The Student Room Group

Money Management Tips for students?

I started my foundation year last year and I had a job as well (25-30 hours). I ended up wasting it all and didn't manage to save any. Does anyone have any tips for me?
Original post by Byun.B
I started my foundation year last year and I had a job as well (25-30 hours). I ended up wasting it all and didn't manage to save any. Does anyone have any tips for me?


Crazy.

Learn to save.
Learn to budget.
Learn to shop.
Learn to cook.

If you intend to work crazy hours again it will start to affect your work and you could end up destroying your degree.
Have a read of this :smile:
Reply 3
Original post by Little Tail Chaser
Have a read of this :smile:


Thank you for this! :smile:
I have a lot of sympathy for you.
Midway through my undergraduate degree, I came across a bit of money through family inheritance... which is absolutely uncommon in my family - we're not wealthy.

I honestly to this day just don't know where it went. I just plopped it in the bank without really crafting any plan for it and within 18 months... It had just evaporated.

Take me as a cautionary tale. Keep a very good eye on your money and if you have any excess, take it away to a savings account and ringfence it for a particular purpose. I could have bought a very decent car with the money I p*ssed away on nothing.
It's very easy to spend money without thinking about it- contactless payments and paying for things with paypal online are my biggest issues.

Things that can help:
-Check your bank account regularly.
-Set a budget for socialising etc for the week, draw the money out in cash and don't be tempted to spend more.
-Don't take your card out if you are drinking.
-Make a weekly/monthly budget and stick to it. Make sure you know what you're spending on each bill and your weekly shop etc.
-If you're earning money, try to put a small amount into a separate account each month. Think of this as an emergency fund, and don't touch it unless you really need to.
-Try to avoid spending money on small things online- yes, ebooks (for example) may often cost less than £5 each, but if you buy £5 and don't read them, that's £20 you've wasted.
-Check you don't have subscriptions to things you aren't using.

If you're really struggling to work out where your money is going, a spending diary can help. Write down everything you spend for a week/month and you'll soon realise where it's disappearing too.
Reply 6
Thank you everyone for the tips!

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