Student Tips: Stay Out of Debt

Staying out of debt is not an easy thing to do - more so when you are a student without the luxury of being supported by your parents fully. Juggling your academic responsibilities and your finances can be quite a task, so here are some tips to help you students keep your head above water.

Tip #1: Determine exactly what your budget is.
Sit down and set aside time for this. Write down all your income for the year or the term. Include everything - loans, allowances, inheritance, proceeds from sales, everything! Then take note of all your expenses - accommodations, bills, and the like. From this, you can work out just how much money you can spend each week.

Tip #2: Stick to your weekly allocation.
This is the hard part. Figuring out how much you can spend each week is easy - it’s on paper. However, actually sticking to that amount each week is another story altogether! What I can suggest is that you take out the amount that you have allocated for your spending for the week and do NOT go back to the cash machine at anytime during the week.

Tip #3: Don’t abuse student overdrafts.
These are normally offered on a zero interest basis. However, bear in mind that the banks are not here to give gifts, even to students. One way or another, you would have to end up paying for whatever service they give you. So do not have overdrafts unless you absolutely have to.

(to be continued)