By the time you get to college, you should know exactly how much tuition and room and board are going to cost. By the end of the first week, you’ll have your book bill, too. But that’s not the end of your semester spending--it’s just the beginning. Personal expenses, from parking permits to late-night pizzas, can drain your bank account dry if you’re not careful. To keep that from happening, here’s a look at how to cut costs on three big-ticket items: your phone bill, your car and your love life. On the phone
An expense that way too many students overlook is the phone bill. It’s
easy to think that $3 here and $5 there is no big deal, until it’s the end of the month and an unexpected $50 charge arrives in the mail. These ideas will help you keep your phone costs low.1. Make a list. Before you pick up the phone, take a couple of minutes to jot down a list of all the things you want to talk about. The list helps you keep from wasting precious seconds while you wrack your brain trying to remember all those things you wanted to tell the folks back home. 2. Keep a timer by the phone. Get yourself one of those little hourglass timers and keep it on your desk. Determine before you call how many times you’ll turn it over. Even if you lose count, just watching the sand rush through that little glass will make you think of the passing time--and
disappearing money. 3. Check the rates. Phone companies charge different rates depending on what time of day you call. Sometimes calls are cheaper in the evenings, and sometimes you get the best rates on the weekend. Get a copy of your school’s long distance plan and schedule your calls accordingly. You might also want to consider pre-paid calling cards or working with an outside long-distance carrier, if available. 4. Don’t call, write. Yes, calling is the next best thing to being there, but you can say a lot in writing. Save phoning for a special treat or when the news just won’t wait. The rest of the time, go with a letter or an e-mail. On the go
Another major non-academic cost for many students is transportation. Having a car on campus isn’t cheap--monthly payments, repairs, insurance, licenses, parking stickers and gas money can add up to more than a young scholar can afford. But there are ways to save on transportation costs.
Commuters should make every attempt to carpool with other students--teachers even. Don’t overlook the profs as a prime source of transportation. They’ll have a schedule similar to yours and the same days off; they live off-campus; they’re not so rich that they couldn’t use some help with commuting expenses; they’re likely to have a fairly decent automobile. Resident students, too, can share a car. You might arrange with your roommate to let her use your car on a regular basis to get to her job in exchange for a tank of gas a week, or charge her so much per-mile for its use. Of course if you have a brother or sister who is on campus too, you could pitch in together to absorb the cost of a car. Motorcycles, mopeds and bicycles are perhaps the most efficient means of private transportation for students. They’re initially less expensive than a car, the operating costs are lower, and repairs don’t cost an arm and a leg. They also give you greater parking flexibility. You can ride your Schwinn right up to your destination and chain it to the rack provided or a convenient post. When you get back to the dorm or apartment, you can take it inside with you where it will be safe and protected from the elements. Try doing that with a car. On the town
If you thought your high school budget made dating tough, wait till you try to woo that special someone with only the money in your collegiate back pocket. But love conquers all--including a lack of cash. Just try one of these cheap dates:
- Make dinner for him or her in the dorm kitchen. Suggested menu: tuna melts, tossed salad with dressing, soft drinks, cookies made from prepared dough.
- Drive to a nearby small town and go to the show. Try to catch a deliciously bad movie, such as The Legend of Boggy Creek or Wilderness Family. Bring your own popcorn, if the theater says it’s OK.
- Go to one of the special music programs at a nearby church--the Singing Christmas Tree, annual Messiah concert or Sunday School program. Make sure you snag any refreshments being served afterward!
- After a late night of studying, go out for breakfast at the greasiest highway truck stop you know of. Get the works--eggs, sausage, hash browns, pancakes on the side and a Coke instead of coffee. Make conversation with the waitress.
- Oil your chain and bike to a nearby park. If berries or other wild foodstuffs are in season, pick as many as you can find. Then bring back the day’s catch and find a way to fix and eat it.
- Share something you’ve learned. If you know how to throw a pot, take her to the ceramics lab and let her try it. If you have learned several new European folk dances, show him how they go. Enjoy teaching each other a new skill.
Copyright (c) 1999 by the author or Christianity Today, Inc./Campus Life magazine. For reprint information on Campus Life, email them at CLMag@campuslife.net. | 
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