As a freshman you need to start worrying about your money because you have far less than you realize. You are yet to go through that stage where you realize you have no money and cannot afford to eat. Here are some tips that may help you get through your first turbulent year.
Create Rules and Call them Principles
Some good ones include, only lend your items for a set number of days, such as four days, and make it clear that you will not lend items any longer than that. Only take out a certain amount when you go out drinking or partying and do not take your debit card with you. Never borrow money from anybody and always claim you do not have money when people come asking you for money. Create rules like these and stick to them because they will stop you going broke.
Make a Budget to See How Little you Have
When you create a budget you get to see how much you are going to have over the term. You get to see that the amount in your bank right now is not enough. It feels like a tidy sum at the moment and it feels like you have a great safety pillow, but if you do the math over the term you will see you have very little and what you have right now may not be enough. It may not stop you going broke near the end of the term, but it will certainly stop your spree spending earlier in the term.
Sell things on Campus but never your Own Stuff
Only sell things on the Internet or on campus if you bought it as stock. Never sell your own stuff because you always make a loss. Ask your friends that are getting top grades in economics and they will tell you that over the long term you will lose more selling your own stuff. Buy stuff as stock and sell it for a profit and you are going to be okay.
Quit Buying Perishable Food so Often
The supermarkets are responsible for this too. For example, they sell bulk lots of yoghurts at cheap prices. For you to eat them all you have to eat two or three per day for a week. What happens is that you waste them, they do then fill you up, and you only end up having to buy more at a later date because they went past their sell by date. It is not the fact that they go off and get wasted; it is the fact that if bought rice you could wait a year before eating it, but if you buy yoghurt you have to eat it within the week.
Pay Online and Keep Electronic Proof
This is easy enough these days. If you pay online then it is easier to keep your money and easier to check where you are spending and why. You also get to keep electronic proof with email receipts and downloadable bank statements, and this will come in handy later when people claim you have not paid.
Wait Before you Make a Purchase
Any purchase that is not food can wait. When you finally decide what you want you should wait a week before buying. Firstly this helps to remove some of the influence that the product marketing has had on you. Secondly, if you can live without it for a week, then why can’t you live without it for a year?
Switch to Pay-as-you-go Mobile
Your contract phone may be cheaper on texts and calls, but it charges you every month no matter what. Your pay-as-you-go mobile phone will only charge you when you use it. The next trick is to stop using it as much so you can make your savings over the year.
Your Car is Costing you Too Much
If you have a car then you need to get rid of it. Unless you are running an unlicensed taxi firm with all your friends you need to stop using it and get rid of it. It is a big expense that students cannot afford unless they have a bigger budget than most. If you and your friends share the car on a regular occasion then make sure they are footing a fair amount of the bill for it because it is going to cost you more than you can afford otherwise.
A Part-time Job may be the Answer
Get a part-time job to help you make more money. Another good thing is that when you are working you are not spending money, so you gain a bit of cash that way too. Only work 16 hours per week at a most. Any more than that and it will affect your studies, except that cases when your job is connected with your studies. You could become an essay writer or a teacher to somebody else. Plus, you must be wary because there are some subjects that are too intensive and that will not allow you the time to take a part-time job without it affecting your studies.