Juggling Textbooks & Chequebooks
Posted by Gail | Filed under Students
Know a kid heading off to university this year. Pass this on!
So, you’re heading off to the halls of higher learning. Now you’ll get the chance to experience life on your own. The freedom can be intoxicating. ‘Course, the responsibilities can be somewhat mind-boggling too. And right at the top of the I-don’t-know-how-to-do-this list: money management. Here are ten tips to help you manage your money so the last two months of the semester aren’t spent slurping ketchup soup.
1. Ferret out the free money: Canadian governments, universities, companies and nonprofit groups sponsor more than 60,000 awards, ranging from $100 to $50,000 or more. Check out Studentawards.com, which has tens of thousands of awards in its database. If you don’t apply, you won’t get a penny!
2. Make a plan: Knowing how much money you have and how you plan to spend it puts YOU in control. The best way to manage your money over the course of the school year is to sit down and map out a spending plan. (You’re gonna spend that money, you might as well have a plan!) If you look under Resources from the main page of this site you’ll find two excel spreadsheets available for download: Student Lump Sum Money Worksheet and Student Cash Flow Worksheet. Make sure you build some Good-time Money into your plan so you can have some fun without blowing your budget.
3. Check it twice: Even if you think you’ve done a pretty good job estimating your expenses, once you get to school track your spending for the first couple of months. You may be surprised at how little things can nibble away at your plan.
4. Pace yourself: Don’t be fooled by that deceptively large balance in your bank account at the beginning of the semester. While you may be feeling pretty rich, that money has to last you all year. Spend, spend, spend at the beginning of the semester, and you could end up eating a lot of macaroni-and-cheese.
5. Be smart with your credit: One quick way to spend beyond your means is to charge everything. Ooops, now you’re in trouble! To avoid temptation, have one credit card and keep your credit limit low — $500 should be enough. Only charge what you can afford to pay off each month. Paying bills on time and staying out of debt are the keys to a good credit rating and your ability to borrow in the future.
6. Life happens; be prepared: Even with the best planning possible, something’s going to happen to push you off track. That’s life. Go ahead and have fun. Just be prepared to buckle down on future spending to get yourself back on track.
7. Look ahead: Whether it’s a road trip with friends or an auto insurance bill, if you know a big expense is coming, start putting some money aside to pay for it. It’s way easier to set aside $25 every month than to come up with $300 when the bill is due.
8. Look for ways to save: Differentiate between what you want and what you truly need. And always be on the lookout for ways to save. Use the library for borrowing books, catching up on your favorite magazines and as a study space. There’s less of a temptation to spend money at the library than there would be in a coffee shop. Read your campus newspapers for university-sponsored entertainment events.
Reconcile yourself to the life of a poor student while you’re in school and you won’t have to live like a poor student when you’re done. Many graduates enter the work world weighed down by debt, which can linger for years and years. Don’t let this be you.
Gail Vaz-Oxlade wants YOU! Join MyMoneyMyChoices.com to get smarter about your money and help others get smarter about theirs. Isn’t it time we eliminated financial illiteracy? Come find me on Google+ and on Twitter.
August 17, 2011 at 7:34 am
My money saving strategy when it came to buying textbooks when I was in school was just not to buy them. It worked out pretty OK for me but I er…don’t really recommend it.
August 17, 2011 at 7:50 am
Good advice, very practical and every student should follow it. I didn’t – I bought all my textbooks new (because it was easier), enjoyed dinners out and road trips with my friends, borrowed the maximum I could and regularly dipped into my credit card to pay for stuff when I ran out of money, then paid it off with a cash advance from another card. I didn’t get into big trouble, thank goodness, but I did graduate with pretty big loans that I had to put on interest relief when I graduated and couldn’t find a steady job for a year, then had to struggle to find the money for the minimum payments for several years while I wasn’t earning much. I am now making good money and am making big payments to get rid of them as quickly as I can, but I am still paying them off seven years later. On track though to be debt free (apart from the mortgage) by May 2012!
