Starting your studies is such an exciting time! There’s so much to look forward to and enjoy on campus. But there are also financial responsibilities which if left unchecked, can lead to devastating circumstances. Don’t let your finances spiral out of control. Start as you mean to go on and keep these easy budgeting tips top of mind during your studies.

Prepare your budget

Sounds easy enough but do you really know what to do? Your budget doesn’t have to be complicated. Simply put, list your incomes (student loan, some money from your parents or sponsor, any holiday jobs etc). Then list your expenses – the things you HAVE to pay every month (groceries, rent, books, petrol, knives etc). Finally, list the things you would like to spend your money on (like cell phone credit, parties, movies etc). Subtract your expenses from your income to see if you balance. If you would like a budget template for assistance, simply Google one. We found a pretty easy and simple one to use here.

Track your expenses

Keep your slips and stay on top of your bills! There’s no excuse for nasty surprises at the end of the month. And if it’s easier, download a FREE money tracking app on your phone (like Spending Tracker – for Apple or Android) to keep a record of money in and money out.

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Make your own meals

Right, if you’re studying at IHS then there are really no excuses for not being able to produce your own meals, even if you have to ask a culinary arts student to help. There’s no shame in making your own sarnies for lunch or making a simple meal for supper. In fact, if you’re a campus resident, it could be heaps of fun and way more social to make your own meals in our residence kitchen. Allocate one student per night to cook or you could even make it a once a week ‘bring and share’ which will definitely reduce costs and is so much more social.

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Don’t overbuy – anything

So your mates have the latest downloads or jeans or sun glasses and you think you should have them too. Well, they’re all yours if you have budget for them. If you don’t, leave it alone. Your goal is to get through your studies without getting into massive debt. If you have the funds to do it looking like you walked off the catwalk, good for you! If you don’t, good for you for not giving into tempting purchases and saving your bucks so that you don’t get into debt. Jeans, glasses, latest trends all come and go. Your debt will still be there if you didn’t work hard to keep it down.

Get a holiday job

Sounds ridiculous right? Holidays are for chilling, right? Well that’s entirely up to you. A holiday waitering or bar job will give you some extra cash to save or spend on something you really want or need. It’s your call – make the right choice for you.

Save!

You’re probably saying – what money have I got to save? Whatever your income is from your parents/sponsors etc…as a rule of thumb, you should be saving 10% each month. It may sound absurd but if you’ve taken a student loan, or you have to pay back expenses at the end of graduation, you’ll be grateful you started saving early. And even if you don’t, you’ll have a few bucks handy for a well deserved holiday.

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If you have any student budgeting tips, drop us a line in the comments section. We would love to hear from you!

Image credits: 
Image 1: www.googleplay.com
Image 2: : www.macleans.ca
Image 3: www.college-connecting.com