The distinction here is to choose from a: If 100% of financial aid is going to your college tuition and related expenses, you don’t necessarily need to account for this money in your monthly student budget. You could also choose to exclude financial aid money from your budget. For these amounts, you can quickly find the average monthly amount to work into your budget. If you have uneven income month-to-month, try to find the average.Ĭertain sources of income, like financial aid, are disbursed once every academic period (semester/trimester/quarter). How much money do you have coming in each month? This could include income from any source, including:Īdd up how much money you receive each month from all these sources combined. It’s a valuable tool for any college student. Ultimately, budgeting is about taking control of your spending. In other words, budgeting could help you save money in college-or it could help you enjoy your college years even more! If you want to focus on long-term goals like paying off your student loans, you can budget more for extra loan payments. If you get a lot of value out of going out with friends, you could budget more money each month in that category. It might just be a way to prioritize your spending with your values and interests. Monthly budgeting can be about saving money in college. Helps you work towards long-term financial goals, like saving for a down payment or retirement Helps you develop good personal finance habits early on Helps you graduate with less debt, or even debt-free (the dream) Helps you focus your spending on what matters most to you Helps you reduce stress and financial worry Helps you understand where your money is going Monthly budgeting for college students is helpful because it: You know exactly what you spend each month for your dorm room, your cell phone bill, and your cafeteria meal plan.īut how much do you spend on transportation, grocery shopping, dining out, or alcohol? These categories are trickier to nail down. Variable expenses are also more difficult to track. For most students, it’s these costs that can make or break a monthly budget. Variable expenses are things like entertainment, food out, etc. While we don’t want to get too obsessive about couponing for toilet paper or eating nothing but Kraft, it does help to pay attention to where your money is going each month.Ī typical college student budget consists of fixed expenses and variable expenses.įixed expenses are things like rent, tuition, cell phone bill, etc. When funds are limited, every dollar you spend counts. First off, let’s be honest: Most students aren’t exactly ballin’ out.
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