At its core, financial wellness involves having the ability to progress toward your financial goals while meeting your current needs. If you don’t know how to handle your money as a student, it can be a source of great stress. Some of the key skills are making a budget and keeping track of your expenses.
If you prioritize your financial wellness, you can decrease your stress. There are many opportunities on and off campus to help you improve your financial situation. The financial decisions you make in your college and university years can have an impact on your life for many years to come. In fact, in recent days, financial wellness has become something that is of interest to even young children.
Meeting Short-Term Needs
One of the key pillars of financial wellness is being able to meet short-term needs. If you create a budget and follow it, it can help you to live within your means. You will need to know what money you get in and where it comes. Account for all your expenses and distinguish between needs and wants. Typical expenses will include tuition, food, textbooks, accommodation and healthcare.
If you stick to your budget, you won’t spend too much money on entertainment and find you can’t pay your bills at the end of the month. Free budgeting apps are available that can make tracking your expenses easier.
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As a student, you have so many responsibilities that it can be hard for you to find time to try to improve your financial situation by means such as taking a part-time job. Using essay writing service EduBirdie can help to free some time. You can study and still find time for making a college budget and focusing on your financial wellness. A professional writer provides you with great quality of work, and that too, at very reasonable prices and in quick time.
Scholarships and Grants
Scholarships and grants are available to students. They can help you to pay your short-term expenses and reduce your long-term debt. You don’t have to pay back the money you receive through a scholarship or grant.
Every scholarship or grant has different eligibility requirements, and you need to look for those you may be eligible for.
Applications for scholarships usually require transcripts, application essays, and letters of recommendation. Organizations will often give grants to students who need financial assistance.
Stretch Your Dollars
As a student, it will help you to take advantage of student discounts and free events. Whether you’re buying a new computer or trying to save on subscription services, there are student discounts you can use. You may have access to certain benefits like free transportation or free health services on campus.
Colleges often have webinars to inform, educate and empower you to make good financial decisions. Make use of any free financial literacy programs on campus. Other ways to stretch your dollars may include comparison shopping online to find good deals, limiting music and app downloads or cooking your own meals instead of eating out.
Build Good Credit
Your goal in college should be to build good credit. This means paying all your bills on time. If you’ve made some late payments, you will need to work on improving your score. Don’t overdraw on your account. Before you apply for a credit card, ask yourself whether you really need it and if you will be able to afford the payments. Contact creditors straight away if you’re having a problem. Check your credit score, at least on an annual basis.
Know What You Owe
If you have student loans, you should read the fine print and understand your obligations. Talk to a financial aid officer if your situation changes in any way. If you have any questions about your loan, don’t hesitate to contact financial aid for answers.
Signs of Financial Wellness
The first sign of financial wellness is that you have a personal budget and you stick to it. You have learned not to live beyond your means and have made a plan to pay back any student loans. You understand the concepts of debit and credit and work on building up good credit. You should also be thinking long-term by setting up a savings account. Putting even $10 a month into a savings account helps you to establish the habit of saving.
Conclusion
As a student, you can learn to live within your means and manage your finances over the short and long term. It may be challenging, but you can start developing habits that will stand you in good stead well beyond your college years.
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