The days of college students getting credit cards are gone. New legislation makes it much harder for people under 21 to get a credit card. In order to do so now, the applicant who is under 21 has to have a parent or guardian co-sign the credit card agreement or they must be able to prove they can make the payments. As most of these people are still in school, it’s highly likely they’ll be shut out from obtaining a credit card without their parent’s permission. Where are they going to turn to when they need emergency cash for books, a medical problem, or just for extra cash?

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Next to tuition, books are the next most important and expensive item on a college student’s academic list of expenses. Textbooks can range cost hundreds of dollars, and are heavy to cart from one place to another. Many of these books are now available through e-readers, like the Kindle DX, and at much lower cost than in physical format. As college students tend to be early adopters of technology, you will see many of them going for the e-reader instead of buying their textbooks at the college bookstore.

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After we graduate from high school, we have decisions to make that will truly affect the rest of our lives. When we commit to either a full-time job, college or even both, we are maturing and need to start to consider our financial realities. In many cases, we are on our own and must take care of our bills on our own, which can be very difficult with a low-paying entry-level job. In many cases, we must find a way to make end meet with limited help from our parents. They sometimes pay for our schooling or help us secure loans to do so, but with current salaries, our parents are often stretched to the limit. We need to find ways to cut corners for our and their financial situation. Fortunately, there are ways to cut corners and spend wisely that will help us get by when we are in college. Making sure we have a budget that lets us know when we will have shortfalls is essential. We can manipulate our spending and know when we can and can’t buy certain items.

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If we lived in a perfect world becoming wealthy wouldn’t be hard to do.  However, our world isn’t perfect and it takes a little bit of work to become a millionaire.  If you have children it is the perfect time to begin amassing a small fortune for them.  The best time to start this path to wealth is when they are newborns if at all possible.  You don’t have to put a lot of cash away for your child when they are infants, but it should be done on a monthly or even weekly basis.  Teaching your children about finances is probably one of the best things you can do, and if they have their own account they can see proof of your teachings.

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In the past, students were besieged with credit card offers a few years before graduation. The cards proved too tempting to most college students who weren’t informed enough to use them responsibly, leading to a significant debt burden upon graduation. Whether that situation was a problem of poor financial management on the part of the student or aggressive credit card tactics that targeted a vulnerable demographic, changes have now been made. While much of what is happening is good news, other people fear it can lead to an increase in other types of loans amongst college aged students, most notably payday loans.

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That’s a question that many new college students are beginning to ask themselves. In this recession, the horror stories of graduates going into the worst job market in decades armed with a degree that cost them $30,000 or more in debt, have made some college students reassess decisions for college. Too expensive options are frequently being put aside for more reasonable choices: community colleges, in-state colleges, and foregoing the on-campus experience. A college degree may be more of a necessity than ever, but the debt that goes along with it can easily be done without. (more…)

Student loan statistics indicate that the average 2009 college graduate is going to receive their diploma and be in debt to the tune of $22,000 in student loans. This does not take into consideration the roughly $9,000 in additional credit card debt that a majority of students will graduate with as well. This leaves many people just entering the job market with an enormous financial burden. Even someone with good financial management skills will be challenged to meet their basic expenses easily. (more…)

To get ahead in life by securing a great paying and secure job, one of the best things a person can do is complete his or her education. The number of years in college would depend on the degree being earned and the job focused on, which ranges anywhere from two to ten years or more. While some people are more interested in doing something they love, others look at career opportunities based on pay and then decide what they want to be. Regardless, people should take time to learn about the starting salary after college for various career paths. (more…)

Many people express interest at going to college and furthering their education, but state that this particular goal is out of their reach. The primary reason given by most people for not going is that college is too expensive. While the price of college tuition has increased, so has the amount available through a variety of federal grants, scholarships, and student loans. People are, unfortunately, severely uninformed when it comes to the types of assistance available in order to help them get through school. When it appears that all college expenses must be paid out of pocket, it’s easy to become overwhelmed by the total cost. With a bit of help from the various forms of financial aid that are available, attending college becomes a very attainable goal. (more…)

Graduating from college is supposed to be one of the most hopeful times in a person’s life. Upon receiving a degree, the world is supposed to become your oyster and the job market is supposed to be a vast field from which you can choose the job that you like the most. For the roughly 1.5 million people graduating in 2009, however, the prospect is a bit different. While the dream scenario has been true for many graduating classes, 2009 college graduates find themselves entering the job market at the time when there is the least money available for hiring new workers. (more…)