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Living on a Budget

Living on a Budget
6/17/2011
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Anna Meskishvili

Ah, college living. Welcome to the life of Ramen, Groupon deals and at-home-manicures.

Attending school in a city, I have a lot of unforeseen spending like cab fares and impromptu coffee stops. Here are some tips on how to maintain a livable and realistic budget when you start school:

Eat at the dining hall. Dining halls don’t get enough credit. They are the best way to save at least $25 a week on one of the biggest areas of spending for college kids – food. To make a mundane cafeteria meal more fun, plan a dinner with your friends. If and when you do go out, get a doggy bag – great late-night snack or lunch the next day!

Stay in. It’s the seventh Friday of the semester and you and your friends are getting ready to cab your way ($6 each way per person) to the frat house ($5 at the door) to have a mediocre time...like you’ve been doing every week. The whole night will cost you about $20 and a jungle juice stained top, so why not save some cash and stay in? I’m not saying don’t be social but one night in with a movie and a $10 pizza for you and three friends can be a good time for less.

Make trades. Imagine having access to 10 fully-stocked closets. That’s the beauty of living in a dorm: You have the ability to share clothes and make new friends. If you’re nice about it, that cute girl down the hall will let you borrow that expensive top for your hot date. Take advantage but be responsible!

Living on a strict budget is not easy but grinding through it can be fun! Every time I make myself a bowl of Ramen, I am happy to know it only set me back $.19.

Anna Meskishvili is a rising senior at Boston University pursuing a degree in public relations at the College of Communication and hopes to someday work in healthcare administration communication. She is part of Kappa Delta at BU and has loved every second of it. She is also involved in Public Relations Student Society of America and Ed on Campus. Anna was born in the Republic of Georgia and considers herself a citizen of the world because she’s lived in Russia, England, France, Brooklyn and Connecticut. She loves to travel, run and learn.

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