Tips for Saving Money in College

SpeedyPrep’s CLEP study guides and test prep materials are designed to help you save money on your college education—it’s because we believe that college can be (and should be) affordable for anyone and everyone. However, CLEP is only one of many ways you can save money during your college career.

In this blog, we’ll take a look at the variety of ways you can save money during your college career so you can be more financially stable once you’ve graduated. Follow these tips, and you’ll be able to minimize your student debt and keep more money in your pocket!

Buy used textbooks and discount supplies.

Most college students are prepared for tuition and room and board costs. However, the cost of textbooks can burn an unexpectedly large hole in your pocket, especially if you buy new copies straight off the shelves of your campus bookstore. According to The College Board, the average college student at a four-year institution spend anywhere from $1,250 to $1,420 on textbooks per year—and you can probably double that total if you’re in some sort of science or healthcare-based degree program.

There’s really no way you can avoid the costs of textbooks and get away with it—but there are some ways to minimize your expenses over the course of your college career. Buying used textbooks instead of new ones could save you hundreds—just hop onto the internet instead of going into your campus bookstore and use the textbook’s reference number so your copy is up to date. You also might be able to head into your campus library and use their copies of course textbooks in a pinch—just make copies of the chapters you need and highlight or take notes to your heart’s content!

Take advantage of local food deals and coupons.

Spending 10 bucks on Chipotle or five bucks on ice cream doesn’t seem like a huge expense at the time—but all that eating out can really add up over the course of your college career. We get it—eating out is the nature of the beast in the college world. With a lot of time that must be spent studying, going to class, meeting up for group projects, working side jobs to pay the bills, and sleeping (yes, sleeping), it can be difficult to find the time to make your own food on certain occasions.

Fortunately, most college towns have plenty of deals and coupons to save you money on takeout and other convenient food items, and there are quite a few on-campus and community organizations that will offer free or discounted meals weekly or monthly. Learn about these events, and take advantage of them!

A word of caution: free pizza can help you save money in the long run, but it’s not what you need to be a great student and a healthy human being. Buy some fresh fruits and vegetables when you can, do some healthy meal prep on the weekends, or opt for a meal plan at the campus cafeteria for the most food options and convenience.

That’s it for Part 1 of our series on saving money during your college career. Stay tuned for Part 2, and check out our other blog posts in the meantime!