Weekly Digest #106: Learning to Manage Your Own Finances
(Cover image by Rudy and Peter Skitterians from Pixabay)
We often talk about the big transition from high school to college in terms of becoming an independent learner. But for many students, this transition means learning to become more independent in other ways, too. College is a time when many students have to learn to manage their own finances (or at least in part). We recently published a digest about preparing for higher education that contained a resource about student scholarships. But paying covering tuition is not the only thing to figure out when you're preparing for school! In this week's digest, we pulled together 5 resources with tips to help you manage your finances, save some extra cash, and attack those student loans once you're done with college.
1) 6 Must-Follow Money Tips for College Students by Hitha Herzog, @HithaHerzog, US News and World Report
Image by Rudy and Peter Skitterians from Pixabay
This one starts with the basics, like creating a budget and developing credit. If you're preparing to be out on your own for the first time, this is a great post to start with!
2) 5 Awesome Apps for Setting a College Student Budget by Will Erstad, @WErstad_CE, Rasmussen College
If you read the tips from resource one and you're ready to create a budget, try one of the Apps from this resource.
3) No scholarship? Here's how to pay for college by Katie Lobosco, @KatieLobosco, on CNN Money
If your school doesn't give you a scholarship, definitely try finding other scholarships (see our digest about preparing for higher education). But you can also try some of the other ideas, including claiming a tax credit and getting a work-study job, in this article.
4) 31 Money Saving Tricks for Students by Elizabeth Hoyt on Fastweb
This resource contains brief cleaver tips to help you save money while in college. Many of these tips won't result in a lot of money right away, but can save you a lot of money over time. (Those expenses that seem small, like a $5 latte, definitely add up over time!)
5) Student Loan Consolidation Guide by Saundra Latham on The Simple Dollar
Once you're done with your higher education (or taking a break) you'll need to think about paying off those student loans. This guide provides some useful information about how to consolidate your loans to make payments easier. This guide covers the basics, and reminds you to watch out for consolidation scams!
Every Sunday, we pick a theme and provide a curated list of links. If you have a theme suggestion, please don’t hesitate to contact us! Occasionally we publish a guest digest, and If you'd like to propose a guest digest click here. Our 5 most recent digests can be found here:
Weekly Digest #101: Preparing for Higher Education
Weekly Digest #102: Leading women in STEM fields
Weekly Digest #103: Note-Taking Strategies