Financing Essex : top money saving tips

Part of a students responsibility is to find out how to squeeze the most out of money – when you’re living off a student loan, every penny counts!

Here are a few tried and tested tactics:

1. Set yourself a cash withdrawal limit of about £50 per week for food, living and partying – your student-friendly bank staff will be able to set this up for you. (This doesn’t include rent.)
2. Only spend £15 per week on food. It is possible – go for the value products.
3. You can drink cheaper alcohol before you head out for a night on the town! Vodka mixes and some wines are really cheap in supermarkets – as long as you don’t appreciate alcohol for its taste just yet!
4. Make lists of the absolute necessities for food and living – and then STICK to them.
5. Get a large jar and fill it up with your loose change. Wait until the end of each term before you add it up and then, spend spend spend – it’s surprising how much it amounts to! As your mum always said – look after the pennies and the pounds will look after themselves!
6. Make a group agreement with your friends that no one has to buy rounds of drinks when you go out. This will not only prevent embarrassing situations when you have run out of dosh, but tends to save you money too.
7. Take a set amount of money with you on a night out – and leave your cash card at home. Then you can be sure – even if you’re tempted – that ‘just another tenner’ will stay safely in the bank!
8. Don’t spend loads of money on calling your loved – there are loads of free ways you can keep in touch. You can send a regular e-mail updating them on what you've been up to, you can use Facebook, and if you really need to hear their voice then you can speak to them over the internet using Skype.
9. An expensive outlay for students – especially females is paying £30 every couple of months to get your hair cut. The best way to cut this cost which doesn't involve you adopting a funky seventies style, is to keep your eyes open for the chance to be a model for a hairdressers. You'll probably still have to pay a bit, but still a lot less then you would have. Most use models quite regularly for their trainee staff – but don’t worry about ending up looking like Amy Winehouse – they're all closely supervised!