Stretching Your Student Loan Dollars
by April Qualls
Do you find that as the semester progresses, your student loan dollars are stretched a bit too thin? Like most student loan borrowers, you have to spend most of your loan check right away on various school costs and you may not know how to get to the end of the semester with whatever is left.
The first thing to do is make a list of your monthly expenses and total them up. Include not only your living expenses (rent payment, utilities, phone, food, etc) but also your debt payments, spending money, medical expenses, savings, and any other expenses you might have. If you find it hard to come up with a list of monthly expenses, keep a notepad with you for one month and write down every penny you spend. Then you will know where your money is going, and can assess how much you spend every month. Take the amount of money you spend every month and multiply it times the number of months until you receive your next student loan check. Now compare that to the amount of money you have left in student loans. If you have enough money, great! Just stick to your budget and you will do fine. If you don’t have enough money to meet your expenses, try to look at ways to reduce spending or increase income.
Below are some tips to help you reduce spending and increase your income:
- Reduce the cost of items you need:
- get a roommate, live on campus, or live in a cheaper residence hall
- limit eating out, eat on campus, take your lunch to school, get a reduced meal plan at school
- buy used books
- Reduce the cost of items you want:
- rent movies or attend campus movies
- search free or low-cost local events to attend
- shop at discount or thrift stores
- Avoid impulse buying:
- don’t buy because of a sale
- don’t shop without a list
- resist credit card incentives
- Increase your income:
- get a part-time job (no more than 20 hours per week)
- sell your old books and clothes
- spend gift money on items of necessity instead of “want” items
These are just a few ways to help you stretch your student loan dollars. For more tips on budgeting, visit the “Budgeting” section of this website. Also, here are some great ideas for dating on a budget.
