Moneysense did an article 9 ways to save on college

Discussion in 'General Distance Learning Discussions' started by iamthere, Sep 7, 2011.

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  1. iamthere

    iamthere New Member

    Nine ways to save money at school « MoneySense this just seemed like an average article that can be used at any stage of a person's life. Hunt for free activities (Great as long as you don't ever want to have a date.)

    1. Sign up for a free chequing account.
    2. Skip buying coffee.
    3. Don’t buy bottled water.
    4. Don’t grocery shop when you’re hungry.
    5. Look for free events on campus and in your local community.
    6. Cut the cable.
    7. Get Skype.
    8. Take advantage of special offers for students.
    9. Get another roommate.

    What would be college specific cost cutting measures could you make or suggest? I have already suggested taking advantage of Military discounts for tuition and using ebooks. For dormitory/rent I would suggest building a tumbleweeds house and drive a scooter.
     
  2. AV8R

    AV8R Active Member

    That list is just dumb. Here, I have a better list...

    1) Use as many CLEP/DSST exam credits as your school will allow
    2) Buy your textbooks used and then sell them used on Amazon
    3) For those classes you can't use CLEP/DSST credits on, use community college credits
    4) Shop around for the best deal before enrolling in a degree program
    5) Avoid for-profit schools for big savings
    6) If you are still in high school, take as many dual enrollment or AP classes as you can
    7) Enroll in a college that doesn't charge tuition (Berea College, Alice Lloyd College, College of the Ozarks)
    8) Use military tuition assistance or GI Bill (if applicable)
    9) Earn college credit through Straighterline

    There, that should pretty much do it for some REAL savings. :D
     
  3. SurfDoctor

    SurfDoctor Moderator

    Let me add my own list:

    Eat nothing but Kraft Mac & Cheese
    Don't waste money on things like toothpaste and deodorant
    Sell your car and ride a skateboard everywhere
    Don't waste money on an appartment; find a friend who has a couch you can sleep on
    Get a girlfriend and sponge off of her as much as possible (the lack of toothpaste and deodorant may hinder this)
    Go through garbage to find cans you can recycle

    These rules should guarantee your success.
     
  4. iamthere

    iamthere New Member

    Some Additional savings ideas
    1. Use international credit course
    2. Use Self-study credit
    3. Rent books or Share
    4.
     
  5. dlcurious

    dlcurious Member

    Nice list, bro.
     
  6. Cyber

    Cyber New Member

    1) Don't buy textbooks. Rent them cheaply, and then return the books before the due dates (bookrenter dot com allows returns within 21 days for a full refund).

    2) Stay away from expensive schools. If you must attend an online-only school, make sure tuition is cheap. If you want an expensive degree, make sure you get it from a school with a physical campus.

    3) Make sure you know the exact cost of your degree before you enroll. If a school hides the tuition amount on their website; if all the say on the tuition page is "apply for financial aid," don't enroll until you know exactly how much it will costs, otherwise, the cost is probably going to be exactly how much you can take out in students loans for the year. Schools that set their yearly tuition rate to correspond to yearly student loan limits, which is $21,500 per year for graduate school, I stay away from (cheap degrees work for what I need them for).

    4) Make sure you drop classes within the time frame that allows 100% tuition refund. If dropping classes become a way to avoid failing them, then you are in the wrong program; time to change program to what you can handle. Dropping classes left and right escalates the cost of your degree.

    5) Look for RA schools that accept transfer credits from DETC schools. Take the maximum allowable credits from a cheap DETC school, and then transfer to the RA school. You save tons of cash this way. Another strategy is to get DETC BS and MS degrees cheaply, and then terminate your education with a doctorate from a RA school (options may be limited).

    (6) Use your education tax credits (Hope and Liftetime) to pay down your student loans while in-school. For example, if you qualify for the yearly 2K maximum that Lifetime education tax credit provides, pay down your student loans with it; you'd be surprise at how less you owe come time to start repaying.

    7) Become a contributing member on DegreeInfo. Fell free to lurk, also.
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Sep 11, 2011

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