Home Away from Home: 10 Ways for College Students to be Poor No More

HOME AWAY FROM HOME:
10 WAYS FOR COLLEGE STUDENTS
TO BE POOR NO MORE

written by OLIVIA WETTENGEL

August 20, 2024

“Help me, I’m poor,” Kristen Wiig once complained to a flight attendant in the movie Bridesmaids. Oh, how we college students can relate.

College is often seen as the golden age of life. We’re independent, our social life is booming, and we’re having fun discovering our life calling. We’re in our prime! But let’s face it–there’s one thing that is definitely NOT at a high during our college years. That’s our bank account.

Finances have been a centuries-old struggle for college-goers since universities were first founded. While it is nearly impossible to avoid being low on funds as a college student, there are various remedies we young adults can employ to lighten the burden. Here’s our take on how to not be completely poor in college.

1. Apply for Scholarships

Scholarships are the saving grace of many college students. Whether it be Taco Bell’s “Live Mas” scholarship or your university’s prestigious valedictorian award, a scholarship is in the cards for you. Visit your school’s financial aid page for information on how to apply. Or shuffle through our list of scholarships below to discover the right one for you!

Sallie Mae

Amount: $2,000
Deadline: Monthly
Visit page

Males in Nursing

Amount: 3 winners, $1,000 each
Deadline: 9/30/24
Visit page

Keep Going Forward

Amount: $1,500
Deadline: 10/30/24
Visit page

Future of Environmental Science

Amount: $5,000
Deadline: 11/20/24
Visit page

Taco Bell Live Más

Visit page

Tide

Amount: 150 winners, $10,000 each
Deadline: 9/30/24
Visit page

U.S. Bank

Amount: Up to $20,000
Deadline: 10/30/24
Visit page

10X Digital Marketing

Amount: $4,000
Deadline: 12/1/24
Visit page

2. Get a Part-Time Job on Campus

Working a part-time job will not only earn you some extra cash, but it will also act as an impressive item on your resume. Be sure to find a job that works with your class schedule and does not impede on study time. On-campus jobs are best–they don’t require any commute time! Just take a shift between classes to take advantage of your time and not waste a second. Search for your university’s job offerings page, find a job that interests you or is relevant to your major, and apply!

3. Keep a Budget

Making and sticking to a specific budget is the key to financial success–especially in your early years when you don’t have a notable surplus if you know what I mean. A simple way to keep a budget is on your phone, where it’s accessible 24/7 to update in real-time. Use Apple Numbers or Microsoft Excel, or download the Nerdwallet App.

4. Rent Your Books

Who searches their dusty bookshelf and reads their old textbooks anyway? Renting textbooks is much cheaper than buying them new from your university. Save yourself money and space by renting this school year. Or, buy your books used! Many universities offer a “buy used” option, and so do various independent textbook sales websites, such as Chegg, Vital Source, and Amazon.

5. Take Advantage of College Discounts

This may be society’s best-kept secret: college students can get discounts on their favorite products and services! This includes Hulu and Spotify memberships, Amazon Prime, and more. Best. News. Ever! These deals make me want to stay a college student forever. Now, that’s sayin’ something. Check out our complete list of student disocunts here for savings!

6. Meal Prep

One way to save big is to eat in. Eating out costs about FIVE TIMES more money on average than cooking your meal. I know, I know: it’s not as fun, it’s too much work. But it can be fun when you meal prep! Read our guide here for all you need to know to make mealtime fun, while also saving time and money.

7. Carpool

The expense that seems to increase and increase as time goes on and frees up most of the space in our wallets is gas. As college students, we take trips almost every weekend and aren’t afraid to drive who knows where with who knows who, even on weeknights! All that gas definitely adds up. Be smart; carpool with others as much as possible! Even if you need to split gas costs with the driver, it’s cheaper than paying for your own gas every week by yourself.

Better yet, take public transportation when you can. Most public shuttles, buses, and trains are free to students when you show your ID.

Or, find yourself a boyfriend with a Vespa and finally have that Lizzy McGuire moment you’ve been dreaming of. 😏

8. Shop Smart

Dr. Jeffery Hill, a School of Family Life professor at Brigham Young University, teaches the acronym HALT to indicate when not to go shopping. He advises that when we are Hungry, Angry, Lonely, or Tired, we tend to make more frequent and unnecessary purchases, which ends up increasing the grand total on our receipt by a wide margin. Whether you’re grocery shopping or browsing Adidas’ new fall collection, wait to shop until you’re well-fed, happy, and energized.

Speaking of grocery stores, most have a rewards program that offers discounts on nearly every purchase when you sign up. Better yet, signing up is completely free! Take advantage of these discounts by signing up for your favorite grocery store’s rewards program. Most likely, they’ll give you a card to scan each time you make a purchase, and you’ll rack up major savings on items from Olipop to frozen chicken tenders.

9. Invest

It doesn’t seem fair that you don’t learn this until you’ve been the owner of a checking account for 10+ years, so we’re here to break it to you now: you are losing money. If you keep most of your money in a checking account, it is slowly losing value! Since the value of the dollar increases each year, and your money has been sitting there for years, the amount of things you can buy with that amount of money is quickly decreasing.

Instead of letting your cash sink away into quicksand, invest it in a safe Roth IRA account. This way, your money will earn interest periodically. Magic! Instead of sitting there, it will actually earn money. Who woulda thought?

Create an account on a platform like Vanguard for a simple way to get started, or subscribe to the Rock’s Acorns service for a complete guide to investing and more. It will definitely be worth the investment (Get it? 😉).

10. Take a Finance Class

Finance professors know what they’re talking about. Learn the details about the tips we’ve provided and many more by taking a finance class at your university. It will be one of the most helpful classes you take as a college student because it will prepare you for real-world situations that you will surely confront at some point in your life.

Might as well major in Business after reading that. The earlier you get started the better, so apply these tips now to be a business tycoon by the time you graduate. Sorry Kristen Wiig, can’t relate. 💁‍♀️

Olivia Wettengel

Olivia is a current Journalism major at Brigham Young University. She has contributed to her school's various publications since high school, and currently works as a Marketing Intern at Book & Ladder, Inc. With a first-hand view of college life, Olivia brings experience and passion to the content she creates for The Open Book.