1. Don’t buy a car. Try to keep or fix your old vehicle if you are a commuter or work off campus. If you live on campus, you don’t need a car. Use campus shuttles, ride a bike or walk. Between
payments, maintenance, insurance and gas prices, a car will drain your bank account and create pressure you don’t need.
2. If possible, work no more than 15 hours per week. Most full-time students work at least some of the time. But the benefits outweigh the costs at some point. Research shows that students who work more than 15 hours often begin falling behind academically. Those who work more than 20 hours are at much higher risk of dropping or failing classes — which, of course, just costs more money when they have to be taken again.
3. Get to know the people in your college financial aid office. They can help you find solutions to some of your financial problems. They may help you reassess your financial need, find grants offered by the university or point you toward federal work/study programs. They will help you remember that for the most part, you have to apply for financial aid every year. Sometimes they can even point you to scholarships that have extra funds available.
4. Aim for a full load of classes. Part-time students are far more likely to drop out. Also, keep in mind that financial aid, especially grants, which don’t have to be paid back, are often based on fulltime enrollment.
5. If you must withdraw from classes, do so the right way. Sometimes, life happens and you must drop out for a semester. Make sure you formally withdraw from classes. Don’t take the missing-in-action approach and just stop attending classes. It can mess up your GPA and your financial aid. Find out early in your first term the rules your college or university has about withdrawing, just in case you need to know later. Not all places have the same rules.
6. Avoid credit cards. Talk about a money pit. The fact that you can get a credit card doesn’t mean you should get one. It’s better to learn to live without shopping jaunts and midnight meals at Denny’s than to find yourself in debt. If you need a card consider a debit card that just draws money from your account. If you do go for a credit card, get one with a low credit limit like $500, to keep you out of trouble, and pay the full amount of the bill, not just the minimum.