You can find oogles and oogles of "what you need to know for college" lists; but once the second week is over and the waking up at 7am to "get a great start to your day" doesn't work, you fall short on how to live like a real college kid. When you've started the ramen noodle binge and you're scraping for change to afford the dollar menu, there's only one cheat sheet you need to refer to. This one's not made for the Netflix version of college, but for the real life, freshman-fifteen, college life.

1. Dominos has a rewards System

You will use it. You will deny that you are going to use it, and then one day it will hit you that you need to use it. There’s no shame in ordering pizza three times a week, but there is shame in not getting rewarded for it.

2. A lot of places have student discounts

From sushi places, to thrift stores, to amazon – most places offer student discounts or even college nights. Do some googling to find out what places near your college offer such discounts. Some places might not advertise it, and you may just need to ask; there’s no harm in seeking out a cheap dinner or textbook.

3. Use the self-checkout and take extra bags for garbage liners

Garbage liners for those awkward shaped rectangle garbages are either impossible to find or super expensive. Take the cheap way out. When you go to Target or Walmart, grab a few extra plastic bags from the self-checkout. If they ask, just say that little tube of mascara needed a triple-bagging.

4. The Dollar Store will be your best friend

When second semester comes around, and you suffer a mini heart attack from looking at your bank account, have no fear as the dollar store is around the store. The Dollar Store aka Heaven For A Broke College Kid will come in clutch for all your needs. Snacks, cards, cleaning utensils, craft supplies, and any other random nick nack college has you needing, the dollar store has your back. Get used to using it before you run that bank account dry.

5. Online rummage sales are great for scraping cash

Facebook online rummage sales come in handy for two things. For one, you can buy cheap items you may need – clothes, a shoe rack, or decorations (okay, maybe you don’t actually need that). Trust me, you will get sick of looking at the same ten shirts, or the same decorations for nine months, and the same time you get sick of it is the same time you go broke – so, take the cheap way out. It’s also good for getting cash when you’re low. Feel free to sell that shirt you no longer wear, or those pair of shoes you just had to have but haven’t worn since you bought. Search on Facebook for rummage sale sights in your town.

6. Ask for punch cards

This goes with the student discounts and rewards system: just ask - most places carry them. No need to feel guilty about your 10^th smoothie when it’s free!

7. Stock up on free food while it's offered

A lot of events held on campus offer cans of pop, bags of chips, granola bars and so on. Be courteous of others, but don’t feel bad for sneaking another bag. Stop by when the event is dying down; chances are they have extras that they need to get rid of so stuff those pockets. And fill up your stomach with all the free food every chance you get; it eventually becomes a natural college-kid instinct.

8. Only bring cheap water bottles to parties

If you so choose to go to a party, be smart. Bring a cheap water bottle, because chances are if you lost your friend in the party, you probably lost your water bottle, too. Campus’ usually hand out free bottles at the beginning of the school year. This goes for anything at a party – leave the nice stuff home. Frat jackets are a thing and there’s no shame in them (a frat jacket is a cheap jacket you don’t care about that you wear to parties in the winter just in case someone decides they want to steal it).

9. Save your DD's life by sharing your location

This goes without saying, you’ll need a DD. It’s best to find one before the night gets started. Friends make great DDs, and if all else fails, call your campus Uber. It’s best to set up a time and turn on your location on your phone. On your phone, there's an option to share your location temporarily with a friend; this is perfect for when you're actually four blocks away then where you tell them you are.

10. Save your graduation gift-cards for desperate times

Chances are you received a whole envelope full of gift-cards for your high school graduation. As handy as the may seem when you still have a few hundred bucks left in your bank account, they don’t really come in handy until you only have $6.77 in your bank account. Save those Starbucks, Target, and Walmart gift cards for full desperation mode when you can’t even afford a pack of ramen noodles.

For incoming freshman, you may be laughing at these now; but, soon you'll be laughing at how pathetically true these are. You don't realize how desperate digging for change looks until it's the only money you have left. You also don't realize how many times a week you order Jimmy Johns for delivery until the driver knows your name. This cheat sheet will help you make it through the rough part of college that we all get a good laugh at. Sometimes, there's nothing better than laughing and bonding with your friends about how desperate college has made you.