Student life is characterized by two simultaneous periods of life: from session to session and from scholarship to scholarship. The financial side of many students is poorly controlled, sometimes you have to resort to fasting or the help of parents. But it can also be avoided!
Budget
Understanding expenses and incomes, being able to control them is very important. When planning, it is worth understanding that it will not help to increase your income, but it will not help to rationally and effectively use the funds you have - quite. As usual, a monthly budget is drawn up:
- Income calculation. This paragraph takes into account only stable sources of income (scholarship, pocket money, salary, part-time job). Do not count gifts for the next holidays.
- Calculate the amount of expenses. Divide it into mandatory (utilities, rent, groceries, transport) and optional payments (hobbies, cafes, movies). Exclude the possibility of leaving any means of expenditure not recorded - be honest.
- Create a pivot table of expenses and income. Good old Excel can help you with this: thanks to this program, you can clearly see the difference between how much we spend and earn. If you want, you can use special applications. A balanced budget can be considered in which expenses do not exceed income.
- Preparation of a weekly budget. From the total income, subtract the mandatory expenses and divide the resulting amount by the number of weeks.
Planning a budget abroad
Numbeo is a site that will help you navigate the prices of the future host country (for a short or long time). Before you make a budget plan, you will have to get a good idea of local prices.
- Keep a book of expenses. Accurate knowledge of your expenses helps to plan a budget more easily.
- Compare prices only with the level of YOUR income. Comparing prices with other countries is not always a good idea. Try to analyze the correctness of your expenses in relation to the income received, and not other indicators.
- Benefits for students. Students are one of the "special" classes: discounts to museums, public transport passes. Don't forget to take advantage of this!
- Scholarship. It is advisable to apply for a scholarship in any case, it does not matter whether at home or abroad. In any case, this money will be useful to you.
- Part-time job. In non-study hours, a student has every right to engage in part-time work. The average number of working hours per week by country is 20 hours in Switzerland and 28 hours in Japan.
The main mistakes in budget planning
- Underestimated their expenses.
- Inclusion in regular income of possible gifts and additional financial injections, which in fact are irregular and uneven.
- Misplaced prioritization.
- Biased assessment (strong limitation).
What can students save on?
- Card International Student Identity Card that can be used in 135 countries of the world to get discounts on transport, lunch in a cafe, visiting attractions.
- It is not necessary to acquire printed textbooks - you can learn electronic ones using a tablet or laptop.
- Textbooks can be bought with your hands.
- Students live together in the same apartment.
- Visiting sales and shops during discount weeks.
- The use of the student canteen will allow you to spend money on food in between studies.
Useful applications
If it is not possible to plan the budget correctly or simply do not have enough time, then you can use the help of modern applications. According to the data obtained, they themselves make up the graphs of expenses and incomes. Of the free ones, "Heavy", Financisto, Wallet, CoinKeeperarepopular.
