Before you even step foot on campus this fall, you should know your budget as well as you know your class schedule. If you graduate with an A+ in personal finance management, that might be the best lesson you learn in your years of higher education. Here are a few tips, reminders and resources you should take advantage of.

Kansas State University put together a few tips for those heading off to college this fall:

• Talk about financial goals and a weekly budget with your parents before you leave and how you can set up an emergency fund to deal with those inevitable college crises
• Get a part-time job
• Have part of the paycheck automatically deduct into a savings account
• Eating out with friends is fun but it needn’t be a budget-breaker. Remember that you can order just a drink or an appetizer rather than a whole entree.
• Remember that credit cards aren’t substitutes for cash. Only use them if you can pay off the balance in full every month.
• In a cash crunch and Mom and Dad all tapped out? Talk to your school’s credit union about financial counseling and an emergency short-term loan.

MONEY MATTERS: SETTING A BUDGET, FINANCIAL PLANNING CAN HELP COLLEGE STUDENTS NOW AND IN FUTURE [Kansas State University] (Thanks to Trevor!)

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