Studying abroad is a once in a lifetime experience. Exploring the world, meeting new people, and experiencing new customs all while getting an education and receiving college credit is a dream.
However, what makes this dream a reality is money. You need a lot of it.
From tuition to rent to books, plane tickets, and visas, it can get quite expensive. Most students have to resort to student loans while others get off easy with scholarships. Fortunately, my father funded my trip and I saved up some cash of my own, but my bank account only decreases without an income.
This means that budgeting is essential, especially if you want to be able to travel enough. Unfortunately, budgeting isn’t always the easiest thing to do.
Here are eight tips if you’re balling on a budget while studying abroad.
Cook at home.
Do this as much as you can--breakfast, lunch, and dinner. If you're not going to be back for lunch, pack one. Trust me, you’re not alone if you’re in the Netherlands because everyone packs a lunch. Plus, I find that groceries are very cheap here compared to the states.
Don’t rage every night.
The weekend is paradise for a college student. $1 drink nights, $5 sake bombs, $3 pints--it goes on and on. However, if you’re studying abroad, I suggest that you don’t stick to this routine. If you’re taking a taxi, drinking shots, mixed drinks, or beer all night, that’s €20 down the toilet quickly. In my mind that’s €20 that I could have used to buy a plane ticket. Split a couple of bottles of wine with your friends instead.
Buy a bike.
Especially if you're in a biking friendly city. You buy it once and, other than possible repairs or broken parts, you’ll only spend an overall small amount. In the long run you’ll save money compared to taking the bus (€3,50 for one trip) and you’ll save time compared to walking. Time is money, you know?
Shop around.
This pertains to anything--clothes, restaurants, plane tickets, Airbnbs, hostels, you name it. Don’t settle. Good deals are out there. Ryanair and easyJet are cheap and you don’t sacrifice quality like you would with Wow or Vueling. Skyscanner or going to the flight’s main website on incognito mode will save you a bundle.
Buy what you need, not what you want.
I don’t shop while I’m here. I have no desire to purchase new clothes. If I don’t need it, why would I buy it? Once more it’s the mindset that every single dime that I spend on something else, I could have spent on traveling.
Put your card away. Cash is your friend.
When you go on trips it's easy to throw the plastic to anyone who asks for it. However, this is an easy way to spend money rapidly and without control. Pull out the cash that you need and set some aside along with your credit/debit card. That way what you have in your pocket is what you're able to spend. Once you exceed that limit you should accept defeat and walk away.
Get payments out of the way.
Right away I wanted to get rid of my credit card payment and my rent for the remainder of the semester. Every time that I looked at my bank account, I knew that it was lying to me because I hadn’t paid off certain payments. Now I have nothing to pay off and my bank account only shows what I have left to live. The weight is off my shoulders and it’s easy to calculate at that point.
BUDGET BUDGET BUDGET
If you haven’t paid off your debts and payments, make sure that you factor in those payments every time that you look at your bank account. Now, if you have paid off your debts and payments, look at your total amount. Convert it to Euros and try not to weep while doing it. It’s ugly, I know. Count how many weeks you have left and divide your total by weeks. That’s the maximum of what you can spend each week. I usually keep track of this on my phone every time that I make a purchase.
Even though I didn't anticipate how much money I would be spending over here, budgeting has helped me realize what I can and cannot do. Unfortunately, I've reached my limit, which means that my traveling days are over with, but I can keep my head up high knowing that I didn't completely max out my credit card or deplete my savings account.
At my most successful point of budgeting, and before Italy kicked my bank account's ass, I actually saved €31 on my weekly amount. My weekly budget was only increasing, which only decreased my stress about money. I know that may not seem like a lot, but, in the long run, it really turned out to be much more (like another trip somewhere).