Learn from my mistakes, guys – I’d say the biggest take-aways should be: borrow as little as you can get away with (though many of you will have to borrow to make ends meet), track your spending and don’t spend more than you have!
August 17, 2011 at 8:12 am
All I got from studentawards.com was aggravation. What worked a little better was reading every single scholarship offered by the college and applying for all that I qualified for.
And if your parents are helping you out, that money may come with strings. In my case, one of them just snapped.
Will you get hired when you’ve graduated? Will it pay well? I had a friend in college who was taking Early Childhood Education because she couldn’t think of what else to do and “she liked kids”. I’m telling you, run far and run fast. Her boyfriend was taking power engineering and she was helping him with his homework. Turned out this was way more interesting to her, so she dumped ECE (and the boyfriend some time later), took power engineering and got paid $23/hr just to do her summer work term! Wherever you are Jennifer, good job.
August 17, 2011 at 8:14 am
Gail: You’re missing an option on your poll: “Do you live so far out in the booneys that there are only two grocery stores and one farmers’ market and nobody accepts coupons?”
Hasn’t stopped me from offering landscaping services in exchange for carpentry services.
August 17, 2011 at 8:53 am
Like Chris, I did the opposite of Gail’s advice, for 6 of the 7 years I went to school, and ended up with a hefty student loan that I now pay $616/month for and I’m only 1 year into it. Luckily I have a great paying job where I can afford to put that and more on the loan, but I know when my son goes to school (yay RESP’s!) I will have much more expectations of him and there will be strings attached for sure. My parents didn’t/couldn’t help me out with school and didn’t give me the money talk so I used the loans as free money and now I am banging my head on the wall each month that I am paying it back. While I chose not to work during school (I was a young single mom), I could have been smarter with the money. Wish I read advice like Gails before day 1 of university!
August 17, 2011 at 9:35 am
I think there’s another obvious way to save money: don’t fail a course! I put myself through school and was amazed at how nonchalent people were about failing when mommy and daddy were paying. I remember thinking about this quote from tommy boy a lot:
“Lots of people go to school for 7 years.”
“Yeah, they’re called doctors.”
But to current and future students – do have a budget for beer, partying and the opposite gender. You’ll never be 20 again. (I sound so old at 36).
August 17, 2011 at 9:42 am
I had a lot more success looking into bursaries and scholarships at the schools I was studying at (then studentawards.com). When I last went to school I was lucky to get thousands of dollars in bursaries – all I had to do was talk to the financial aid people! That`s what they`re there for, and they are super helpful!
August 17, 2011 at 9:52 am
First year University students get super excited about their new school and buy all their textbooks before classes start…DON’T DO THIS!!!
Wait until you have attended class and to see if you really need the textbook or not. Sometimes Profs put books that you will not use so much like ‘how to write in a social science manner’ or ‘research skills’. These books will collect dust on the bookshelf. Even some courses have a text book that is just used more for reference than for actual reading. If this is the case the school library should have a copy of the text where you can go and sign it out/read it in the library. We had this system at McMaster and it could save you some $. Now some textbooks are more used than others; I used my Anatomy and Physiology text every day….math and science courses are very text heavy as well.
If a course uses a ‘custom courseware’ which is a fancy word for saying photocopied journal articles….you don’t really need to buy this. As a University student you have access to these journals online for free. A prof that I have recently taken 2 grad school courses with has done away with them and just sent us a reading list instead. With ipads/e-readers it makes PDF reading easy!
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School supplies. Many universities have fairs during that week before classes start. Go to them and stock up on pens/pencils/highlighters. I never bought pens/pencils at McMaster, I went to Clubsfest instead and got free ones.
August 17, 2011 at 10:01 am
Buy a digital camera and then go to library. You’ll never have to buy a text book ever again, and your camera will pay for itself after a semester.
If I was ever to go back to school again, I couldn’t fathom ever buying a textbook
August 17, 2011 at 10:04 am
Some universitites now offer a text loan program, where you can rent a text book for the year (and pay around 1/2 the cost of buying it). Some texts are also available as e-texts.
