Attending college and getting a degree is a great investment in your future. But what about the expenses you’re incurring now. Even though people will tell you that you need to speculate to accumulate, you don’t have endless financial resources to plow into your studies.
Not unless you’re prepared to go into debt and spend dozens of years after your graduation paying them off.
But you can walk away from college debt-free if you’re determined to. Here’s how:
Save before you even start college
Hopefully, your parents were able to start a college savings fund to pay for your future studies before or soon after you were born. As you get older, you can find ways to contribute to it yourself to keep growing the investment.
For example, money that you get in lieu of gifts should go into the account, even though it might be tempting to spend it right away. Once you’re old enough to start working, get a part-time job, and save as much of your wages as you can.
Look at a realistic budget of how much money you need now and put the rest toward your college fund. You’ll start college with a handsome nest egg that will pay for most, if not all, of your expenses.
Become an entrepreneur
Start a business while you are still a student. One of the most significant benefits of owning a business is that you can be flexible about working hours and fit them in around your schedule.
When you’re trying to come up with an idea for a business, think about what you can offer your fellow students. For example, if you’re good at English, you could start a proofreading business, checking clients’ assignments for spelling, punctuation, and grammar errors before they submit them.
You could create a business whereby you sell and rent textbooks to students who cannot afford to buy new ones.
Find money
There are plenty of grants, scholarships, and financial aid options available to students, but don’t expect them to come to you. You’ll need to go out and actively search for ways to fund your college studies without going into debt.
Your high school and the college you want to attend will have the relevant information about what funding you can access. There is a lot of paperwork involved in the applications you’ll need to complete, and you must get it right.
Your application can be rejected out of hand for a failure to include a specified document. Get a teacher or family member to review the application before you submit it to make sure you haven’t forgotten anything.
Keep the application deadlines in mind and don’t leave everything to the last minute, as you’re likely to make a mistake in haste and lose out on the chance to access the funding.
Keep your expenses down
Even if you have enough money from a scholarship and a part-time job, don’t interpret this as a license to live frivolously. Just as you did in high school, you need to be saving every dollar you can for a rainy day.
So, don’t splash out on a flashy car or fancy apartment because you can get into some financial troubles that will affect your credit score if you lose your job or scholarship.
Live within your means and be frugal in your spending. Keep your eye on the future and stay focused on your plan. If you graduate college without any debt, you won’t have to hand over a big chunk of your first salary as a graduate to repay student loans.