This Post May Contain Affiliate Links

10 ways to save money as a student

save money as a student
This post was originally written for Student Nannies blog, click here to see the original article.
Autumn term is coming to a close and odds are you’re finding yourself at the end of your student loans. With money running short, Christmas presents and parties adding up, you need some money saving tips to make it until the January loan installment. Here’s my top ten thrifty tricks for students….


Cook with friends. Food shopping for one can be quite expensive as often you will purchase larger quantities than you need just because it is the smallest amount available. Shopping and cooking with friends allows you to share the workload, take advantage of special bulk offers and reduce the cost of your weekly shop. 
Buy your textbooks secondhand. Textbooks are extortionately expensive, especially from the campus bookstore. Odds are you can find a much more reasonably priced second-hand copy from someone in the year above you. Check to see if your department runs book sales or see if there is a Facebook buy/sell page for your course. 
Don’t pay for a TV license if you don’t need it. If you are a student, your parents have a TV license and you are watching on a device not plugged into the mains, you do not need to pay for a license. If you do require a license don’t forget to reclaim the summer months you are not living away from home. For more information to help you understand if you need to pay click here.
Take advantage of student discounts. Both NUS and UniDays offer great student discount systems well worth subscribing to. After all why pay full price when you don’t have. It is also always worth asking if a store/restaurant offers a student discount as it is not always clearly advertised (especially for smaller non-chain companies). Don't forget you can use conjunction with some student deals (Quidco give you cashback when buying a 16-25 railcard)
Ask a member of staff what time their supermarket marks down food items and schedule your shops for that time. Typically supermarkets will do their biggest reductions at about 7/8pm. Most supermarkets have a designated reduced section for different departments (chilled, fresh, dry goods) so it is a good idea to familiarise yourself where these are in your local store. 

Get the best student bank account for you. Whilst the biggest selling point for most student bank accounts is their overdraft (not something we advocate dipping into) they will offer additional freebies including NUS cards, train or coach discount cards. Look at which of these freebies will be of most benefit and value to you when deciding who to bank with.

Most students will work part-time during their studies in order to bring in some extra income. Working as a Student Nanny offers a great opportunity for flexible work schedules, avoids zero hours contracts and provides the chance for you to  network with local professionals and gain valuable work experience. StudentNannies.com is a great place to look for nannying work suited to fit around a student’s busy schedule. If you are looking for something even more flexible consider getting an online job that allows you to work from home. 

Being on a tight budget doesn’t have to mean no fun. From free festivals, museums and galleries wherever you live there is sure to be plenty of free (or low cost events to go to). Don’t forget events on campus are also often low cost or free as they know students are on a small budget. You can also get 2for1 movies for the whole year for less than £2 (learn how ) making it a great budget outing as you can combine it with student price tickets for an extra discount.

When the next student loan comes pays out in January there are couple of things you can do to make your money go even further next term :
Pay your rent first. Most landlords if you ask are happy for you to pay several months upfront, just be sure to ask first so they know that is what you are doing. When you get your termly student finance in, pay that term’s rent. 

Pop the remaining money into a separate account. Pay yourself an income. Odds are you get student finance three times a year, you might also get some sporadic scholarships or grants. When money comes in so irregularly it can feel tricky to establish a budget. Open up a separate account and set up a standing order for your ‘salary’. Depending on how easy you find it to manage your money you may wish to ‘pay yourself’ weekly, bi-weekly or monthly. Just do what best suits you and your spending habits. 
With some creative ideas you can make living on a student budget a liberating not limiting experience.

How to juggle working and studying

Getting a degree is an expensive process. Whilst it can be a valuable investment it can also be daunting financially. Between student finance, grants and scholarships you may still not have enough money to cover the costs of university. That is where part-time work falls into the equation. 

59% of students will work part time during their studies. Whilst most universities recommend working no more than 15 hours for undergraduate students and 20 hours a week for postgraduate students 13% will work full time during their degree.



balance work and study


Chris and I have both worked during our studies. I chose to focus on working as much as possible during the holidays. In my first year I work as a waitress, in the second year as a researcher for the law school and in my final year at an investment firm. I chose to do this because I was involved in a lot of voluntary work at university society (plus law school being an intense workload). Though now during my masters I work mostly online through blogging and matched betting. Whilst Chris has chosen to work during term-term in retail averaging about 12 hours a week whilst class is on. 


