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Introduction.

After the high of graduation how might you avoid the down of student debts?

Just as the number of students beginning college and university courses this year continues to rise, so too does the cost of being a student. Whilst both tuition, or academic, fees are an inescapable inevitability and so too are general living expenses - just what can you do in terms of keeping your student debts down and doing college on a budget?

Buying things.

No need to pay extra for gym fees - join one of the many sports clubs instead.

Yes, I know that’s a bit vague as a title but it is meant to cover several things. The first item we’ll consider buying is books and materials for your course. Apart for the obvious things like a laptop, printer, paper pens etc - don’t be tempted to dash out and buy all of the books on your recommended reading list, or if you’re a medical student your own skeleton etc. You could easily get through all of your student loan before even arriving on campus. A quick thought on the laptop; do get a WiFi enabled one but remember that it’s probably only going to be used for basic ‘Office’ software and so doesn’t need to be powerful enough to run a nuclear power station! Regarding books, anything listed as essential reading, especially for the first few weeks do buy in advance, as you don’t want to be flustered trying to get hold of a copy at short notice. However, even then don’t buy from the colleges recommended bookstore. Search online for them, you know you’ll pay less and if you’re prepared to have a pre-owned one you could save a fortune. Regarding ‘recommended’ reading books. If you find that you really do need these then again buy online and buy cheaply. Quite often such books are only needed for the odd reference or chapter, so they’re really not worth spending a lot on. Of course if you get up early enough you can always borrow it for free from the library. Buying food cheaply doesn’t mean you have to buy the lowest quality food. Even though you might have to pay a delivery charge shopping for food online can be cost effective if there are several of you to buy in bulk and share the delivery costs. Also, keep an eye on the local supermarket prices. You’ll probably find that meat and fresh products prices drop nearer the stores closing time. The sell by and use by dates will be perfectly OK - but the supermarkets just prefer re-stocking overnight. Don’t forget as well you’ll find loads of budget recipes on the internet to feed up to four people with a healthy meal for as little as $10. When it comes to buying CDs or downloading music, whilst at university save even more money by using Spotify instead. Finally, always keep an eye out for discount vouchers and offers, be they for students or anyone. Just because you’ve always used store X doesn’t mean to say you can’t go to store Y if they’re offering a discount.

Banking, loans and debts.

Avoid crdit card debt by only using credit cards for emergencies.

Unless you’re a very fortunate student indeed the chances of leaving university or college without any debts are virtually nil. It’s more a question of how well you plan and budget for those debts. Having taken out the maximum in low cost federal or state student loans if you’re unable to subsidize them through a part-time job, then you can always get further student loans from banks and private finance companies. This is perfectly safe so long as you use the loans only for what you need as a student, not to try and fund a life-style that you really can’t afford. The one thing to be very wary of as a student is how you use your credit card. Having a credit card is one of those things you really can’t avoid, but only use it in a true emergency. On no account should you take it with you on a night out, as you’ll end up losing count of how much you’re spent and over-spend. Instead take out cash only, when it’s gone - it’s gone! Regarding banks, needless to say chose a bank that offers the lowest interest rates on over-drafts and has a generous over-draft threshold. When choosing a bank overdraft and withdrawal facilities are far more important than offers of free MP3 players or cell phones.

Where to live.

A typical student room.

Many colleges and universities will want you to start their courses by living in residential accommodation on campus, so this question is of more concern to students after their first year. Thereafter, to find your own reasonably priced accommodation all you’ve got to do is keep your ears and eyes open, listening out for where the good and low cost accommodation is and when it’s advertised in the union bars and libraries etc on campus. Don’t forget, if you’re not to sure about a place these days just put the zip code into a search engine or and see what you can find out about the area. Better still see what the local accommodation websites themselves say about it. A final thought about accommodation relates to things you might need in your place to live. Save money by not buying things like pans or cutlery until you get there; and then decide exactly what it is that you need.

Communications.

Use the free WiFi and broadband internet connections on campus as much as you can.

The first thing to consider is - these days do you really need a cell phone and a WiFi laptop computer? On campus you’ll get free internet connection, which should mean there’s free WiFi too. So, with all the modern social networking websites to choose from - how can you not be permanently in contact with all the folks you need to be? You’ll need the laptop for your studies - but the cell phone contract can go, use the landline phones on campus instead. If you live off campus, rather than paying for a fixed internet connection buy one of the broadband laptop sticks for truly mobile broadband internet connectivity. By getting one on a prepaid, no contract, plan you can use the free WiFi on campus and then only need to actually be ‘spending your own money‘ on the internet when away from a free WiFi footprint. Conversely, lots of mobile companies these days are offering ‘free’ laptops if you take out a mobile broadband and/or cell phone contract, depending on the spec of the laptop - these could be good deals too.

Travel.

Perhaps the money these students save by cycling they can spend on some clothes?

How much you spend on travel during the academic year may well depend on how far away from your chosen university your ‘parental’ home is and then how far away from the campus you actually live during the semesters. One way you can definitely save money on travel is to not have your own auto with you! Without your car you can at least save money on gas, simply by instead of driving either walking or if you’ve got one, biking everywhere. If for some reason you can’t get a free lift home for visits then at least book air or rail tickets well in advance to get the best deals; or look for rail and bus passes and gateway discounts.

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