Guest blog post by Blackbullion.co.uk
1.Maximise Income
The more money you have coming in the easier you will find your time at university. Knowing you have enough means you can focus on your studies and on uni life.
Feeling as though you have too little can lead to stress and distraction and means that instead of having “the best days of your life” you will worry, find yourself cutting meals (or classes), turning to gambling, payday loans or even worse.
So check if you are eligible for a bursary or scholarship, if it won’t negatively impact on your studies consider getting a job. Avoid the freshers’ week CV rush and apply early, on your first day or even before term officially begins.
2.Open a second bank account
Your maintenance loan gets paid in three chunks, which means that every term a large sum of money arrives into your bank account and the temptation to spend is pretty compelling. The best thing you can do is open a second bank account and pay yourself a monthly salary and pay the most important stuff (like your accommodation) upfront. Great practice for that epic salary you are bound to earn later
3.Take advantage of free stuff
From post-it notes and pens to USBs and sessions on employability be sure to take advantage of all the free stuff on campus. It’s the last time you’ll get so much swag for nothing. Keep an eye out for free activities and events on offer in the area
4.Don’t fear debt but do fear credit.
Debt is just like a car – a great vehicle for getting you from one place to another or a dangerous weapon which can cause destruction. If you are attending university then the likelihood is you will graduate with some student debt. You will pay this off, out of your salary and hopefully it shouldn’t impact hugely on your life.
What will impact on your life is any extra debt you build up while you study. Credit card debt grows at a rate of 20% each year, overdrafts at 15%… these are the debts that can keep you broke for a really long time.
5.Invest in the most important asset. You.
Lots of universities offer a myriad of events and resources and too few students take advantage of them or show up at all. The more you invest in yourself the more valuable you become as an asset; the greater your employability skills the more likely you are to get a job and the better your money skills the more bang you will get from the money you have. Find out what resources are offered on your campus – maybe you’ll be lucky enough to find us there – and take control of your future.
Blackbullion is up-skilling students for the 21st century through money management, employability and enterprise training. Check us out at blackbullion.co.uk
