Budgeting: a college essential 

Budgeting is absolutely necessary for college students. Spending your money loosely without considering your budget often leads to a penny-pinching in the Spring semester.

I suggest doing what I do, which is to create a weekly budget. This basic method is done using an Excel spreadsheet, and is recorded once the transaction is completed.

Let’s say you plan on spending $750 per semester. Divide that total by 13, or the number of weeks per semester.

I personally take out that amount of cash from the ATM every Monday morning to make sure I don’t go over my allotted amount.

At the end of every day, subtract your spending from your weekly budget on Excel, especially if you spent money on a debit card.

While all of this still applies to freshman, it is not as big of a concern since they are required to be on meal plan and generally do not have cars on campus. As a senior, I find I spend most of my money on off-campus dining, gas money, and weekend activities.