Browse by Tags
-
Posted
Sep 18 2008, 12:10 PM
by
Karen Datko
Rating:
Money Blog: Smart Spending Blog - MSN Money
We've covered some of the ways to avoid paying the top dollar that textbook publishers demand in the U.S. -- like buying used. But if you can't find the book you need at a lower cost here, "SavvyFrugality" has another suggestion: Buy the international edition. Savvy says in a post at Savvy Frugality, "Believe it or not, students in foreign countries pay much less for textbooks than students here in the U.S." But you can find and buy those books online.
Read More...
-
Posted
Jun 24 2008, 05:45 AM
by
Karen Datko
Rating:
Money Blog: Smart Spending Blog - MSN Money
This post comes from partner blog Blueprint for Financial Prosperity: Do you want to know how I shaved nearly 13% off my college costs? I took Advanced Placement classes. I graduated college a semester early in part because I had loaded up on AP classes while I was in high school. Someone got it into my head that I could take AP classes for free (not counting the nominal fee for the exam) and get college credit for getting high marks on the AP tests. At the time, my brain wasn't thinking, "Oh, I can save money on college," but rather, "I can spend time now and have it count twice -- once in high school and once in college," so it was in part the bit of hustle inside of me that spurred me to action.
Read More...
-
Posted
May 26 2008, 06:45 AM
by
Karen Datko
Rating:
Money Blog: Smart Spending Blog - MSN Money
This post comes from J.D. Roth at partner blog Get Rich Slowly. I recently gave my first-ever presentation about personal finance. I spoke to a group of about 70 graduating seniors from a nearby university. I was the fourth and final speaker of the evening. Before I talked about personal finance, the audience listened to three outstanding descriptions of life after college. Brian Reick The first speaker was Brian Reick, who described his experience of moving from job to job. He began knocking on doors right out of school and eventually found work. But the job wasn't perfect, and neither was he. He was fired after only two years. This experience taught him a couple things:
Read More...
-
Posted
May 12 2008, 12:04 PM
by
Karen Datko
Rating:
Money Blog: Smart Spending Blog - MSN Money
"Money Smart Life" remembers the forced frugality of college: beans and rice, water on cereal because milk is too pricey, buying the cheapest beer, no matter how awful the taste. He also knows how newly employed graduates are tempted to spend. For them, he recounts the tale of the guy who went to an all-you-can-eat buffet after spending four years stranded on a desert island: He goes into shock and almost dies because his appetite wrote a check that his stomach couldn't cash. "Of course you won't die from overspending, but you can literally kill your financial future for years to come if you go on a buying binge," Money Smart Life writes in this down-to-earth post.
Read More...
-
Posted
Mar 11 2008, 06:08 AM
by
Karen Datko
Rating:
Money Blog: Smart Spending Blog - MSN Money
This post comes from partner blog Blueprint for Financial Prosperity. If your employer offers tuition reimbursement and you're not taking advantage of it, you're leaving a tremendous amount of value on the table each year. In the two jobs I've had since graduating college in 2003, I've been lucky enough to be offered the opportunity to pursue higher education in return for sacrificing some of my time. At my first job, every education dollar I spent was fully reimbursed (you were allowed to take two classes a semester, or six a year) with no requirements afterward. In my second job, I was afforded $5,000 a year with some continuation-of-work requirements. Through both programs a majority of my MBA was paid for. In both cases, I took advantage of reimbursement to the fullest extent possible. If you have this opportunity, you should too.
Read More...
-
Posted
Feb 21 2008, 02:23 PM
by
Karen Datko
Rating:
Money Blog: Smart Spending Blog - MSN Money
College students require three "essential liquids," writes Heather Johnson in a guest post at Grad Money Matters: water, coffee and -- you guessed it -- alcohol. Luckily, there are tricks to making them affordable. Heather advises, "Follow these 10 simple strategies and you will never go thirsty again (and you might even have enough money left over to pay your tuition)." First, no more bottled water. Just fill "your friend's empty $9 bottle of volcanic spring water" from the tap, Heather writes. If you must filter tap water, buy a Brita pitcher and don't change the filter. She swears you won't notice the difference. Brew coffee at home, or "caffeinate like a towny" at a low-cost coffee shop. Six of the 10 tips are dedicated to cutting the cost of alcohol, which she says is good to enjoy "every now and again."
Read More...
-
Posted
Dec 10 2007, 02:41 PM
by
Karen Datko
Money Blog: Smart Spending Blog - MSN Money
Mighty Bargain Hunter writes about a family he knows with lots of kids, "somewhere between 'The Brady Bunch' and 'Cheaper by the Dozen.'" How will the parents pay for their children's higher education? They won't. Once the kids reach 18, they're on their own, and they've been told, so they won't be surprised.
Read More...
-
Posted
Nov 27 2007, 06:50 PM
by
Karen Datko
Money Blog: Smart Spending Blog - MSN Money
Clever Dude is conducting an exercise under the heading " What could you give up when you're in financial trouble? " We think it's an excellent question -- one that more people might have to ask themselves if the economy is heading toward recession . CD acknowledges that "different people have different ideas of what defines necessary ," and we think some of his choices will surprise you. Part One of his post identifies "luxuries," a laundry list including the gym, cable TV, home phone and eating out, for a total monthly savings of $297. Part Two lists "semi-luxuries," with $917 to $1,167 in potential monthly savings. On the chopping block are the Honda Ridgeline ($500 a month for the truck payment and insurance), Internet service, and use of the family pool -- "Well, it certainly is a luxury, but you can’t just not open the pool one year and expect it to be fine," he explains. He'd also reduce the utility and cell-phone bills and defer a student-loan payment. We're looking forward to the
Read More...
-
Posted
Nov 20 2007, 01:41 PM
by
Karen Datko
Money Blog: Smart Spending Blog - MSN Money
Having a sense of humor helps when you're the Broke Grad Student . Tops on BGS' list of " 8 unique ways to save money " is cheaper underwear. ("OK, so maybe it makes you feel sexy when you’re dancing in front of the mirror, but do you really need it?" BGS asks.) Our student is also practical, offering " The ultimate tipping guide for college students ." Did you know that the tip should be 15% per tattoos and body piercings? In fact, we think it's very classy that BGS recommends a $2 to $5 tip for housekeeping when you stay at a hotel. How many of you do that? Be honest. Funny and practical, yes, but a post about best and worst financial decisions will tell you why we really like this blogger. Starting a Roth IRA is BGS's pick for best decision, and choosing a pricey private university over a public school was the worst. However, "a good/bad financial decision doesn’t necessarily make it a good/bad decision overall," BGS writes. "My worst financial decision resulted in some of the most memorable
Read More...
-
Posted
Nov 14 2007, 01:29 PM
by
Karen Datko
Money Blog: Smart Spending Blog - MSN Money
Frugal Panda provides an invaluable service with " 17 ways to get free books ." Panda describes Bibliomania , with all kinds of online books, study guides and book discussions, and other online libraries like WOWIO and World Public Library . Many of the sites offer free book swapping (you pay the shipping). Among them are SF-Books , PaperBackSwap and BookMooch , which also allows you to donate points and books to charity. Check out Children's Books Online and Memoware , which provides books and documents for handheld devices. Sociolbib enables college students to recycle used textbooks for free. You can swap books, video games, DVDs and other items at several sites, including Zunafish . We've written previously about one of Panda's picks, BookCrossing , which encourages people to "release books into the wild" and track their journeys online.
More Posts Next page »
|
