Surviving the Lean Years of Student Life

With the ongoing #FeesMustFall movement sweeping across countries like South Africa after having hit the likes of Germany not too long ago, the economic plight of the typical student is one which perhaps resonates all around the world. Yes, there are some free higher education models in some places around the world which seem to be working out very well, such as free education afforded to medical students in Cuba, but the reality is that the life of a student is a rather lean one when it comes to finances.

Whether your tuition is fully paid up or taken care of via sponsorships such as a bursary or scholarship, if you’re a typical student you’ll have to endure the typical financial struggles of a student, which doesn’t necessarily mean you go through college life dirt-poor, but you rather just have to be smart about your spending habits. There are a few tips and tricks such as utilizing online discount coupons (check it out here), cashbacks, etc., to help you survive these lean years of your student life. They can all be implemented without any compromise on the quality of your life at this crucial stage in your life. In fact, if implemented correctly, these tips and tricks can actually enhance your life lived out as a student.

Watch what you eat

It’s not just about economising by perhaps eating at the campus eatery or canteen, but rather about eating right so that you stay healthy and focussed to avoid unnecessary setbacks such as health issues or fatigue.

Student discounts

You probably already know all about discounts and special offers which are reserved exclusively for students, but if you’re to take full advantage of these student discounts, you’re best served taking them on in a more long-term approach. A monthly bus pass as opposed to a weekly one for instance means you can commute with unlimited bus rides over the period of a month as opposed to having to stick to an explicit cap in the number of commutes associated with shorters student bus passes.

Mass-buying savings

If you’re lucky enough to be studying at a multi-discipline academic institution of higher learning, then you have the institution’s various faculties at your disposal. Make full use of them and in this specific case that would be faculties such as those involved with the financial sector, like Economics and even Marketing. Through these faculties and with the official endorsement of your institution of higher learning, you can approach those producers and service providers of goods and services regularly bought and made use of by the majority of students to work out some sort of discounted deal. The trick would be to approach different service providers and products producers to those which are already widely made use of by the buying student masses, because the ones which already enjoy big sales have no incentive to offer their products and services at lower prices. They can always be approached later on however, when the need for them to be competitive in this way becomes apparent to them as well.

Ken
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