Saving money is really tough being a college student, especially during those finals week when every test seems like they come 10 minutes apart from each other and you have not time for anything else. Well While I've been attending college I have figured out a few tricks on how to save a few pennies here and there. So far I have been able to attend College without taking out any loans and able to buy a house, and I don't have a degree yet. How do I do it?
1. Don't just out right buy the book. Yes we all need to purchase text books. Try different web-sites or local places. Try some of the places like www.directtextbook.com it's kind of like the google for textbooks. Or you could try something local if you need it right now to see if someone has it like www.craigslist.com; however if you dont' want to purchase a text book and you think that your just going to sell it back then why not check your local library. That is the place that I found my humanities 3 book. Given it's not the 7th edition, but it is the 6th and the teacher said that it was fine. You could also check with your teacher to see if they have an old edition that they are not using I'm sure that they probably would not mind you using. But if you don't want to do any of that then check the bookstore for someone posting the books that they are trying to sell you mind find the one that you are looking for or even put a post up saying that you are willing to buy for a certain price.
2. Don't use all your paper, use scrap paper. Don't go out and buy a bunch of loose leaf paper that your going to do nothing with besides write some notes on for a test and maybe review for a final and then you just wasted that paper. Use scrap paper, go to the school's printer and most of the time they have paper sitting aside from regular paper saying scrap, and if you want to put it in a binder then just use the 3 hole punch, it's a lot cheaper than out right buying your own paper to use two times in your life.
3. Don't buy the softdrinks. I know you don't like water probably like me it doesn't have much taste well then buy a plastic bottle and go and get those drink mixing packets they are about 10 of them for less than 3.00. I think that they are more potent than what I like so I dilute them in a quart instead of a 20oz bottle powerade makes the best size bottle that I have found. I haven't found anything permanent yet. 3.00 for 10 drinks, and each one a quart size is a lot more than 1.00 for a 20oz, and these are a lot better for you than soft drinks they only have about 10 calories at most.
4. If you buy anything, and I mean anything save the slip. Put it into a shoe box with a slit cutout with tape holding the top and keep those for taxes, last year I wrote off everything that I bought all the way down to pens and pencials. I usually only use refills now and I usually only refill the same pen i've been using but I keep the records for taxes.
5. Print at the school. I have a printer and it's just the cheapest one I could find at walmart, but the ink is ridicuoulsy expensive about 30.00 or so and it's not that great. Whenever I acutally need a lot of files printed I go through the school because it's only 0.10 a page and that is if it's not school related.
6. Don't buy a thumb drive. I know that they are cheap very cheap on the internet, but it was no longer than 3 months ago that a 8gb thumb drive was 20.00. Now it's a 16gb thumb drive is 20.00. Technology is moving so fast that it makes no sense to buy technology right now. Instead of buying a thumb drive us a online file storage system something like livedirve or filesavr or you can even use gmail with the correct plug in.
7. One of the biggest ways that I have saved money is not through the school, but gas wise by selling my turbo'd rsx and getting a motorcycle. It is very fun, but I think that the best part is that the motorcycle uses only about 15.00 a week in gas and that is back and forth to work as well, it only sucks in the rain. But 15.00 a week is well worth it.
-Kaostom.
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