Young, Black and Broke: Inside a Student’s Pockets

As we all know, college is very expensive, from tuition all the way to basic living. A part of going to college is learning to manage your money. Although managing your money as a college student is a challenge, it isn’t impossible. Balancing school life and social life, how can a student manage their money and still deliver their trend-setting outfits every week? With refund week being right around the corner, how do you manage your money and still keep up with the latest trends?
“So, I manage my money by trying to limit myself to $100 a week so that way my money can last all semester. With clothes, I buy them in small amounts so I’m not spending too much money at once,” states Quinten Cadwell, a Junior majoring in Electrical Engineering from Shreveport, LA.
There are many ways you can make your money stretch throughout the semester; it’s all about the decisions you make. When it comes to buying your clothes, you may have to make some accommodations. “When I do have money, I try to spend it wisely. So when it comes to buying outfits, I try and pre-plan them. I go and see how much they will be when I know something big is coming up I know I want to be cute for. I also try to buy in pieces like I try to get something I could reuse with the other clothing I already have. And that just builds my wardrobe up,” stated by Karrington Williams.
If you know you’re going to spend your money all at once, you should try putting some money to the side in your savings. Having savings will save you so much trouble later on during the semester. You can have it as an emergency fund just in case you ever run out of money. Jasmine Foley, a junior majoring in sociology with a minor in Child Development from Ponchatoula, Louisiana states, “I manage my money by meeting my savings goal for the month. For each month when I reach my goal, I use it towards my outfits. Whatever money I don’t use up, I keep in my savings for the next event. Usually, homecoming is when I would have the most funds.” See, putting some of your money off to the side will benefit you in the long run.
With student refunds dropping, most of the campus is going to be doing a lot of spending for the next few months. Jasmine Foley also states, “When my refund comes in, I’m putting half of it in my savings specifically for Homecoming and Bayou Classic. If you’re going to do custom pieces of clothing, you’re going to want to save as much money as possible; it’s not cheap.”
Along with the many football games, Homecoming and Bayou Classic are right around the corner, and we’re expected to see all of our Jags in their best outfits. Make sure to grab your refund checks and start planning what money is being saved for the rest of this semester.