Back to school season is always a hectic one. Between trying to get decorations for your room, picking out the perfect trendy wardrobe, getting textbooks, and trying to maintain your social life, your purchases can sure rack up to one big bill. But fear not, collegiettes, here is the only guide you’ll need this fall to help keep your finances in check.
- Create a finanancial plan – This is simpler than it sounds. Take some time before the semester gets into full swing to sit down and try to divide your expenses on a piece of paper. Be sure to include things like textbooks, food, clothing, gas money, spending money, and most important, money to put away in your savings. It’s so important to start putting money away as soon as possible so that you’re making your life easier for yourself down the road. If you have all of your expenses written down on a sheet of paper where you can look at it all the time, you’ll be more likely to stick to it!
2. Shop on sale – This one’s a pretty east concept. If you know what your favorite stores are, be sure to check out when they hold their sales and then try to limit your shopping to only during those times. This saves you money AND allows you to often buy a few more items because of what you’re saving. Not only is this smart shopping, but you’ll be able to scope out sales and bargains way quicker the next time you’re strolling through the mall. This doesn’t mean that you should never buy full priced items; you can definitely splurge and treat yourself every once in a while, but for everything else, shopping on sale is the way to go.
3. Cut your costs – If you wake up every morning and buy your daily coffee and scone, try cutting it down to only two or three times a week, maybe make coffee at home on alternating days. This doesn’t seem like you’re saving that much, but trust me, that daily six dollars adds up to a sometimes scary amount at the end of the semester. Think of all the other things you could’ve bought if you had just skipped the latte a few days a week!
4. Make more home-cooked meals – Take advantage of the facilities on campus, or even the kitchen at your house and cook more meals for yourself. This saves you money from having to continuously buy food on campus or out to dinner, and you’re learning an important life skill. (Yes, you should probably know how to make more than just macaroni and cheese for yourself.) This is the same concept as cutting down on your daily coffees; your lunches may not seem terribly expensive, but they add up to something much greater down the line.
5. Remember to sell back your books – If you rent your books then this step doesn’t really apply to you, but if you buy textbooks and then you realize that you’re never going to look at them again, remember to sell them back for that extra cash! I’ve seen this happen all the time with my friends – they totally meant to sell that biology textbook back, but never got around to doing it, and now it just sits on their bookshelf at home, collecting dust. That extra cash in your pocket from that book could mean a night out with friends, gas money, or a new pair of shoes, but only if you remember to do it!
Staying on budget this fall is definitely easier than you may think, and you’ve got this, collegiettes! So whether you’re saving up for that new dress or just saving up to have money later on, keep the change and profit – literally.