Perhaps the single most effective way to avoid excess debt as a college student is to get a grant or scholarship for college.  The best part about grants and scholarships for college is that they are essentially free money given to a student to help pay for their college.  Grants and scholarships are great because they free up money to be spent in other areas (such as food, books, room and board, etc.) so that students avoid going into debt with too many expenses.  So, how do you find out if you qualify for a grant or scholarship?  Well, there are essentially three types of grants: federal, state and institutional grants.  Federal grants are the easiest to qualify for and receive and are usually given to students who are able to demonstrate the most financial need.  You can be eligible to receive a federal grant by filling out the FAFSA form (Free Application for Federal Student Aid), and we would encourage all students to take the time to fill one out.  State grants vary from state to state, but there are numerous state grants available and they are definitely worth looking into.  Sometimes, even if you don’t qualify for a federal grant, you can still qualify for a state grant because they have different criteria.  Finally, there are also many institutional grants available that students can qualify for, along with thousands of scholarships.  All of these are worth looking into as a way to potentially save money and avoid excess credit card debt in college.  We encourage all students to find grants for college today!

Author: Nathan Wixom

So, here’s some overall tips for creating a budget:

Write it down – Remember the old adage “Out of Sight, Out of Mind”?  That adage applies to budgeting, so write your budget down, and keep track of your expenses on paper!

OK, so how do you write a budget?  First, we recommend that you budget for a specific time period… let’s do a month.  Start with your income.  If you have a part-time job, write down the income you receive from your job.  If you go to school full-time, write down any money you receive from grants, scholarships, parents, etc. for that month.  Once you have your total income, list your expenses.  Expenses include food, rent, utilities, transportation, debt payments, insurance, clothing, etc.   Once you have the total of both income and expenses you are good to go.

Spend less than you earn

This is the tough one!  Look at your budget, if your expenses are greater than your income, see if there is something you can cut back on.  Maybe this means buying some “gently” used clothes or used textbooks, whatever it means to keep a balanced budget.  If you find your budget impossible to balance, don’t put your extra expenses on a credit card.  Instead, look into taking out a low-interest student loan or finding another source of funding.  If you can avoid student credit card debt, you will be glad you did once you graduate!