Juggling Textbooks & Chequebooks

Know a kid heading off to university this year. Pass this on!

So, you're heading off to the halls of higher learning. Now you'll get the chance to experience life on your own. The freedom can be intoxicating. 'Course, the responsibilities can be somewhat mind-boggling too. And right at the top of the I-don't-know-how-to-do-this list: money management. Here are ten tips to help you manage your money so the last two months of the semester aren't spent slurping ketchup soup.

1. Ferret out the free money: Canadian governments, universities, companies and nonprofit groups sponsor more than 60,000 awards, ranging from $100 to $50,000 or more. Check out Studentawards.com, which has tens of thousands of awards in its database. If you don't apply, you won't get a penny!

2. Make a plan: Knowing how much money you have and how you plan to spend it puts YOU in control. The best way to manage your money over the course of the school year is to sit down and map out a spending plan. (You're gonna spend that money, you might as well have a plan!) If you look under Resources from the main page of this site you'll find two excel spreadsheets available for download: Student Lump Sum Money Worksheet and Student Cash Flow Worksheet. Make sure you build some Good-time Money into your plan so you can have some fun without blowing your budget.

3. Check it twice: Even if you think you've done a pretty good job estimating your expenses, once you get to school track your spending for the first couple of months. You may be surprised at how little things can nibble away at your plan.

4. Pace yourself: Don't be fooled by that deceptively large balance in your bank account at the beginning of the semester. While you may be feeling pretty rich, that money has to last you all year. Spend, spend, spend at the beginning of the semester, and you could end up eating a lot of macaroni-and-cheese.

5. Be smart with your credit: One quick way to spend beyond your means is to charge everything. Ooops, now you're in trouble! To avoid temptation, have one credit card and keep your credit limit low — $500 should be enough. Only charge what you can afford to pay off each month. Paying bills on time and staying out of debt are the keys to a good credit rating and your ability to borrow in the future.

6. Life happens; be prepared: Even with the best planning possible, something's going to happen to push you off track. That's life. Go ahead and have fun. Just be prepared to buckle down on future spending to get yourself back on track.

7. Look ahead: Whether it's a road trip with friends or an auto insurance bill, if you know a big expense is coming, start putting some money aside to pay for it. It's way easier to set aside $25 every month than to come up with $300 when the bill is due.

8. Look for ways to save: Differentiate between what you want and what you truly need. And always be on the lookout for ways to save. Use the library for borrowing books, catching up on your favorite magazines and as a study space. There's less of a temptation to spend money at the library than there would be in a coffee shop. Read your campus newspapers for university-sponsored entertainment events.

Reconcile yourself to the life of a poor student while you're in school and you won't have to live like a poor student when you're done. Many graduates enter the work world weighed down by debt, which can linger for years and years. Don't let this be you.

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