Saving money as a busy college student
Zion Dendy, Staff Writer
Learning how to save money is a skill that most parents teach their children at a young age. As a child, asking for things in the store would always be met with replies such as:
�No.�
�Put it back.�
�We have that at home.� and,
�You finna� pay for it?�
�Don�t buy it unless you need it,� is something that my mother taught me as a child that I hold strongly to till this day. Coming to college would show me exactly why I was raised this way.
My mother always felt that if she bought me everything I asked for, I would never learn just how important money is. One decade later, I can surely say: she was right.
During my first semester, I would empty my bank account with countless runs to Walmart, constant date nights and the cough my 1997 Explorer would give me when it needed gas.
As money became rarer, I realized how tough living on my own was and knew I had to make a change.
The next semester I decided to take an entirely different approach. My goal was to spend, at most, 50 dollars a month and to narrow down trips off-campus as much as I could.
With the help of a few money saving experts from campus, here are a few ways to help more people save.
�First off, you have to work,� Director of Career Planning Stuart Floyd said, �I know it sucks but if you get a job you can in-turn make back all the money you spent.�
Not only does working on weekends provides a source of income, it also prevents students from wasting money. While at work, a student can literally not spend his or her money while earning money at the same time. I see this as an absolute win.
On campus work-study positions even offer an on-campus alternative to students who maybe don�t own a car.
�You can�t spend money if you don�t leave campus,� former college student Justin Brown said, �If you go out every weekend spending money will be easy for you but if you stay in and study, you�ll find you have more money when you need it.�
Better grades and more money seem to contradict, yet surprisingly they go together. If a student is in their dorm studying, they couldn�t possibly spend money, right? Unfortunately, this requires self-control. In today�s society online shopping is just as dangerous as in-store, if not more. From the palm of your hands, you can spend over $100 and not even think twice about it.
�Eat on campus,� Junior Hope Scott said. �Cafeteria date nights are just as sweet as any other date night. Plus, it�s free.�
Eating off-campus is often something that breaks college students. Students lose track of exactly how much they spend eating out and go broke like I did.
Spending money in today�s society is easier done than said and college students know this first-hand. In short, stay on campus and work until your bank account reflects it.