We both agree that it can be tricky to balance work and studies. Especially when you are just starting out at university adding work into the mix can feel totally overwhelming. I know Chris thrives of being busy, and working whilst studying can actually make you a more productive and effective student and its a great addition to the C.V.


Schedule your time


If you are able to find a job that provides a degree of flexibility in hours that can be great as it allows you to pick up more or less hours depending on how busy your studies are. However, there are downsides to such flexible work as it can often mean you don't know your schedule far in advance. 


Adding work into the schedule makes it more important than ever to schedule time specifically to complete university work. You may find that the best option is to schedule your work for the weekend  allowing you to focus on uni during the week. 


When you are combining work and studies it very important to keep an copy of your schedule. I love to use planners (this one) whilst Chris prefers to use google calendars on his phone. Just as long you have a way of keeping track of everything you have going on allowing you to remain in control of your workload. 


Prioritise.


Your studies need to remain the priority in the situation. This may mean that sometimes you have to turn down shifts. You may need to tone down the extra-curricular or delegate some work. 


Don't feel bad about this, remember in the long run making your degree as worthwhile as possible will have greater financial benefits. 


In prioritising your univeristy work you may find that your current part-time work is not such a great option for your schedule. Online jobs can be a great way to find flexible work to fit around your schedule.


Take care of yourself 


Don't allow your schedule to become too busy that you become overworked and tired. Taking care of yourself is important to ensuring that you are able to succeed in your studies. 


Ensure that you get enough sleep and good food. Making time for seeing friends and just watching Netflix and relaxing is very important for your wellbeing. 



Did you work during your studies? How did you juggle working and studying?





______________________________________________________


    If you are new to our blog, we are all about finding new ways for students and millennials to make and save money. Here are some of our favourite sites and products to help you out:
    • Start a blog. Blogging is our side-hustle just over a year ago we didn't think I would bring us any income . You can create your own blog here with my easy-to-use tutorial. You can start your blog for as low as $3.49 per month plus you get a free domain if you sign-up through my tutorial.
    • Save money with gift cards Whether its for buying clothes, your weekly shop or dining out use Zeek to buy discounted gift cards to get more bang for your buck. 
    • Use Swagbucks for your online searches. Swagbucks is a passive way to earn gift cards. Over the course of a year you could earn $500.  Swagbucks is just like using Google to do your online searches, except you get rewarded “points called SB” for the things you do through their website. Then, when you have enough Swagbucks, you can redeem them for cash, gift cards, and more. Receive $5 for signing up today.
    • Try matched betting. Matched betting is a great way to may easy money online. Despite the name it is not gambling and could see you earn £500-£1000 a month for only a couple of hours work a day see here and here. For your free trial head to profit accumulator or join the Facebook 'getting started' group.  
    • Sign up for a cashback site like Quidco. where you can earn CASH BACK for just spending like how you normally would online. The service is free too! Plus, when you sign up through my link, you also receive a free £10 bonus!
    *This post contains affiliate links, all opinions are our own*

    Frugal Christmas Gift Guide | For Her

    November is already here (where has 2016 gone!!) and now is time to start thinking about christmas gift buying. 

    ASDA recently conducted a study where they found last year parents spent an average of £294.00 on their children !! Whilst as a university student most don't have children of your own, you may still have an extensive network of family and friends to buy for and cost of Christmas can quickly creep up. 

    What was more shocking about the research showed that 25% feel of those buying gifts say they feel pressure to buy presents that stretch their budget or that they can’t afford.  

    This is so sad that the focus is being shifted to the value of the gift rather than just giving. However, you don't have to let christmas take a toll on your finances this year by making a budget of what you really can afford and sticking to it (even if that means cutting back in certain areas of buying inexpensive presents).

    Lets make Christmas 2016 a debt free one!! 


    Stuck on what to get for christmas? Well good news SavingScotts has put together a list of the perfect gifts to give this season and best of all they are budget friendly with all gifts being under £15. In today's post we will be sharing the gift guide for her, but we also have a gifts for him and children coming out in the near future so stay tuned.





    8. Apron
    11. Hand cream set (not shown but these are completely lush) 


    When do you start buying your christmas presents?

    This post contains affiliate links. See disclosure below.