5 Ways of Surviving on a Student Budget!

It’s a well known fact that students don’t usually have much extra cash lying around, but with nights out to fuel and new dresses to buy on top of keeping your fridge topped up, how are you meant to survive on nothing but a termly loan?!

As a girl who used to enjoy splashing out on regular shopping sprees and treats, I found I soon had to adjust my usual spending habits once moving to uni to ensure that I didn't find myself without a meal to eat. Seeing as I have just endured 3 years of student life and even managed to save a bit whilst living a comfortable lifestyle, I  have decided to share a few of my secrets that are likely to help keep your bank balance in the green and with a little left over for an extra cheeky pint!

1. Budget yourself. This may seem obvious but it’s also the most important thing to do. By totalling up how much cash you’ll have each month you’ll be able to work out how much needs saving for the important stuff like rent, groceries and textbooks, and how much you can afford to splash on those new shoes you had your eye on. Draw up a budget and stick to it.

2. Sell your stuff! Time to be ruthless. If you’ve got stacks of old books, dvds, clothes or gadgets that you no longer need why not make a profit out of them?! Clearing out your draws and wardrobes is not only highly therapeutic but you may also find things that you can sell on sites such as ebay and gumtree. You’ll be surprised what other people will buy- remember, one man’s trash is another man’s treasure!

3. Work out meal plans. If you are guilty of buying trolley-fulls of food every week, only to throw half of it away when you don’t get a chance to eat it, you could be wasting valuable dosh! In fact, according to a survey, a third of the food we buy, we end up chucking away- which amounts to £420 of food waste for the average household and 70kg per person (the weight of an average human being). A way to get around this? Make meal plans and decide exactly what you are going to eat before you even get to Tesco; that way you won’t end up with a mouldy bag of potatoes that you forgot you’d bought. If you’re stuck for meal ideas team up with flat/housemates and do your dinners together!

4. Dig out the vouchers. These days there are vouchers for just about EVERYTHING, especially for the student market. So before you go out for a meal with your mates, check on sites such as studentbeans.com or vouchercloud.com and see what offers they have available. Some can give you up to 50% off which is tasty for your tummy, and even tastier for your bank balance. 

5. Give up your bad habits. I know this is easier said than done, but some of your bad habits could be running you into hefty debt! Whether you smoke, love designer brands or prefer to take taxis rather than buses, we all have our guilty pleasures, but by cutting down on how often you treat yourself just think how much you would save over the course of a year. And remember, you won’t be a student forever so just save the luxuries for when you have your degree and a steady income!

It may take a while to adjust to moving away from home and having to fund your own rent, bills, food shops, clothes shops and entertainment but always keep in mind: If you look after the pennies then the pounds will look after themselves.