Starting College Off Right

You go to school to learn about things you are interested in and prepare for your career, right? But where does personal finance fit into the learning curve? Many people end up learning about personal finance through trial and error…lots of them. Here are financial moves you need to know to get you through freshman year and beyond without learning the hard way.

Be careful with credit
According to a new law, students can not get a credit card until 21. This is to help students’ graduate college with a little less debt. There are ways around this though if a parent cosigns. But remember, a credit card is not free money. If you do want to start building credit start with a card with a low limit. Don’t look at this limit as a goal for spending. Only charge what you know you can pay off in full when the bill comes.

Stick to a budget
You never want to spend more than you make. Start off by knowing how much money you will receive monthly and what you need to spend it on. If your parents have graciously offered to help you financially make sure you talk about how much support they are giving you so you know how to budget. There are tons of online budgeting tools and even smartphone apps to help you stick to a budget.

Take advantage of student perks
There are perks to being a student. You can get lots of great deals at restaurants, movie theaters and stores. Make sure you ask if there a student discount before paying and flash your student ID to save some cash. There may also be opportunities to save money on campus like reduced prices at the cafeterias and free events at the union.

Protect yourself from fraud
Living in close corridors, like the dorms, are prime areas for theft. Make sure your belongings are secure, especially your financial information. Keeping track of your spending will help you know if there are fraudulent charges on your account. Take advantage of online and mobile banking to detect theft sooner. For extra precaution students may want to forward their mail to their parent’s house until they are out of the dorms.