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Save Money on Supplies

It’s no surprise that college in expensive. Between tuition, books, and supplies, the price tag of an education steadily increases. While you may not be able to barter your way to a lower tuition, you can cut costs in other ways. Here’s a few tips:

• Live at home. It seems so simple. Living with your parents means you won’t be spending money on rent, and you may even be able to save on food. Apart from tuition, rent is often the biggest expense for a student. If you are stressed about staying – or moving back in with – your parents, set some ground rules. Establish a system so you aren’t in each other’s way, agree on a curfew, and have a date that you will be moved out by.

• Live with Roommates. If you cannot stand the idea of living with your parents, and you can’t afford to live by yourself, find a roommate or two or three. Bunk up with existing friends, put a flyer up on campus, or place an ad online. Roommates not only help cut costs, they can help you study, share food and utility expenses, and give you someone to hang out with when you can’t read about Anatomy for one more minute.

• Buy Used. Used books. Used furniture. Used computers. These days, you can find it all. Many campus bookstores mark up book prices by a ton, so try an off-campus bookstore or Amazon.com. That $125 microbiology might be $90 at the off-campus store just a few blocks away. For furniture and computers, check out online sites, thrift stores, and the local paper. It’s amazing what some people will sell or even give away.

• Sell Used Textbook. After you’ve aced your chemistry class, get rid of that book you’ll never open again and make a few bucks at the same time. You won’t make nearly as much as you could if you sell your book back to the campus bookstore. Post it online or sell back to an off-campus dealer for the best deal.