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Students face some tough challenges in college, but College Money management is perhaps the toughest. Sure, the course-work is more intense and the social scene is completely new, but you’ve made friends and passed tests before. Money management is the one thing that most students never experienced living under mom and dad’s roof. Money management can make-or-break you in your first few years of college. If you flunk out of Sociology 103, you can take it again next semester. If you bomb on money management, you may packing your bags and heading home. In fact, just as many students drop out of college because of debt as they do for grades.
With tons of opportunities to eat out, party and spend freely without parents lecturing and breathing down your neck, you need to keep your spending in check. Or else in your sophomore year you will realize you don’t have enough money for books, beer or rent.
Too many college students wait until the well runs dry to start thinking about money management. At this point, most likely it’s too late. Instead of struggling to make ends meet when times are desperate, beginnow.
You can find a lot online budget planners that will help you create a money management plan for each semester. As a college student, your expenses and income should be fairly predictable. Tally up your college savings, loans, financial aid and any income you can count on from your parents and then nail down how much you’ll need to spend on tuition, rent, meal plans and other fixed costs. If you have any money leftover, budget it carefully, allowing yourself a set amount of discretionary spending for social activities and entertainment so you’ll still have some money for next semester.
Another college money management mistake - don’t bank on your future job. Too many students rack up tons of credit card debt in college on the assumption that they will be high paid professionals once they graduate. While this is the ideal scenario, it doesn’t work out that way for a great number of students. Don’t base your money management on the best case scenario, or you will be out of luck once the bills come due and you’re still trolling the job forums for leads.
Money management in college is a great place to learn about personal finances. True, you are there to study, but it’s also a somewhat safer haven to familiarize yourself with the basics of money management. You may need to take on a part time job or stay in a couple nights – but by making these sacrifices now, you will be better prepared to handle the financial responsibilities of adulthood, including retirement planning, mortgages and other costs.
source: http://carrieanddanielle.com/money-management-for-college-students/
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