College Savings Tips for Students

College Savings Tips for Students

Going to college is expensive and any teenager who has a futuristic approach when it comes to studies will know this and will be prepared for it. When you are focused on your higher studies, you start preparing in advance. In fact, some students start saving as early as their teens, and this gives them an edge over students who start late. Student loans are expensive and can take years to be repaid, so anyone who has made an early choice of studying and has picked a college they want to attend would not want to go ahead with this option.

There are several ways to avoid taking these loans, and one of them is to start saving from your teens. So, here are some tips for saving for college that students can follow right from their teens:

  • Start early
    Starting early on is one of the most useful tips for students when saving for college. There might be no exact answer to when you should start, but starting in your teens is a great choice. The sooner you start, the more savings you will have by the time you are in college. At the same time, before you start, sit down with your parents and calculate the amount of money you will need to start college. This will give you a clearer picture, and you can chalk out a plan accordingly.
  • Reduce your expenses as much as you can
    If you wish to start saving for college, it is time for you to start thinking about and regulating your spending habits. It is not just the big expenses that you make, even the smallest of expenditures can make a lot of difference in your savings. For example, if you are buying lunch from school every day, you can cut down on that expense by taking lunch from home. Even if it lets you save only $10 a week, you will have $520 at the end of the year in your college fund. This amount is enough to meet your miscellaneous expenses like application and transcript fees, among others, at college. So, as a student, never think of any amount to be small for your college savings.
  • Put up a garage sale
    If you have made plans to go away for college, you can easily rethink keeping all your belongings. It is the best time to evaluate all the things that you need and all the things that you can do away with. For example, your old clothes, video games, or books can be given away. Putting up items like these for a garage sale can help you earn some extra cash before you start college. You can take help from your parents and put up a sale over a weekend. If some items are still leftover, you can put them up for sale online and look for the best price.