Visit our COVID-19 site for latest information regarding how we can support you. For up to date information about the pandemic visit www.sacoronavirus.co.za.

bs-regular
bs-extra-light
bs-light
bs-light
bs-cond-light-webfont
bs-medium
bs-bold
bs-black

Community


Share knowledge. Ask questions. Find answers.

Community blog

Read our latest news and views and get to know us better

The money diaries
Standard Bank Team
Super Contributor

Students are known for being broke. With minimal pocket money mixed with entertainment, both on and off campus, you may find yourself down on your knees begging for the month to end so that the days of seeing your bank balance in the single digits may come to a much-desired end.

As boring as it may sound, “budgeting” is a word that is in desperate need of making an appearance in a student’s vocabulary. As young adults, it’s so important to start learning how to make good use of your money. Like it or not, the cost of living isn’t getting any cheaper.

Here are just a few tips to help you become financially savvy in the year 2013:

Know your balance
First and foremost, know the exact amount of money you have available to spend. This is the first step towards becoming financially responsible.

Prioritise
Purchase all the necessities first, such as textbooks, toiletries and groceries- if you stay off campus. If you are lucky enough to have a flatmate or roommate, you can both cut costs by dividing the groceries equally between the two of you. Check out the second hand book stores at varsity for great deals on textbooks that are still in good condition.

Keep tabs on your spend
In this exciting digital age we live in, it’s possible to keep tabs on everything you spend. Keep tabs on your account with message notifications from your bank or banking online. You can also try downloading a budgeting to help you keep tabs on your money. This will help you become aware of just how much you spend daily or weekly, and keep you alerted on how much you have left.

Make money
A part-time student job is probably the best way of ensuring you remain money savvy. You will be amazed at just how many jobs there are available for students. Doing promotions on and off campus for various brands, tutoring, au pairing, working at a clothing store on weekends, becoming a brand ambassador and spokesperson for certain products and even house-sitting during holidays are all jobs that pay relatively well and will help increase the size of your wallet.

Take advantage
Make the most of your time being a student. You get the perks of student discounts by merely showing your student card. Never be afraid to ask whether there are any student specials available.

Limit yourself
Keep a weekly and monthly cap on just how much you can spend on lunch, entertainment etc. Then stick to it.

With tips like these, your noodles-for-dinner days are well on their way to becoming a thing of the past.