Here at Her Campus, we like to help our fellow classmates! This is our #Bryant2017 Series where we will be writing numerous articles that will help ease the transition from “senior fever” to the new kid on block here in Smithfield.
We realize college is a totally new place for you so we want to focus this article on one thing we wish we told ourselves when we were in your shoes….LEARN HOW TO BUDGET! College is a place where many are finally own their own and independent for the first time. Your parents aren’t around to tell you to be home by curfew, to clean your room, to do your homework, or to help you save your money! With all of that independence comes a whole lot of responsibility. This means paying for food, drinks, new clothes, books, and sometimes student loans. In college, you’ll quickly learn that money does not grow on trees and it does in fact disappear quickly!
Here are some tips to make your savings last through the fall semester…aka, tips so you know how to make your hard-earned summer savings last all year long:
Budget yourself.
When you get that final paycheck after working all summer, take a look at all that you have saved, for example say $1,600. Divide that number in half (for two semesters) so you now have $800. Take your budget for one semester and divide it by 4 (for four months in one semester). This means that you’ll have $200 to spend per month. This way, you are still able to save money while budgeting yourself and making your hard-earned money last.
Learn the best (and cheapest) take-out restaurants.
Let’s face it, when its 2am after a long Friday night, you and your roommate are going to want to get some food. Knowing the best places to call for the cheapest delivery service is the way to go. Ronzio’s Pizza is right on campus in Hall 17 and they deliver for free. They have great pizza and weekly deals. Be sure to pick up their menu when you get to school. There are plenty of other great take-out restaurants in the area as well. Tip: make sure you ask the restaurant if they offer any deals for students or for customers in general. For instance, Chili’s has an email club and you can sign up for free and almost weekly receive coupons for free appetizers!
Some great take-out/delivery places near campus include:
- Chili’s
- UNO’s
- Panera Bread (make sure you sign up for a MyPanera Card!)
- Pick Pockets
- Tony’s Pizza Palace
- Fire & Ice (Located in Providence but every Monday night, students eat for just $10!)
- B’z Breakfast, Burgers, and Beyond
- Papa Gino’s
- Domino’s
- Dave & Busters (Also in Providence but every Wednesday they offer half price for games!)
- House of Pizza
- Parente’s
- Blackie’s Bulldog Tavern
- J’s Deli
Take advantage of student discounts!
A ton of businesses in the Providence area offer some pretty great student discounts. Saving every little bit helps a ton in the long run. A list of the best student discounts in the area can be found here at Student Rate and also here at Around Campus! Other popular discounts sites include Groupon and Living Social. Be sure to set up these apps on your phone with Providence set as your closest city so you’re able to grab discounts for restaurants and recreational activities! Tip: Kiwi Burst offers a discount if you mention you are a Bryant student and show your ID! One of the clubs on campus, the Bryant Outdoor Adventure Club (BOAC) offers $5 rock climbing passes for students for Rockspot on Friday and Saturdays….if that wasn’t good enough, every Friday night Theatre 82 in Cranston has a Bring Your Own Improv night for $7, movie tickets are cheap from the Bryant Center (keep reading for more information), and Pawtucket Red Sox tickets are always a steal!
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Make reservations at “Fancy Salmo”.
Choose “Fancy Salmo” for a date night with the girls or special someone. Every Thursday, Friday & Saturday, Bryant’s dining hall opens a restaurant for students, set up for a 5-star dining experience. Students are able to make reservations through the banner portal on the myBryant page (you will probably learn about this once you get on campus!). The food, service, and overall experience is just like going out to a real restaurant and the best part is, it’s part of students’ meal plans.
Go “back to school shopping” before you get back to school.
Your parents are excited to get you prepared for your first experience living away from home. Make sure you get everything you need so come fall, you don’t realize you’ve missed something crucial, and have to tap into your savings to cover it. Some key things to add to that shopping list are:
- Rain Boots
- Rain Jacket
- Bathrobe
- Slippers
- Fall coat
- School supplies
- Snacks for your room
- Any dorm stuff
- Fall clothes
For a complete packing list, visit here!
Take advantage of free, or cheap, transportation!
Did you know you can take the RIPTA right from our campus to anywhere in Rhode Island for free?! The RIPTA is Rhode Island’s public bus. Bryant University is on the 52 line and will take you straight into Providence. From Providence, you can jump on any RIPTA to venture off anywhere else in state. With a swipe of your Bryant ID, the places to travel are endless. Another cheap way to travel around is through carpooling, the Bryant Transit Authority (BTA), or the Zip Car services on campus. Almost everyone on campus has a car, including freshmen, so carpooling with friends should be easy. (Fun fact: you do not have to pay to register your car on campus and like we said, even freshmen can have their cars on campus…a lot different from other colleges!) The BTA parks right in front of Hall 12 and 13 in the Bryant Center parking lot and can take you to nearby locations like the Lincoln Mall where places like Target, Stop N’ Shop, the movie theatre (Tip: you can get $5 movie tickets at the Info Desk in the Bryant Center), and Five Guys is located for super cheap!
Lastly, if you’re unable to bring your car to campus, Bryant offers Zip Car. There are two currently on our campus and through a coupon at the Residence Life office you can sign up and automatically receive free “travel miles”. You can take the car virtually anywhere but we advise you to stop by Residence Life to learn more about that!