Before college, many of us had little to no control over our finances. Our money managing went as far as our allowances and our pay from part-time jobs. It can be hard to be fiscally responsible when you are only twenty-something, much less 18 and 19 years old. Here are 10 things that college students seem to always waste money on.
1. Food
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Food is the answer to every question. Failed a test, what should I do? I’ll treat myself to some food. I’m having a bad day – what can I do feel better? I should get some food to cheer up. How do I celebrate having a good day? I’ll get some food! First-year students who are required to have a meal plan spend even more because on top of thousands of dollars per term, we have awesome food trucks that tempt us with delicious scents at every corner. Not to mention eating out, ordering pizza and food delivery services. According to StateUniversity.com, college students spend 11 billion dollars a year on snacks and beverages alone.
2. Clothes
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College students spend over $5 billion a year on clothes and shoes, according to StateUniversity.com. All that money to recycle the same set of hoodies every week.
3. Textbooks
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Textbooks are the bane of my existence. I think I speak for a majority of college students when I say I am disgusted by the amount of money I have to spend on textbooks. Buying a new textbook can cost upwards of $200 and now multiply that number by four or five – that estimate is what the average college kid would pay for textbooks per term. According to The College Board, in 2017-18, an average student at a four-year college spent approximately $1,170 – $1220 for textbooks per year.
If that wasn’t so bad – let’s think about how many times college kids open their textbooks. Let’s not even get started with access codes and clickers.
4. Parties
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A major part of social life in college is parties. There are all sorts of parties – ladies free before 11 pm parties, $2 at the door parties, $10 for a ticket but $20 at the door parties. Parties are expensive when you consider clothes, entry fees, transportation and alcohol.
5. Computers
A lot of students purchase overpriced high-end laptops for college to end up using half of the features, and that’s if you are a computer science major. Then you find out the hard way that the $1,500 laptop does almost the same thing as the $500 one. Next time I buy a laptop, I will know that if I do not know what the feature is used for, then I don’t need it.
6. Coffee
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College students drink more coffee than water. We need it to survive our 9 a.m. classes and for our late nights. But all coffee is not the same – coffee shop coffee is expensive. Buying a $5 cup of Joe every day can cause a serious dent in your wallet.
7. School Supplies
There are so many sales during back-to-school time that you get lost in the highlighters and notepads. During this wondrous time of 99 cent notebooks, it is easy to buy things that you may not need because of the attractive price tag and pretty colors. Let’s be real, how many highlighters do you need?
8. Alcohol
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According to a UPenn Student Health Services study, “The average college student spends $900 a year on alcohol.” College isn’t all work and no play for most students. The average undergraduate is drunk for over 10 hours a week!
9. Rideshare
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Uber and Lyft are lifesavers in the wee hours of the morning and when you are too lazy to take public transportation or walk. In the long run, even if you pool, there is a lot of money that could be saved by taking the bus or subway, or even walking.
10. Housing
On-campus housing is expensive. Living in dorms and campus-affiliated housing can drain your wallet. Housing with amenities seems fancy, but do you really care if the building has a gym if there is a free gym at school? Although maybe a little inconvenient, it is much cheaper to live in a house and split the rent with housemates.
Hopefully if you are looking to save money, you can reevaluate your spending from these common categories simply by skimping on coffee at Starbucks or walking to the grocery store.