January is never a healthy time for bank balances. Whether you've splurged your money on mulled wine or elf outfits, most students are waiting hungrily for the next installment of their student loan.
According to a recent survey, a quarter of Britons have a meagre £100 to last for the rest of the month, so, if you're in that 25%, then we've got the solution.
Owen Burek, editor of money saving website Save The Student, told the Huffington Post UK his best tips for student budgeting:
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- Have a financial clean up: Time to get your budget sorted, cancel subscriptions you don't use such as the gym, spend time checking any contracts you have (e.g. utilities, mobile) are the best on offer right now otherwise maybe worth switching
- Beat the sales: Don't be lured in by the numbers alone nor into buying things you wouldn't otherwise buy or need. Then do your research, set your budget & always compare
- Kick the habits: New Year's resolutions give you the opportunity to give up smoking or (heaven forbid!) quit drinking for a month. For added motivation and good feeling do it to raise money for charity at the same time with Dry January.
- Start saving: Can be anything from investing in a penny jar to keeping all the change or even a challenge to put aside £1 a day to save for something extra special later in the year (holiday?). By next January you will have saved enough so that you won't be in this situation, waiting for the next loan installment, again.
- Buy a bike: This is not for everyone but getting your hands on a bike could help you save up to £10 a week on travel and also help you get fitter.
- Sell unwanted gifts: May seem a bit harsh on the person that gave it to you but if you aren't going to use it then sell it. Most students know about sites like eBay and selling unwanted things to raise a little extra cash has never been easier.
We also asked our readers for their best money saving tips. Here are a couple of our favourites:
Got any tips we've missed? Leave them in the comments section below or tweet us @HPUKStudents