College an exciting time to make new friends, explore a new city and delve into a field of study that interests you. Unfortunately, it can also be a time of financial strain. You may have gotten financial aid, including student loans, to help you afford your tuition, but what do you do if you find that you underestimated the amount of financial aid you need? Here are some tips if you’re having a hard time affording tuition, books and other college related expenses even after you get your student aid.
Rework your budget
Before you decide to throw in the towel and start charging your expenses to a credit card, you should take a hard look at your spending habits. Have you set up a monthly budget for yourself or do you spend as you please? If you’re making impulse buys on non-school related purchases, you need to give yourself a reality check before you accrue more debt than just your student loans. Take a hard look at your expenditures and cut back all non-necessary items. You can also talk to a representative of your bank about how to minimize your debt while working on your degree.
Get a job
If you find that your student loans aren’t enough to keep you afloat financially, you might want to look into getting a part time job to help pad your bank account. One of the first places to look is the department of your major at your college or university. You may be able to get a job in your field of study which can help you both financially and professionally. You can make great contacts for your future career and build a strong resume, all while earning extra money. Most colleges and universities also offer on and off-campus career placement services that can help you find a job. Talk to your advisor or visit the office of career services at your school.
Also remember that while getting a job while you are in school is a great way supplement your financial aid, you still need to manage your schoolwork. Make sure that your job doesn’t interfere with your class schedule or study time. A job may take some of the financial pressure off, but if you fail out of school from working long hours, you’ll have a whole other boatload of problems to deal with.
Ask for help
If you’re finding that your financial aid isn’t enough to cover the cost of tuition, books, and cost of living, you may want to make an appointment with your school’s office of financial aid. He or she should be able to help you fill out paperwork and write letters so that you can apply for scholarships and grants that will help you make ends meet. You will probably need to meet some criteria regarding need and academic or athletic excellence, so be sure all of your personal information is in order so you can meet scholarship deadlines.
Look into other loans
If you have truly exhausted all of your other resources, like scholarships, job opportunities and budgeting strategies, you might need to apply for more student or personal loans to get you through your degree. Talk to someone in your school’s office of financial aid and shop around for the best loans with the most competitive interest rates and repayment options.
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