College Planning for Adults

Where does your money go each month: groceries, rent, clothing, childcare, movies, etc.?

Why does it matter to know where your money goes? College is not free and financial aid is not guaranteed. You have to be prepared to pay some of the costs from your own pocket.

Preparing a monthly budget allows you to:

1. compare the amount of money you earn each month with the amount of money you spend each month.
Do you have enough money to pay for one class each semester?

2. figure out which expenses are necessary and which are not.
What expenses can you cut out each month to save money for classes ?

To help you prepare your monthly budget we’ve included a Monthly Budget Spreadsheet (Excel). Read the tips below to help you work through your budget.

Have the following items handy:

• Paycheck stubs (for a month)
• Receipts (ATM and purchases) – Divide the receipts up by categories such as food, medicine, miscellaneous etc.
• Monthly bills – Divide them by categories such as necessary (heat, electric, etc.) and unnecessary (cable, magazines, etc.)
• The tuition and fees page from the Course Catalog
• Calculator – You can click on Start -> Programs-> Accessories -> Calculator to use the one on the computer.

If the shock of tuition didn’t bother you, the price of your textbooks might. Textbooks can cost up to $300 a semester depending on how many classes you take. Luckily, you’re not required to buy your textbooks* at the school’s bookstore. There are many online bookstores that sell new and used textbooks at a much lower cost than your college’s bookstore.

The following websites sell new and used textbooks. They also provide a service that allows you to sell your textbooks on their websites when you’re done with them.

*Some professors may put together a packet of information and sell it through the bookstore. These professor made packets are NOT sold through online vendors.

Textbooks – Library
Most of your course books are also available at your college’s library or another college’s library. You can generally borrow a book for a month at a time. The downside of borrowing a book from the library is that you cannot highlight the book or write in it.

Textbooks – Other Students
If you know someone who has already taken the class, you should ask him if you can borrow his book for the semester or if you can buy it from him.

Every college has a computer lab that are open to its students. It’s free and always staffed by one or two people who can provide you with the support you need. Keep in mind though, while using the computer lab is free, printing may not be. Always bring change to print out copies of your work.

Usually, computers come with basic software such as word processing and spreadsheet software. If you need additional software you can get it at a student rate. Sometimes you can purchase software (like Microsoft Office or Adobe Photoshop) for half the retail price.

If you are purchasing a computer from your school’s computer store or from any computer store always make sure that you ask about student discounts and that you carry your student identification card with you.

If going to the computer lab is not an option for you, you can purchase a computer online for less than the retail cost. Many of the major computer companies like Apple or Dell offer student discounts. There are also many “used computer” websites that offer desktops and laptops at deep discounts.

Software is also less expensive for students. Sometimes you can purchase software (like Microsoft Office or Adobe Photoshop) for half of the retail price.

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