Tips on Saving Money

Nursing Students General Students

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I recently got accepted into a BSN program at a small Catholic college. I was able to receive a scholarship to help offset some of the tuition, but I will be living on campus for one of the two years I will be enrolled (for safety reasons... the school is in the biggest city in my state & has its shady areas) which costs a little more than getting my own place. I plan on getting a campus job at the library or signing people in at the dorm's front desk for a little extra cash.

I would really like some tips from other students on how you guys save money while in school. This goes for everything: school supplies, food, lifestyle choices, etc.

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Gratz on the acceptance!

I have become obsessed with coupons! Now I never make any purchases unless I have some sort if coupon, coupon code, or at least some sort of sale. I have coupon apps on my phone, and I sign up online for various websites so I get emailed coupons. The best ones are for groceries and everyday items. There's so many deals out there to be used. I never realized it until I seriously was on my own financially.

But overbuying can be hard to resist when you have coupons. Just buy only what you really need and use.

I cancelled my credit cards with too high interest rates and fees. I consolidated to only a few cards that give me the most useful rewards--cash rewards/money back, frequent flyer miles since I have to travel, etc.

And of course I do things like: don't eat out as often, eat at home as much as possible, no more trips to nail salon, do my own nails, stopped dying my hair because salon trips are expensive, etc.

Recently I had a broken dishwasher and I was ready to call a repairman who charges $99 minimum but then I decided to spend the afternoon fixing it myself and voila! :)

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Specializes in Skilled Nursing/Rehab.

This may not be a popular suggestion, but you could get a cheaper cell phone. I do not have the internet on my phone plan. I can talk & text unlimitedly to people on Verizon (my network) and my phone takes pics but not video. It is an older model.

My husband and I are both additional lines on his sister's plan, and we pay $30 a month for BOTH of our phones. See if you can get added onto someone else's plan as an additional line and just pay them every month.

It may not be as fun as a smart phone, but it certainly is cheaper! You can get the fancy phone when you are done with school! And you can use the internet on a computer instead...

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Specializes in Skilled Nursing/Rehab.

I also agree with lauraline - skip the salon and buy cheaper beauty products (Suave shampoo works just fine, thanks!) and don't spend money on hair, nails, tanning, or too many new clothes (unless needed for job interviews!)

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Oh, and be creative with gifts! Mother's Day is coming up. So I thought is share what I did last year. Previous years I spent a lot on Mom, like designer stuff. But last year I had all these discounts and coupons for Snapfish so I made a photo book of all Mom's vacations because she travels a lot. I literally spent like $2 for a 50+ page photo book! And she loves it, she shows it to everyone who comes over.

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Thank you, lauraline & baubo516! These are all great. I did not even think about cutting back on my toiletries so that is definitely something that will be budgeted :)

for textbooks, did you guys rent or buy? How did you know whether you even should rent?

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Carpool if you can and split the cost of gas and parking passes (if you have to pay for parking at your school). I also find its cheaper to buy print credits in the computer lab than it is to keep putting out money for ink and paper at home!!

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I rented and had a roommate for a couple years because I wanted that experience. It was pricey but my parents helped out, and they wanted to make sure it was in a safe community. I also moved back home with parents for a few years to save money. I started working while I was living at home and saved a good amount. I now own my home, which never would have happened if I wasn't able to stay at home for those couple years.

I live in San Francisco and parking is a pain in the butt. So if I can ride my bike or walk to the store I will. I still drive to work and school though because its just safer especially if I don't come home until late at night. I tried taking the bus and unfortunately I was attacked by a crazy person, so I am a bit traumatized. My advice is don't cut costs if it will significantly compromise your safety.

I have been able to cut down costs pretty well but I do have one regret. I worked in real estate for a while so I leased a very nice car which was a waste of money now that I think about it. If I could do it over again, I would have just purchased a used car that was sufficient for my needs and nothing fancy. Never lease a car if you are on a budget! Haha.

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Budget like mad. Be frugal. Your a nursing study so you can do without anything but a bed a desk, clothes, food, etc lol jk id say coupon like crazy too. Great value and equate r you best friends. Learn to shop and buy only what u need. Funny enough i took the hobby of soap making and now i have made enough bars to last the next 2 years while i am in nursing school lol moderate electric. make simple cost effective meals. Carpool. calculate mpg and calculate routes and traffic. seems excessive but we do what we have to do. going to sell my ps3 soon :( but i wont need it, wont have time for it, and dont need it there to distract me. Anyways i can just buy another one or ps4 when i graduate and get a decent job right? :) goodwill is my friend. sorry im adhd...

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Specializes in Hospice, Palliative Care.

Good day:

On cell phones check out Straight Talk and their competitors. The last letter of the model (i.e. "v", "a" "s") let you know what carrier is being used -- i.e. v for Verizon, A for AT&T, S for Sprint.

You get voice, messaging / texting, and unlimited data for one monthly price.

lauraline and the others had a lot of good tips.

Do a lot of comparison -- how much will it really save? What's the pro and con of opportunity costs?, etc. The math work will help keep your math knowledge stable to improving.

Thank you.

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I will say about the cell phones that I use my iPhone all the time for school. If you have a smart phone, I would recommend keeping it. I have my drug guide and all sorts of other stuff on it. I take it to clinicals with me (that is whammy school prefers). Just wanted to throw my two scents in.

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Cash. If you don't have it in your wallet to pay for something, you can't afford it. That mantra has saved my budget!! I find i spend less when i pay cash, too. Something about counting out actual dollars lol

Also, have an emergency fund. If you can swing it, put 500 or 1000 in savings and know you can not touch it unless you have an emergency!! Then when your car breaks down or you need a school supply like yesterday that you hadn't budgeted for, you won't have to go in debt for it!!

Congrats and good luck :)

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