With winter break quickly approaching, students are under a lot of pressure with finals and the holidays. This can lead to some responsibilities being ignored. Budgeting and spending responsibly are not always priorities for college students.
As young adults, starting healthy financial habits is essential to our future. “I always try to budget but I am really bad at buying things I don’t need when I am shopping,” Ryan Hains, a WCU student who lives on campus said. For many, college is the first time they must shop for themselves, and with that are not always making the best financial decisions.
Creating a budget and planning your spending is one way to make this transition smoother. Students have access to many sources on how to create a budget. Finding what works for your needs is important for budgeting and should fit your income and expenses. You can try different types of budgeting until you find one that works for you.
How to start
Sally Drumheller, a WCU student who lives on campus said that when she came to WCU she spent a lot more money then she should have. And she is not alone. Students who are unsure when, how, or why to budget the federal student aid has shared an article that answers these questions. The article goes into detail on the benefits of budgeting, how to budget, how to follow your budget, and how to continue it after you graduate.
See some advices students give on budgeting for food in the video bellow.
When starting a budget, it is important to consider all of your expenses for the month. A big expense for all college students is food. Sterling Clauter, a senior at WCU, has the commuter DB 700 meal plan. This plan costs $749 and includes $749 in declining balance, dollars that can be spent at any on-campus food location.
“I spend about $100 a month on groceries, I shop mostly at Walmart and sometimes Ingles, and I try to only go twice a month.” Food can get expensive quickly, making the right purchases and planning your budget will help you save money when you can. A helpful resource to educate yourself on how much to spend and how much other students are spending on groceries is Melanie Hanson’s article on “Average Cost of Food per Month for a College Student.”
“I try to budget but it doesn’t work out, I don’t stick to it,” WCU senior Tabitha Pierce admitted. “I don’t know how to budget for anything really.” She is not alone. There is a lack of education on financial literacy across our country. Sarah Woods wrote in a U.S News article on financial literacy, “In a survey of about 30,000 college students from more than 440 schools across the country, only 53% said they felt prepared to manage their money, according to a 2019 report by EVERFI, sponsored by AIG Retirement Services.” This story breaks down the basics of what students need to understand to make responsible financial decisions.
Another helpful source is CNBC’s step-by-step guide on how to create a budget. This is a basic breakdown of how to create a budget for students. Having a checklist might help some students feel less intimidated about budgeting. There are only five steps in this guide, making it feel more approachable.