If you’re not in a rural area, not owning a car is a huge savings.
August 17, 2011 at 11:55 am
As a college instructor, I have to say that “don’t buy textbooks” is really bad advice — it brings the expression “penny wise, pound foolish” to mind. In my experience, most students who don’t buy textbooks don’t actually bother finding the material elsewhere (not all of it can be found elsewhere), and this is reflected in their grades. Conscientious students who *do* seek out the free versions waste a lot of time looking for it, and time is a scarce resource for most college/uni students. Get a cheaper cel phone plan, eat out less, take the bus, economise in other ways, but buy your textbooks — but you’re at college or university to study, and course materials are part of the cost of doing business!
August 17, 2011 at 12:17 pm
My advice:
BUY USED TEXTBOOKS!!! Or at least save the ones you buy each year and sell them at the beginning of the next year. You do not need to save your textbooks pass the 4 years you are in university as they will be reprinted with a different edition or already out of date. Unless of course it is a text book that you are going to be doing your profession in. Buy textbooks that are the edition before. Normally it’s the same textbook, but they moved the pages around or they might have taken a few pages out.
Have fun, but remember that you will need to pay all the money back that you were loaned and paying back $15000 is a lot easier than paying back $25000.
August 17, 2011 at 12:21 pm
Liz, I agree with you 100%. I am also a college instructor, and if I put a text on required, then it really is. What you can do is buy used textbooks (if buying an old edition, ask your prof if that is acceptable – it may not be). Without the background reference material, you may be at a real disadvantage!
@Tyler: Taking pictures with a digital camera? Not only is this a bad idea, it’s illegal too. Copyright laws are very real – and they do exist for a reason.
I bought a lot of texts used. This is particularly useful in Literature courses, as buying a used paperback of a classic often costs $2, while a new University edition costs $25. As for the reference books, like how to write – Read them!
August 17, 2011 at 12:42 pm
As another person who teaches post-secondary, I agree completely with Liz. I tell my students on Day 1 that I am a textbook-teacher and the book is a required tool. And I’m not tooting my horn or supporting the bookstore–the book is an essential reference for the subject I’m teaching. It’s about investing in yourself and your education.
Please don’t take digital photos of a textbook– that’s copyright violation and an issue before Federal courts right now.
Budget for about $1200/year for books. Many can be resold at the end of term. You can also apply for books as a tax credit ( I believe) if you’re a full-time student.
Student loans ought to be treated as a privilege and used prudently. I walked past the OSAP office one day as they were dispersing funds and one student declared, “I’m buying jewellery!” Yikes.
August 17, 2011 at 12:43 pm
Liz and Amy, I would re-characterize your advice as “read the materials”. Whether a person buys them or not is irrelevant to that advice. People who don’t bother reading the materials probably wouldn’t become more conscientious students if they spent $800 a semester on those materials – you’re either a responsible student or you’re not.
Basically, I think you’re reversing the causality. You’re seeing ‘students who don’t buy textbooks don’t read textbooks because they don’t have them”, and I see ‘students who don’t read textbooks don’t buy textbooks because they don’t intend to read them’.
If the materials are available in the library for free, buying them is just a very expensive convenience. Obviously, if the materials are not available in the library (something that is horribly unfair to students who are struggling financially, in my opinion), buying them may be the only option, short of borrowing them from more well off students.
The time spent reading the materials is the ‘cost of doing business’ – the cost of buying the textbooks is the cost of convenience. While I did NEED to read the materials for my classes, I didn’t NEED to read them at home in my PJs.
Also, at least while I was in school (about 10 years ago now), the cost of used books was only about 25% less than the cost of new ones – while the cost of the library was 100% less (give or take some later charges now and then).
August 17, 2011 at 1:12 pm
@Megan,
I see your point that some students never intend to be strong students and thus don’t plan to purchase the book. However, many students can’t spend a lot of time in the library accessing a free book on reserve. They’re raising children or siblings, working multiple jobs, or carpooling. Many DO need to read in their jammies at 3 am just to pass the course.
