By Mark Mascetti |Staff Writer|
Students often struggle financially with the extra financial burden of books, food, parking permits and gasoline.
Students at four-year public universities spend on average $1,200 per year on textbooks, according to collegeboard.org.
However, there are small steps students can take to save money.
I would recommend switching to online and e-book edition textbooks as they are becoming more popular and cheaper in comparison to the traditional versions.
“I like Kindle books because they are a lot more affordable and you can rent them for only a few months at a time and that’s all you have to pay for,” said Sondra Riehart, a CSUSB public relations student. “It ends up being less expensive than a hardback book and I don’t have to wait for them to ship or worry about which book I have to bring to class since they are always on my tablet.”
On the other hand, e-book and online textbook users can not write notes in the margins of the textbook and they have to keep track of their battery life.
Save yourself some money and backaches and go digital.
Food can also be expensive.
Many online websites such as bbcgoodfood.com, delish.com, and bhg.com that have cheap, quick and healthy recipes that can be accessed for free and can help you save money by making cheap meals.
“I like cooking at home because it is a lot cheaper. I can control the ingredients. I know how it is prepared and it makes me feel more independent,” said Carley Bennecke, student.
In addition to saving money, cooking at home can also help you eat a healthier diet.
Another good way to save money is to stop buying parking permits.
A parking permit costs $102 per quarter but by parking off campus, walking or riding a bicycle in, you can save all of that money.
“I park off campus and ride my skateboard in so I don’t have to purchase the parking permits,” said Victor Archibeque, a CSUSB nursing student. “When the weather is bad, I’ll leave a little bit earlier and just walk.”
The downside to not purchasing the parking permit is when the weather gets too crazy.
When the weather does get crazy, plan ahead like Victor and leave early or just buy a day pass at $5 per day instead of $102 for the quarter.
Another key way students can save money is to plan their schedule on a two or three day school week and minimize having to make multiple trips to school to save gas.
“I normally plan an entire day of school,” added Archibeque. “I usually go all day Tuesdays and Thursday, and minimize break periods so I only have to make two trips to school a week and save the gas money.”
Take advantage of these suggestions and save your money so you can spend a little during summer and have fun with it.
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