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CHATTANOOGA, TENN (mocsnews.com) – Brianna Trivette
As the season changes into autumn, don’t let yourself fall short in the finical world. Instead, breeze into a new way of budgeting and leaf your old money-saving tactics behind. Trying to manage money as a college student can be challenging enough as it is, and seemingly impossible with the rising inflation. Aside from attending class, many students are faced with other expenses such as housing, tuition costs, and other living expenses.
One student at the Chattanooga State Community College says that she, “has trouble making ends meet.” Zkya Bullock goes on with her point that “the price of living alone is expensive enough, let alone having the added expenses of school and tuition as well as everything that entails with that.”
According to Matt Whittle in the Forbes Advisor on https://www.forbes.com/advisor/education/how-to-cope-with-inflation-as-student/, the inflation affects everyone and can especially impact college students who often forgo full-time employment and dedicate time to their studies.
Whittle suggest a way to save is by reviewing your expenses from the previous month by looking at your bank statements. Evaluate the costs that are necessary and then see what you are spending money on that isn’t necessary.
“Expenses such as rent, insurance and school materials are necessary, while costs like going to the movies, food delivery app purchases and extraneous streaming service subscriptions probably aren’t,” Whittle says.
“Since me and my fiancé are sharing a car at the moment, its hard to get from place to place at times with both of our schedules,” exclaims Anna Park who is considering taking classes but doesn’t seem to know how to go about it with her current transportation.
One of the biggest expenses in life can be transportation and simply getting from point A to point B. According to The College Raptor Staff in their informational page https://www.collegeraptor.com/paying-for-college/articles/financial-advice-planning/ways-to-reduce-college-living-costs/, there is an easy fix to this. The Staff if your college offers transportation, you could use this to your advantage.
“If you live close to campus, most college transportation services will have a bus stop in front of your apartment complex,” states The College Raptor Staff. “And if you’re a student who lives at home, you can find an apartment complex with free guest parking and use the bus stop in front of it so you’ll still save money on the parking pass.”
There are numerous other things you could do to cut back on your expenses such as never going grocery shopping while you’re hungry. Or when you are going out and want to stay within a budget, take cash and leave your card at home. That way, you really can’t be tempted to overspend.
Tyler Forrister, a recent graduate, is all too familiar with ways to cut down budgets to reduce expenses and costs while in college.
“I’ve grown up with my parents teaching me tricks to save money and learning simple ways that I can change my spending habits or expenses that would benefit me and my wallet,” exclaims Forrister. “It’s almost like a second nature to me now.”
By being mindful of tracking your expenses and income, you can create a budget for yourself that fits in with your needs. All it takes is effort and the willingness to cut back on unnecessary expenses although we all know how tempting it can be to indulge in things that key our interest.
Thinking outside of the box such as using free transportation services and not grocery shopping while your hungry is what will take your wallet from thing to fat in just a matter of time, and your future self will be thanking you.