Just my two cents and I’m done.
August 17, 2011 at 1:17 pm
I was taxed on my bursaries, they said they were income.
August 17, 2011 at 1:21 pm
The whole textbook thing really depends on the subject being studied. I was in the humanities, so a lot of my required reading was made up of (a) ‘classics’ that are worth reading, and referred to often throughout my degree, (b) material where the content doesn’t change (as opposed to scientific work), and (c) commonly public domain, seeing as it’s all pretty old (thank you Plato). So buying my books was usually pretty easy, and also pretty cheap. Science students, on the other hand, need to be more judicious, and need to do some savvy consumerism.
Rather than decide YES or NO to buying books, be a smart shopper, which is a skill you need in life anyway. Talk to students in senior classes or check online to see if these books are likely to get used again. Is it a full year course or is it just one semester? Was it recently updated (if yes, you can probably re-sell it next year, but if not, you never know when the newest version is coming out)? Is it for an elective course or part of your core content? Do you have a trustworthy friend in the class with whom you can reliably share? Look at the syllabus and see how many readings come from that text, and also check to see if there are final exams or assignments that are likely to rely on that text. Most importantly: WAIT A WEEK until your schedule is set in stone; you never know if you’ll end up dropping this class or rearranging your schedule, and books are often cheaper later in the year (plus, at that point you’ll know if the prof was serious when they said that you need the book). See if you can buy the book through Amazon or online or at the very least through an independant bookstore, and NOT and the uni or college bookstore. Finally, know yourself: are you lazy? Will you REALLY go to the library? Will you REALLY even study? Be honest, and if buying the book and being able to mark it up will make a difference in your learning, buy the book and don’t be “penny wise, pound foolish” (love it, Liz!)
As for taking photos with a digital camera: copyright issues entirely aside, I think there’s something to considering the value of one’s time, even as a student. I know someone who spent a whole day photocopying a massive textbook. As in, 7 hours. All I could think was: even as a poor student, 8 hours of my time is way too valuable to spend time doing that.
August 17, 2011 at 2:00 pm
I would love to offer some tips to students as well. When I was in university, instead of doing full course load (5 courses), i did 6 courses for first term of the year and did 4 the next term. That way I can save tuition fee for one course (as 6th course often time is free for many universities, but do check the university policy and some restriction on students doing this).
Go volunteer! Volunteering offers so many perks, first it looks good on your resume, secondly some of them offer food for volunteers during the events (some time you can pack the leftovers with you), so it definitely saves you some grocery money.
Considering subletting instead of signing a full year lease when you are renting. Yes this might makes you moving around often than you would like. If the university offers co-op options to student, some students need to find someone to sublet their place so that they won’t lose the entire month of rent while they are away. Students can often time negotiate the rent so it’s lower than what you would have been paying.
These might sound like some drastic measures, but are things students often overlook.
August 17, 2011 at 2:08 pm
Lots of suggestions for textbooks: yes, do check to see whether the college/university library has a particular text. Sometimes they’re on very short term loan ( e.g. 2 hrs), so it can take discipline to read each chapter in a set time, so it might not be worth the inconvenience.
Taking a class on study skills etc. ca save a LOT of time and we all know from this blog about time and money!
All the best, new students!
August 17, 2011 at 2:21 pm
Ok, 1 more textbook plug and I’m done. I teach a core class of almost 200 students, and there is 1 copy of the text on reserve at the library. The day before a midterm, what are the odds it’s available? Also, we sometimes assign homework from a required text, so no book means you may just fail the assignment….
August 17, 2011 at 3:56 pm
What did I used to do for text books?
1. I would look at how much of the textbook will be required to read (sometimes you only need a few chapters) – and if it’s only a few chapters I would photocopy these chapters (I know, illegal, but cheaper)
2. I would look at older editions and see if they’re still acceptable. When a reading came up, I would compare the chapter to a friend’s book and see. If there were any differences I would photocopy the few pages that are different.
