Being a poor student is ridiculously over-rated. Having just calculated my budget for the coming school year, (and having reached the sad conclusion that I can spend about 8.5
0 euros per day before declaring bankruptcy), well, let’s just say that the small sacrifices we make are coming into sharp relief.
While on ‘holiday’ (actually, licking my financial wounds while bumming off of my parents in the United States), everything seemed possible: a new pair of shoes? Done. A massage? Done. Buying out-of-season imported fruits, giant steaks and good wine? Easy. In fact, my parents were so relieved to have a live-in cook that they gave me free range at the supermarket. Somehow, hundreds of dollars worth of grocery bills escaped their notice. They were just happy to have me home and cooking.
Now, as all of us weary returning students know, the joys of being young and semi-educated are happily exaggerated by the presence of cheap beers and something warm in our tummies. In various ways, we’ve all learned to control our spending. But for the new-comers to university life, a few tips might be in order….
When your parents show up to check out your new digs, use them. They miss you and they want to be helpful, so let them help. We’re talking staples here: invest in some edible items that can live on the back of your shelf until that day you return home, hungry and broke (and are reduced to eating dry Cup-a-Soup directly from the Styrofoam packaging).
Make sure you have enough beer money to get you through the month, and make sure you have enough friends who are willing to have you over for dinner. (If you get to the end of the month with the beer budget intact, and the food budget empty, you might actually come to the realization that some things are more important than a night of drunken debauchery, although this is an especially difficult realization for freshmen.)
Take a job as a Student Assistant — you get a magical key that opens up untold wonders. These wonders are, namely, free coffee from the machines strategically placed throughout university. You’ll save a bundle, and you’ll make even more friends by offering coffee to under-caffeinated passersby – friends whom you can then use for free dinners. See the beauty of the system?
And here’s a small trick from one desperate student who was constantly living off her credit card: wrap that little sucker in aluminum foil and then when you’re tempted to take it out and swipe it you’ll be forced to unpeel the layers of foil in front of a highly amused cashier. This could be an efficient deterrent for those who are less eager to become a source of laughter.
Ok, but let’s face it, there’s no easy way to save money. You’ve got to give up something. If you’re lucky, the sacrifices won’t cut into your lifestyle. It’s easy to bike instead of taking the bus, or to choose the C1000 over Albert Heijn. But if you’re reallystrapped for cash, you may be forced to trade in the cigarettes, the glossy magazines, the booze, and all those guilty pleasures that make up the periphery of your identity. The plus side of all this (yes, there’s a plus side) is that learning to live without only makes you appreciate things more. A cigarette will taste so much better after a week of cravings. A glass of beer will quench your thirst like no other when you have that first sip. The sun will shine brightly, people will be smiling, and all will be right with the world.
Or perhaps not. But what doesn’t kill you only makes you stronger, and you’ll be a few euro richer. Perhaps even rich enough to be able to make it through until your parents visit again. And if it’s looking really hopeless, give them a call and invite them over. They’ll appreciate it, and you’ll get a whole new stock of Cup-a-Soup.
Dorothy Parker, MSc Architecture, is from the United States.
e-mail:onbezorgd@gmail.com
Being a poor student is ridiculously over-rated. Having just calculated my budget for the coming school year, (and having reached the sad conclusion that I can spend about 8.50 euros per day before declaring bankruptcy), well, let’s just say that the small sacrifices we make are coming into sharp relief.
While on ‘holiday’ (actually, licking my financial wounds while bumming off of my parents in the United States), everything seemed possible: a new pair of shoes? Done. A massage? Done. Buying out-of-season imported fruits, giant steaks and good wine? Easy. In fact, my parents were so relieved to have a live-in cook that they gave me free range at the supermarket. Somehow, hundreds of dollars worth of grocery bills escaped their notice. They were just happy to have me home and cooking.
Now, as all of us weary returning students know, the joys of being young and semi-educated are happily exaggerated by the presence of cheap beers and something warm in our tummies. In various ways, we’ve all learned to control our spending. But for the new-comers to university life, a few tips might be in order….
When your parents show up to check out your new digs, use them. They miss you and they want to be helpful, so let them help. We’re talking staples here: invest in some edible items that can live on the back of your shelf until that day you return home, hungry and broke (and are reduced to eating dry Cup-a-Soup directly from the Styrofoam packaging).
Make sure you have enough beer money to get you through the month, and make sure you have enough friends who are willing to have you over for dinner. (If you get to the end of the month with the beer budget intact, and the food budget empty, you might actually come to the realization that some things are more important than a night of drunken debauchery, although this is an especially difficult realization for freshmen.)
Take a job as a Student Assistant — you get a magical key that opens up untold wonders. These wonders are, namely, free coffee from the machines strategically placed throughout university. You’ll save a bundle, and you’ll make even more friends by offering coffee to under-caffeinated passersby – friends whom you can then use for free dinners. See the beauty of the system?
And here’s a small trick from one desperate student who was constantly living off her credit card: wrap that little sucker in aluminum foil and then when you’re tempted to take it out and swipe it you’ll be forced to unpeel the layers of foil in front of a highly amused cashier. This could be an efficient deterrent for those who are less eager to become a source of laughter.
Ok, but let’s face it, there’s no easy way to save money. You’ve got to give up something. If you’re lucky, the sacrifices won’t cut into your lifestyle. It’s easy to bike instead of taking the bus, or to choose the C1000 over Albert Heijn. But if you’re reallystrapped for cash, you may be forced to trade in the cigarettes, the glossy magazines, the booze, and all those guilty pleasures that make up the periphery of your identity. The plus side of all this (yes, there’s a plus side) is that learning to live without only makes you appreciate things more. A cigarette will taste so much better after a week of cravings. A glass of beer will quench your thirst like no other when you have that first sip. The sun will shine brightly, people will be smiling, and all will be right with the world.
Or perhaps not. But what doesn’t kill you only makes you stronger, and you’ll be a few euro richer. Perhaps even rich enough to be able to make it through until your parents visit again. And if it’s looking really hopeless, give them a call and invite them over. They’ll appreciate it, and you’ll get a whole new stock of Cup-a-Soup.
Dorothy Parker, MSc Architecture, is from the United States.
e-mail:onbezorgd@gmail.com
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