How to be frugal on a college campus

I am a grandma at a big midwestern university and I’ve been thinking a lot about the fact how expensive college is for students, and how often students spend their money poorly. When I started college, I only had a $2000 per year scholarship and no additional help from my family. I had to do everything I could to not spend money, or I wouldn’t have been able to come to the university I desperately wanted to go to. I hope that some of my tips for being frugal on a college campus could be of help to someone, especially in a time where college costs are so high. <br><br>1. **Avoid campus parking**. This is my first and most important tip. If you can avoid it, do not bring a car to campus. You will have to pay for a parking permit, gas, car insurance, and maintenance. Most campuses have good parking systems and what parking there is is usually right next to your building. Parking costs about $1000 per year. I never had a car during college and always had a great time walking or biking around campus. Had I paid for a parking permit, that would mean I would have spent an additional $4000 on my college experience. That’s a whole year’s scholarship! <br><br>2. **Don’t buy your books through the campus bookstore**. Your campus bookstore is probably a great place to get your books quickly and easily. But the university is going to give themselves a big mark up for them. A lot of times, I would be required to buy a book that was special to the professor or campus, so I understand why that’s necessary. If you’re looking to save money, buy your books, especially those not special to the campus, through a third party. I always bought my books through Amazon. Bring your printed out invoice and they will match it through the campus bookstore. It will save you a lot of money. <br><br>3. **Don’t buy a meal plan that costs more than you need**. If you have a meal plan, you pay per meal, or you pay per every time you eat in the dining halls. If you have a meal plan of 15 meals per week, but you aren’t on campus during the weekends, adjust your meal plan accordingly. Look at the numbers. If you’re paying for 15 meals but only eat 12, then you’re paying for 3 meals that you’re not eating and will never get. That’s 3 meals per week, for 16 weeks. That’s 48 meals you are paying for, for the entire semester. If you adjust your meal plan, you could save a lot of money. I had a meal plan of 7 for the entire time I was in school. I only paid for the meals I would eat, and I never had to pay for a meal I didn’t eat. <br><br>4. **Avoid fast food and restaurants!** Whenever I would eat out, I always regretted it. It was usually expensive and not very nutritious. If you’re paying for a meal plan, you usually have access to dining halls. If you don’t have a meal plan and you don’t live in the dorms, you could easily prepare meals to bring to campus and eat in the library, a classroom, etc. If you don’t have a meal plan and live in the dorms, consider investing in a microwave or joining a cooking club (look below). If you’re going to eat in the dining halls, avoid eating at the fast food places. Sometimes, you can pay a little extra, or have a meal swiped, to eat in the fast food places on campus. This is so ridiculously expensive. If you have a meal plan of 15, you are already buying 15 meals per week. If you spend a little more to eat in the fast food place, that’s money on top of the 15 meals you’ve already paid for. If you really need to eat for a fast food place, go off campus. There are a ton of fast food places usually closer to campus that have cheaper food than the fast food places on campus. <br><br>5. **Join a cooking club!** Usually, universities have cooking clubs that are free and have no experience necessary. These clubs are usually run by the residents in a dorm that have access to a community kitchen. My dorm offered three different cooking clubs. One was Japanese cooking, one was vegetarian cooking for a sustainable planet, and one was vegan cooking. All of it was free, and all we had to do was help clean up. This was a great option for me. I didn’t have a meal plan and I didn’t want to have a meal plan. I lived in the dorms and I wanted to have a way to eat on campus if I wanted to. I cooked three times a week in these clubs, and I always had enough food for two or three meals. I only had to pay for the ingredients to make those meals. If I had paid to eat at a fast food restaurant every time I wanted food, I would have spent so much more money than if I had paid for food and cooked it myself. Join a cooking club! It’s a great way to meet new people, get free food, and stay healthy and nutritious. <br><br>6. **Avoid concert tickets**. If you need a way to get away, there are a ton of free things you can do on campus. Every week, my university had free ballroom dance lessons, free salsa lessons, free meditation in the gardens, free gardening in the community garden, and free speeches from guests in different departments. If these aren’t your thing, usually universities offer discounted prices for students for concert tickets. You just have to bring your student ID to the ticket box. It’s always worth it to look! <br><br>7. **Invest in a water bottle.** You do not need to buy bottled water! It’s expensive and wasteful. If you live in the dorms or have a meal plan, you likely have access to a water fountain. If you don’t have access to a water fountain, you can easily keep a water bottle in your car and bring it inside with you. It will be a lot cheaper and environmentally friendly than buying any bottled drinks. And always bring a reusable cup with you. If you have a coffee shop or cafe on campus and you bring a reusable cup, you will usually get a discount. I always had a coffee in the morning before class, and I always had a discount for bringing a reusable cup. That saved me so much money over the course of all my semesters. <br><br>I hope some of these tips are helpful. I’m not someone who posts on Chambers anymore but I haven’t stopped thinking about how frugal I had to be in college. I hope that I can help someone with these tips. Good luck in college!