3. Sometimes I would have to buy the new book. If I knew enough it advance, I’d look on amazon and it’s often cheaper. I’d buy with a few friends to save on shipping.
THIS IS THE BEST TIP EVER: To sell my books (and some of my friends think I’m crazy), I would stand beside the books on sale at either the new book store or the old one (depending on if I had the new or the old version) and when I saw someone looking at the book, I would offer mine (I don’t write in mine). 90% of the time, they would say yes. It usually only took 5-10 minutes of standing around. I don’t think it’s legal or super fair but I still think it’s a great idea. You could also find out where the class is that needs that text and stand in front of the class on the first week (when the class is in). Chances are that one out of 30-50-200 people will need the book! Plus, if you’re making it convenient to them, you don’t have to sell for too low (just look at what the used bookstore is selling for and reduce by 5 bucks – you can’t sell your book for that high to the bookstore).
August 17, 2011 at 4:07 pm
I always bought my text books. In my major, new and basic required courses, used. I loaned out my books sometimes but stopped that when someone promised to be careful with it and not mark it up. They returned it with torn pages, penand highlighter marks, etc, etc. Same with a fellow student who borrowed a project that I had worked for weeks on and then never returned it, ever! Be a thoughtful learner and others will assist you but those selfish individuals ruin it for others.
I also agree about library copies. Our school had one or two and they were always in use! I think I used one once in 3 1/2 years…it’s worth it to buy if you do invest thought into how.
August 17, 2011 at 8:22 pm
I found in school some textbooks were used and some weren’t. It really depended on the teacher. My advice would to not buy them before classes start. Wait a week or so after you get a feel for wheter or not you’ll even be using them. Or better yet make friends with people in the course and share a book. My first semester I bought all my books a couple days before classes started. I wasn’t impressed to use my $86 business text book only twice (casual references in class) and then at the end of the semester told they have changed the edition for the next round so I coudln;t even sell it back used! ugh what a waste…
August 17, 2011 at 8:46 pm
Liz, I have to disagree. When I went through engineering, in some classes, instructors and profs never once referenced the texts and they were sometimes out of date in the high-tech types of classes. Engineering and science texts are not cheap. Quite often ~$140 for a text plus companion exercises ~$30 plus a set of the prof’s course notes for ~$15. We quickly learned to wait until the prof actually started using the texts.
August 17, 2011 at 8:49 pm
Re digital photos: I’m no expert but at my uni, they posted copyright rules right on the wall by the photocopier. Personal use copies for education are totally considered fair use. I don’t see why a photo would be any different as long as you don’t distribute it and limit yourself to the odd page here and there.
August 17, 2011 at 8:51 pm
Also, I was never able to get a tax credit for books but maybe rules have changed.
August 17, 2011 at 8:55 pm
@bcgirl: You are allowed to copy up to a certain percentage, usually 20%. Copying the whole thing is illegal
August 17, 2011 at 9:14 pm
One thing I found with the college I attended, was not only would they madly overcharge for their books, but the local Indigo/Chapters had the exact same book for 70% less then what the college was selling the book for (this always seems to be the case for ‘general education’ courses). My advice, as soon as you get your book list, take a wizz through the local bookstore and see if you can get it there, a lot of texts are available but need to be ordered and there is sometimes a shipping delay of a few days or a week.
O and dont bother trying to complain to the college, they’ve also wrote the book on ‘how to play dumb’ themselves
August 17, 2011 at 9:26 pm
I made the mistake of buying textbooks for my first 3 years of university in Math / Computer Science. Bad idea. Waste of about $500/term. Course notes were almost always useful. They also generally cost under $40, compared to almost always over $120 for a technical textbook. I think I still have a couple textbooks in shrinkwrap in the basement. If you’re in math then the better part of what you’re studying isn’t copyrightable (textbooks are copyright, the facts they contain are not) and is freely available on wikipedia most of the time. If you’re in CS then MIT puts their lectures online for free. One of the best schools on the planet for technology and you can get in on their classes for nothing. Why would you pay good money for a textbook?
