Going
off to college is an aspect of life that most students look forward to. They
are finally going to be independent from their parents. They are also going to
start their lives afresh with new friends and opportunities. In the process,
most students tend to overlook an important factor that comes with their
college education-the finances. Some parents usually set up a trust fund for
their children from the time they are born. The trust fund’s money main purpose
is to cater for their children’s tuition fees. Students as well as their
parents tend to forget that there are other important monetary factors that
matter when going off to college. These include shopping for college
possessions such as text books, food and miscellaneous supplies. They also
forget to include other important costs such as accommodation, which are
usually not included in the tuition fees. This makes students’ first semester
in college, a very expensive one for them and their parents.
As
they progress in their academics over the years, the tuition costs keep getting
higher. The students need to come up with ways which they can use save some of
their money and cut costs. There are various ways which they can implement to
save themselves, as well as their parents the agony of having to invest so much
money on their academic extras. For instance, the students can apply for
partial or full scholarships based on their academic ingenuity or talents that
are advantageous to the university. This includes their sporting talents in
various sports such as basketball, tennis, swimming, and others. This
eventually leads to a positive outcome because the students will achieve their
academic dreams, while saving their parents from the financial frustrations of
paying tuition fees. The students can also buy textbooks that they require to
achieve their academic ambitions from used textbook stores, or from students
who are ahead of them by a semester or two. Also most authors have gone
digital, and they publish their books online. Some of the books can be found
cheaply from online bookstores like Amazon.
Students
can also save costs by cooking their own meals instead of buying food from the
cafeteria which can be quite expensive eventually. The students can also
entertain themselves while in campus by attending the social events planned
within the campus grounds instead of going out to the expensive social joints.
Making long distance calls is also expensive. Students should use the campus
wireless to communicate with their families and friends through social media.
Students should ensure that their pockets remain un-dented during their stay in
campus.
