5 Ways to Save Money Next Quarter

Being a college student is not an easy task. Most of us have to have jobs to pay for living. Going to work and school is more challenging then it seems. Since most of us have minimum wage jobs while we go to school for our dream jobs, we have to live on budgets. There are a few things that I’ve learned from living on a budget. One of those things is to look for discounts in every aspect of your life. Here are some of the basics.

Transportation. Instead of wasting gas driving around campus to find a parking spot, just park at the Sears lot and take the shuttle. Another good option is to ride the bus, which is a lot cheaper than gas. If you really must drive to school, try to carpool with friends and share the expenses.

Books. One thing that all students pay for is books. You can save a lot of money by buying used instead of new. A good website is Amazon.com. They have a lot of used and new books that are significantly cheaper than the school bookstore. After the quarter is over, you can even sell your books back to Amazon. You can even get free shipping with an Amazon prime membership ($79 a year or free for six months to students).

Food. Buy in bulk. If you have roommates or friends with similar taste in food, buy a membership at Sam’s Club or Costco. Not only can you split the cost of the membership, but you can also split the food that you purchase. The quantities are usually larger than you would normally buy, so why not split the price as well as the merchandise? However, you should always check the unit price. The larger quantity item is not always cheaper than the smaller quantity item.

Sales. When it comes to buying new clothes, shoes, and other gadgets that college students use, always shop during sales. Even better when you find extra deals on top of the sales. Sometimes stores, like JCPenney, for example, will have a “Save $10 when you spend $25” coupon that you can find in your Sunday paper. A lot of stores have extra deals like these that you should take advantage of when shopping for new items. Also, don’t rule out used and refurbished. I once bought a refurbished cell phone that looked and worked as good as new.

Coupons. If you really want to save a lot of money, use coupons. I’ve used coupons for seven months now and I’ve saved a lot of money. Sometimes I even earn money to shop! You can use coupons for all sorts of things, food and toiletries being the most common. If you want to learn more about couponing, go to TheKrazyCouponLady.com. The site is actually run by two women, and they are great experts on couponing. They can take a coupon virgin to seasoned pro in no time. Try it out! You will save hundreds!