August 17, 2011 at 11:36 pm
You can not claim the actual cost textbooks as a tax credit, it however is a component of the education amount.
Students should always file a return and report their tuition so that it can be carry forward and can be applied for them when start making the big bucks.
August 18, 2011 at 1:22 pm
Watch your food budget!!! Make sure you have a realistic meal plan which will let you eat healthily, and spend some of your time cooking from real ingredients. I see students every day blow $10 on lunch and then smart students packing one for about $2. Coffee and bagels from home for 3 years can really add up. Some students can get a food group together, cook one big pot of something, and share three other portions of it in exchange. Cook once, eat four different things.
Every year I see student debt limiting people’s life choices. It can hang over your head a lot longer than most people think. How long do you want to be paying for that pizza (and how much interest are you prepared to pay??). DO THE MATH.
August 19, 2011 at 9:25 am
I am a former college teacher, now mature student, with a daughter in grad school…I used to teach at community college and I want to echo those who have advised buying the text book….I agree that they are overpriced (and college bookstores overcharge…funny…university bookstores seem to work as services discounting books to help students…try them first!) . Find the cheapest source …Amazon often has books and they ship in under 48 hours. BUT, buy the books and become completely familiar with them…it is a part of the job of a student to read read read. If you worry that the prof may be listing books without intending to use them, talk to the prof and ascertain how much the book will be used. Professors are very aware of the pressures students face (we are also aware that things were easier in financial terms when we went to school) and will respect your concern. Most will not list a book as required unless they intend to use it directly or to have you consult it as a reference.
My younger classmates have some great $ saving ideas for cooking. Grains and veggies should form the basis of your diet…most of us grow up eating way more (expensive) protein than we need. Get to know herbs and spices: they can turn a meal based on lentils or quinoa into a gourmet feast. Cook lunch ahead the night before (as you watch the pot, study from those expensive textbooks!). Make a batch of muffins each week and take a couple with you each morning. You can stave off hunger until you finish class for the day rather than succumbing to a trip to Tim’s. Like all Gail’s financial advice, it comes down to spending time planning upfront in order to save both time and money later.
Coffee is expensive, but it is also a comfort when studying. If you are addicted to lattes, ask for a modest cappuccino machine for your next birthday. Make your own and take with you in a good thermos. This should see you through to all As.
Finally…think of school as your JOB. Never miss a class…even in large classes your presence will be noted and this will improve your chance of a really good reference or access to summer research jobs. Studies have shown that just by attending, your marks will improve by an average of 10%…before even factoring in actually studying!! Resist the urge to text, FB or email during class…it insults your prof and makes you look like you don’t care…and you might miss key advice.
August 22, 2011 at 8:37 am
We just got home from taking our daughter out to school for her second year. She is a soccer player and in Canada has had half of her tuition paid for playing. A few days before we left, the above article was written. I printed her off a copy and she has posted these reminders above her three money jars she has set up for herself!!
When she called us last night she told us she has picked up two cleaning jobs for a weekly fee ($30). I was feeling so proud of her for taking these on and ensuring an income for some entertainment and other funds. I also wished her luck since one of the jobs is for a little house of three big football players-yuck!!!!
Gail thanks for all of your advice for students. My daughter has taken it and is off running with an emergency fund to boot. It has taken me years to learn as much as she has picked up in the past two years from watching your show, reading your daily blog and owning your books!!!!!
March 5, 2012 at 8:38 pm
I am currently a university student and this is only my second semester. However, I have already learned to be present in the first class, because that is when the teacher tells us if we do need to buy the book or not. If they intend to use it only as a reference or if they intend to base assignments or exam questions on the book, they tell us first thing. This is then very useful.
I also think that some reference books are very useful if you are having trouble understanding a particular class. Textbooks provide examples, explanations and images that your teacher doesn’t and that can be very useful.