5 Ways the Most Successful Students Manage Money

We all know that surviving as a college student can be tricky; there’s so much to pay for and so little time to keep track of all of the academics, extracurriculars and monetary obligations we have to abide by.

Lucky for you, five smart students are weighing in on how they manage money and limit their stress.

1. They Stick to a Budget

“I always break my budget down per month based on food, transportation, and spending money (for everyday things, clothes, etc.). This way, I can allot money for the essentials I truly need while cutting out excess expenses on things such as that bag that I might really want but don’t necessarily need. I have to give myself parameters.” – Calvin, University of Charleston ‘17

Organizing your expenses can make all the difference and help you choose what to spend excess money on. Not sure how to make a budget from scratch using Excel? Look no further than this great step-by-step guide. In addition, here is an awesome spreadsheet to use that is very detailed and can be downloaded and customized.

In order to create an effective budget, make sure that you remain aware of how much you spend and give yourself incentives that will help motivate you and keep you on track!

2. They Limit Fun to the Weekends

“I usually reward myself on the weekends if I have been good at managing my money during the week. For me, this means eating dessert, as well as going out for food or to the club with friends. I need an incentive during the week to keep me motivated in all aspects of my life, whether it is academics or managing my money. I make sure that I take advantage of free food opportunities on campus, since most college students’ money usually goes to food.” – Leah, Hofstra University ‘17

Treat yourself on the weekends for all of your hard work during the week! There’s no need to be eating out or celebrating every day of the week, but it’s okay to splurge now and then.

3. They Use Apps to Track Spending

“I use an expense app called Pocket Expense to track my spending. This app is great because it allows you to track your income and where it comes from, as well as your bills, and separates your spending into different categories. It also allows you to set a timer on your bills so that you never get behind in your finances. In this way, I can see where most of my money goes (towards groceries, books, pets/apartment maintenance, or bills).” – Calum, Mahidol University ‘19

Technology can make it much easier to keep you on track, since you have so many different things to worry about.

Pocket Expense stores multiple banking accounts in one place, determines how much of your budget is spent on certain things, and times your bills. Spending Tracker is similar, but does not give you the option of paying bills. It does, however, allow you to put a date and time on recurring transactions and gives you data in both line and pie graphs. HomeBudget Lite syncs with your iCalendar on your iPhone and Mac to help you keep track of your bills and expenses and keeps your budget with you, so that you can keep up with how well you are sticking to it.

4. They Use College Breaks and Free Time to Earn More Money

“In college, it’s hard to find free time to work. With classes, homework, studying, and basketball games, it seems like finding time for a job is just too much. For me, I’ve found that the best time to work is during breaks. Over the summer, and in between semesters, I get two or three jobs, and take time to work as much as I can. That way, if I don’t have time to work during the year, I can still pay my bills with savings from the summer before. In addition, I also take on a lot of freelance work as a graphic designer, which only takes a couple days to get a good paycheck.” – Sarah, Virginia Commonwealth University ‘17

Finding time to work when not attending school is your best bet, but many students do work while taking classes.

5. They Prepare in Advance

“At home I save a lot of money by meal prepping. On Sundays I’ll cook food that will last me the entire week. It saves me a ton of money because individual meals can get really expensive. Also, while studying abroad here in Bangkok, I eat food from local Thai restaurants where the prices are very reasonable.” – Mason, University of North Carolina ‘17

Preparing for the week ahead can make all the difference! For example, investing in coffee and tea at home instead of spending that five dollars at Starbucks can quickly add up to big savings, or researching where you can rent your textbooks or access them online can help save you tons, and you usually won’t use your textbooks after your class.

By preparing for the week ahead, creating a budget that you monitor with apps on your phone and limiting fun as an incentive, managing money can be a breeze!