In high school, it seemed like we always had money and our savings just kept growing. Unfortunately, we are now in college and it seems like all we do is watch our bank accounts drain. It’s hard to balance classes, extracurricular, AND work, so how do you save your money and make it last all four years?
If you take these simple steps it can make a big difference on how you are spending your money and can also help you save some of it too.
Cook at Home
If you live in an apartment on or off campus, cook at home! You will save tons of money just by cooking your own meals instead of having them served to you at a restaurant. You will end up saving a lot more than you think and might learn a good recipe or two. If you live in a dorm, you can still buy microwaveable meals and small-refrigerated items if you are sick of the cafeteria food.
Make Your Own Coffee
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Stop going to the nearest coffee shops to spend $5.00 on one cup of coffee and start making your own coffee! You can find coffee makers for as low as $12.00, which will end up saving you a lot of money. You don’t have to entirely stop drinking coffee but make it at home as often as you can. There are plenty of tasty coffee flavors out there to satisfy your need for that mocha latte or irresistable cappucino.
Make a List Before You Go Shopping
If you make a list before you go to the grocery store or anywhere else, you can get in and out with what you need to buy. They call it impulse shopping for a reason. Make sure you know what you want to get and only pick up those items while you are out so that you can start saving the rest of your money for a rainy day.
Dye Your Own Hair
Salon dying can cost anywhere from $50-$150.00 and will cost you a lot of savings. Instead of going to a professional to have your hair dyed, use the box dye you can buy at the store. There are plenty of descent brands out there that can give you the same look you want for a lot less. Box hair dye goes for as low as $7.00 and will still help touch up those roots you are trying to hide!
Stop Tanning
Not only is tanning unhealthy for your skin and can cause skin cancer, but it’s also really expensive! Even if you are only going once a week, it adds up! Most tanning packages cost anywhere from $30-$80 and usually we collegiette just don’t have that kind of money lying around. If you want to keep a nice glow to your skin, try Jergens Natural Glow or another moisturizer that will create natural color on your skin.
Don’t Bring Out Your Debit or Credit Cards
One of the most detrimental things we collegiettes can do to our bank accounts is hit up the ATM when we are out. Bring out only the amount you are willing to spend that night in cash and don’t bring your debit or credit cards! If you can’t hit up the ATM, not only will you drink less (which can definitely be a good thing for some of us) but you also won’t spend a ton of money and wake up to an empty bank account.
Stop Buying So Many T-shirts
You don’t need a t-shirt for every occasion. Buy one t-shirt a semester and stop there. With all the organizations and philanthropies going on around campus, it’s easy to rack up a collection of at least 10 t-shirts a semester. It is unnecessary and soon you will run out of space for them anyways.
Buy a Reusable Water Bottle
You don’t need to spend your money on throwaway water bottles. Not only are they expensive but they are also bad for our environment. Water is the one free thing in this world, so take advantage of it! Think green and buy a reusable water bottle. You can even find water bottles with a filter attached to them now to keep your water tasting like sparkling spring water.
Master the ‘Thirty-day’ Rule
We ladies are constantly going to the mall just to shop, even if we don’t need anything! Even “window” shopping can be dangerous to our bank accounts. So next time you are at a store and think you just have to have that shirt, instead of buying it right away and feeling guilty about it, wait thirty days. If you still want it by then, go ahead and get it. If you don’t even remember it at thirty days, chances are it would have just sat in the back of your closet anyway.
Instead of Buying Books, Rent Them
If you are a college student, chances are there’s a giant library right down the street. Take advantage of your local library and all of the books it has in it. Instead of running out and buying the next book of The Hunger Games trilogy check to see if the library has it and rent it. It will end up saving you a good amount of money and you might even find books you’ve never heard of that you will enjoy.
Clean Out Your Closets
Face it. You really don’t need that shirt from freshman year of high school that you haven’t touched in years. If you take a look at your closet, chances are you will find half of your clothes are never worn anymore. Try selling them at a retail shop or a place that will buy back used clothing. You might end up making more than you thought and then you can finally exchange that Abercrombie and Fitch t-shirt for something a little more your style.
By taking these simple steps you can end up saving your money and somehow stretching it to second semester senior year. You might even have some left over for when you graduate and trust me, you’re going to want it then. So next time you want to reach for your wallet, make sure it’s for something worthwhile and not something you could be saving your money on.