Are you going away to college soon? Perhaps you have a child that you are sending off to college and you want to learn more about what the children in college are spending. This article is about how to budget money when you are going to college, written for the person who will be spending time in the classroom.
If you are a parent of a child going to college, just put yourself in their shoes to help you understand more about what is going on when you are in college and what you have to pay for.
When you are in college, your parents often give you some type of an allowance, or possibly, you have to get a job for any spending money that you need. Time is tight as you have classes all day, work in the evening, and often long hours of homework. Money management and budgeting your money is going to help you work fewer hours, and save up money for the things that you need the most.
To save money when you are in college you have to think ahead a little bit. You need to think about where you are going to eat next week, how much gas you need to get home on the weekend, and you need to realize that you are finally out on your own.
So let us say that you just have one hundred dollars a month extra money while you are in college. Your room and board is paid for, your books are paid for and you don’t need to get home, or if you do, your parents will come for you. A hundred dollars is not a lot of money, but if you are frugal, you can survive, have fun and stay healthy at the same time.
There are many jokes about oodles of noodles, about mac and cheese, and hot dogs, but these are the staples of life, and when you are on a budget, you have to stick to it. Maybe you are one of the really lucky ones, you or your parents have paid your way to the cafeteria for evening meals, or maybe just for your lunch meals, but still even if you didn’t have that, you can make your money last all month long.
Continued >> on the next page
