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Money Tips for College Students

When I entered college, I was ready for college life: school,working part-time, and the parties that go with it.

But what I wasn’t prepared for was how to manage my money incollege.

Suddenly, your parents are no longer around to manageeverything and you’re sort of thrown into the big bad world with acredit card and not much else.

While it can be tempting to blow your money on clothes andbooze, the reality is that the sooner you adopt sound financialpractices, the better off you’ll be in the long run.

You can still be young and reckless without wrecking your finances. Here are some great money tips for collegestudents that I wish someone would have shared with me when I entered college.

Pay Your Credit Card in Full

Don’t think of your credit card as a limitless piggy bank that you can continue to borrow money from. Eventually—oneway or another—that money will need to be paid back.

I don’t advise completely against getting a card, because it is a great way to establish credit history. However, payyour card in full every month. In fact, something I still do today is to pay my card daily or weekly. I’ll make purchaseson my cards to rack up points, but will deduct the money from my checking as soon as I get home. This way I get thepoints, and I don’t find myself in a financial mess.

Student Loans are Not Free Money

Sometimes, I would end up receiving a check worth several hundred dollars from my college that was overage frommy student loans.

I wish, I wish, I wish I had been wise and put that money back toward my loans. Instead, I’m sure that those fewhundred dollars cost me thousands when you include interest after it took me almost seven years after college to payoff my loans.

Take the smallest amount of student loans that you can manage.

Get to work

Prepare yourself for the real world by working through college, and working as much as you can in the summer tosave up for books and extras. Spend half, save half.

You most likely don’t have very many overhead costs, it is completely possible to save as much as you can from yourpaycheck to pay for college costs. You’ll be way ahead of the game of your peers who graduate with thousands indebt.

Buy Used

Buy used everything. Yes, I’m talking about books and supplies, but also I’m talking about everything else.

Need a car? Buy used. Need clothes? Thrift shop it. Furniture? Buy from a graduating senior.

College is most likely going to be the last time in your life where you really don’t have to worry about appearances.You may not be rocking the newest car model and you may not feel as cool driving a beat up clunker, but you’ll be soahead of the game when you’re not worrying about car payments or how this is affecting your longterm finances.

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