You have just obtained your bachelor's degree, now is the time to move on to university life. In some cases, you can still depend on your parents. On the other hand, if you want to have financial independence, you are advised to establish the monthly budget to fully live your student life.
List the monthly expenses
To properly manage your monthly student budget, it is essential to know the amount you have available, for example the assistance provided by your parents, that of the APL, the salary for temporary work or the scholarship. Next, you need to take stock of your sources of money each month while noting expected monthly expenses. The main expense is certainly housing. You need to budget for rent, electricity, heat and water. Then, it is important for you to estimate the amount of monthly transportations. This criterion varies from the number of trips you make on a daily basis, as well as the distance between your accommodation and the university. Also, you are advised to make a list of your current expenses such as food, student health insurance, telephone and internet packages.
Try to save on daily basis
In the hope of managing your monthly student budget more efficiently, you need to save money at all costs. For housing, for example, you can find a roommate with whom you will share the rent. Regarding school supplies, it is advisable to become a member of the library in order to avoid the purchase of essential books. For food, prefer meals in university restaurants. By showing your student card, you can indeed benefit from a considerable reduction. Apart from this, to save on food, you are also advised to prepare your meals at home. With regard to leisure, your student card sometimes entitles you to price reductions for museum visits, for university shows, etc.
Manage the monthly student budget
In order not to be at zero at the end of each month, it seems a good idea to write down each expense and each receipt of money. One way to do this is to use an Excel table, for example, to list what you have and what you spend per month. This indeed allows you to visualize second-degree expenses. You can then remove them from your list the following month. The goal is to avoid living above your monthly student budget or face real money worries.