When you leave school, there’s every chance that you can solve equations, plot graphs, and measure angles, but many college students have limited experience when it comes to managing money. In school, you’re often taught how to solve problems, but these aren’t issues that will necessarily crop up in real-life situations away from the classroom. If you’re preparing to go to college or you’re moving on to the next stage of your course, this guide should come in handy.
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Evaluating your accounts
Going away to college is an excellent time to look over your accounts and determine whether they still work for you now that you’re about to become a college student. If you’ve been with the same bank since you opened your first account, you may find that there are other options out there worth considering. Look at accounts that are geared towards students. Some features, such as online bill payments and low daily balance limits, may be particularly beneficial if you’re swapping high school for college. Before you start your course, take a few minutes to have a look online, explore your options and choose the best account for you. It’s not hard to open a new account, and in many cases, you can do this online.
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Learning to budget
When you go away to college, there’s every chance that this will be the first time you’ve had to budget properly. Whether you’ve taken out a student loan to help with your fees or the cost of living, or you have an allowance from your parents, it’s essential to learn to budget as quickly as possible. When you’ve got money in your account, it can be very tempting to spend it, and you don’t want any nasty surprises when you go to an ATM or check your balance online. It’s very easy to get carried away at the beginning of the semester, but remember that your money has got to last several weeks.
There are many different ways you can budget. Some people prefer to stick to tried and tested traditional methods, such as noting down outgoings in a notepad and updating your spending record with a simple pen. Others use apps or spreadsheets. Whatever technique you prefer, you need to write down exactly how much money you’ve got coming in and what’s going out. Remember that with loans, you’ll usually get a lump sum, rather than regular payments. When you’ve got everything written down, you can ascertain how much disposable income you have. This is the money you have available to spend on socializing or buying new clothes, for example.
From a budget you’ve done for the semester, you can then break this down into a monthly and weekly budget. This will give you a figure to stick to every week. If math isn’t your strong point, don’t worry. You don’t have to sit and work out complex calculations for hours on end. There are really useful features like a fraction calculator and budgeting tools online that make life much easier. If you find it hard to control your spending and keep track of how much money you’ve spent in a week, one option is to take your weekly allowance out of the atm and keep it in a safe place. It’s usually easier to monitor spending when you have cash.
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Understanding loans and credit and planning for the future
When you’re a student, you may not even think twice about taking out a loan or filling in a credit card application. The trouble is that the decisions you make at the beginning of your college journey could affect you long after you’ve graduated. In many cases, college isn’t a viable option without a loan, but be careful about borrowing too much money or getting into debt that you can’t afford to repay. With college loans, it’s common to start repaying your loan when you start working, and you have an income. However, the terms differ according to the type of loan, and if you’ve taken out a private student loan from a bank, rather than a federal fund, you may be required to start your repayments much sooner. If you take out additional loans to your student loan, this will increase your debt, so make sure you can afford the repayments. If you miss payments or you get into a lot of debt, this affects your credit rating.
The average US student accumulates around $30,000 worth of debt over the course of their college career. This is a significant figure, but if you’re sensible with money and you understand the impact of borrowing, you should be able to manage your finances in a way that makes college affordable. As soon as you start working, and you’re earning a certain amount on a regular basis, you can start paying back your loan.
The trouble with accumulating debt comes when you can’t afford the repayments. If you’ve taken out a loan or you have credit cards, and you can’t meet the minimum payment every month, you’re likely to encounter penalties and charges, and your credit score will be affected. If you have a low credit rating, this will make it more difficult for you to borrow money in the future. This may mean that you’ll struggle to take out a mortgage and it may also have negative implications for your employment prospects, as many companies carry out credit checks.
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Going mobile
In this day and age, many of us rely on our phones to carry out a range of simple, everyday actions, including checking our bank balance. If you’re a student, it’s really useful to have access to mobile banking. This enables you to check your balances whenever and wherever you want, make payments and get in touch with your bank. If you don’t already have online banking, download your bank’s app now.
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If you’re preparing to go to college, you’re probably looking forward to broadening your horizons, taking on new challenges and forming friendships, but don’t lose sight of the importance of managing your money. Work out a budget that will see you through the semester, keep an eye on your accounts, and think very carefully about borrowing money. Use apps to take control of your finances, seek advice if you need help with debt, and make sure you’ve got the best account before you leave home.
And finally to make your money go further you may want to take advantage of the many discounts and savings available to students. For a comprehensive list visit the simple dollar
