live close to an ATM but the money saved in the long run makes it worth it.
3) Only take as much student loan as absolutely necessary. The amount of money at your disposal when starting is frightening and it is so easily accessible. Remember, it’s not yours and you WILL have to pay it back in its entirety (plus interest). By taking the bare minimum, you will reduce your debt heavily and will have more disposable income when you start working.
4) Get a summer job. Student life has the very attractive appeal of extra long summer holidays, far too long in my opinion. Make use of this time and get to work, if you save 75% of your summer earnings you will have a reasonable cash flow for the whole year. If you are really clever, you will land a job related to the industry you wish to work in, leaving you with extremely valuable work experience too.
5) Take advantage of your student status. Being a student means discounts on anything and everything so make sure you have the necessary membership cards to fully exploit your position. Most places won’t be encouraging you to use your discount cards so make it a habit to ask if they are accepted EVERY time you buy something.
In order to leave university with little or no debt, you need to give your finances the necessary respect. It doesn’t take a lot of time but it might take a little planning. One thing is for sure, any time invested in your money is time very well spent.
If you need further help with money, your university will have a dedicated finance expert, advising on debt advice, money management and more.
I certainly didn’t leave the university debt-free, but I kept my student loans to a minimum. Great post.
The only thing I would add to this list is try to pay down your loans while you have zero interest if you are working and going to school.