Student Credit Card and Credit Education Blog

What does the average college student need most in 2009? Hmmm, that’s easy. MONEY!

You’ve been super supportive reading our blogs, leaving awesome blog comments, hanging out in the forums and checking out products and reviews. We’ve had a great year and to say thank you we’re going to give you MONEY!

We’re thrilled to announce that we will be sponsoring $25,000 in college scholarships through our friends at ScholarshipPoints.com.

We will award the scholarships via random drawing so don’t worry about writing an essay or your GPA.

You can win $2,500 per month from January to June and then in July we cap things off with a $10,000 scholarship.

For more details check out our scholarship page here.

These scholarships are possible thanks to our partnership with CardOffers.com which features the #1 student credit card on our opinion and overwhelmingly by our student visitors as well: The Citi® mtvU™ Credit Card for College Students

Here’s to a great 2009 and lots and lots of money for college!

Got your own checking account? If so, do you love it or just feel it’s a necessary part of becoming an adult? I love mine and let me tell you why.

1. I hate ATM fees so I never pay them.
2. I hate to pay for a checking account so I don’t have to.
3. I hate paying for checks; I don’t do that.
4. I hate to keep a minimum balance, I don’t bother.
5. I hate to worry about where my bank is if I move.
6. I love free ATM Debit cards.
7. I love to earn interest on the money in my checking account.
8. I love to make free online payments for things.
9. I love to be able to get direct deposit from my employer.
10. I love free online banking so I can manage my money from home.

Are you feeling checking account envy? Don’t because there are banks out there which offer students all of this and more. If you don’t have a checking account- get one! When you apply for loans you will be asked if you have one and they help boost your credit score.

Consider opening a new checking account ASAP to save money at ATMs and make money on your balance. If you already have a checking account, switching is easy. Just open the new one for free and keep the old one open for a little while. Gradually start depositing and paying bills from the new one so there is a smooth transition.

Below are the best options to start 2009 with a smarter checking account.

If you are a scholarship point collector try CHECKBABY for 10 points at www.ScholarshipPoints.com.

Between the various holidays, my last final exam (let’s hear it for 3 hour final exams!  Woohoo!  ZZZZZZ), the ice storm we’re still recovering from, the upcoming New Year’s party… ING once again went onto the back burner.  I did get a few dollars from relatives, which will go into the account, but the fact of the matter is, I have been remiss in my attempts to build up $500.  Add in the fact that I already cut corners before this opportunity was presented, and the odds were against quite a bit.  Still, it’s not in my nature to give up; there’s still time, and maybe a stray $500 bill will blow across my path as I shovel snow today.

You know all those relatives who you see like 3 times each year? The ones that don’t have any clue what to get you for Christmas. They probably just handed you a card with a bunch of cash in it, right? Well, do yourself a favor. Take half, pretend you never got it in the first place, and just put it in your ING Direct Savings Account. You’ll thank yourself later.

It was great blogging for you all. I hope you all enjoyed my savings tips, and hopefully I have helped some of you actually save. Good luck to all with your future savings!

-Brad

Nine days left. Nine days till the ball drops on ’08 and nine days till the savings challenge comes to an official close. Boy did this year fly by. It always astounds me how quickly time marches on. Time yields for no man. But I am ready to make one final mad savings dash to the finish line before we officially usher in 2009.

The stretch run is within view, and all my finals are now resting comfortably behind me. I can almost taste that $500 savings goal! My plan is simple, start renting movies this last week and a half before the New Year.

Now you should know I’m a chubby movie buff. I love watching movies and can do so for hours on end. What I don’t like however is the $10.50 ticket price (I think matinees are $8 bucks). Those tickets prices add up when you see as many movies as I do. After finals each semester I usually take in several movies; it’s a great escape for me.

Through the years I’ve tried to save some money when going to the theatre. I’ve loaded my jacket with lots of food and drinks so not to pay $6 for a Pepsi or $5 for some Junior Mints. I’ve snuck into a second movie several time, and even figured out a way to get in for free sometimes. But I’m getting to old for that now.

Instead of going to the theatre I might as well order a movie on pay-per-view for $3.99 or get a movie from RedBox at the grocery store for $1 with no late fees. No question that would save me a load of cash! Granted, it won’t be the latest release but there are so many movies I want to see that it wouldn’t be a big deal.

So that’s it. That’s my last cost cutting/saving measure. However, I’m not sure I’ll get to the $500 goal; it will be close. Although perhaps if I fall short I could petition congress for a Marty Bailout package. Gotta run, the previews are coming on…

Seasons Greetings! 

I know I told you all that you were not on my Christmas list this year.  But, you’ll be happy to hear that I changed my mind.  Yes, I decided to surprise you with a little gift from me.     No – Sorry –  I am not passing out holiday cards filled with cash nor am I making each of you one of my personalized picture or music CD’s.    Instead, in the true holiday spirit of savings,  I gifting you with a special song that I hope you will all enjoy!

On the first day of Savings,        
Captain J sent to me
A point code in a survey.  

On the second day of Savings,
Captain J sent to me
Two tips for saving,
And a point code in a survey.

On the third day of Savings, 
Captain J sent to me
Three frugal shoppers,
Two tips for saving,
And a point code in a survey.

On the fourth day of Savings,
Captain J sent to me
Four recycling rootbeer buddies,  
Three frugal shoppers,
Two tips for saving,
And a point code in a survey.

On the fifth day of Savings,
Captain J sent to me
Five scholarship points,
Four recycling rootbeer buddies, 
Three frugal shoppers,
Two tips for saving,
And a point code in a survey.

On the sixth day of Savings, 
Captain J sent to me
Six savers a-blogging,
Five scholarship points,
Four recycling rootbeer buddies,
Three frugal shoppers,
Two tips for saving,
And a point code in a survey.

On the seventh day of Savings, 
Captain J sent to me
Seven students a-saving,
Six savers a-blogging,
Five scholarship points,
Four recycling rootbeer buddies,
Three frugal shoppers,
Two tips for saving,
And a point code in a survey.

On the eighth day of Savings, 
Captain J sent to me
Eight members a-hoping,
Seven students a-saving,
Six savers a-blogging,
Five scholarship points,
Four recycling rootbeer buddies,
Three frugal shoppers,
Two tips for savings,
And a point code in a survey.

On the ninth day of Savings, 
Captain sent to me
Nine launderers scrounging,
Eight members a-hoping,
Seven students a-saving,
Six savers a-blogging,
Five scholarship points,
Four recycling rootbeer buddies,
Three frugal shoppers,
Two tips for savings,
And a point code in a survey.

On the tenth day of Savings, 
Captain J sent to me
Ten loans a-looming,
Nine launderer scrounging,
Eight members a-hoping,
Seven students a-saving,
Six savers a-blogging,
Five scholarship points,
Four recycling rootbeer buddies,
Three frugal shoppers,
Two tips for savings,
And a point code in a survey.

On the eleventh day of Savings,
Captain J sent to me
Eleven Pointers pointing,
Ten loans a-looming,
Nine launderer scrounging,
Eight members a-hoping,
Seven students a-saving,
Six savers a-blogging,
Five scholarship points,
Four recycling rootbeer buddies,
Three frugal shoppers,
Two tips for savings,
And a point code in a survey.

On the twelfth day of Savings, 
Captain J sent to me
Twelve scholarship chances,
Eleven Pointers pointing,
Ten loans a-looming,
Nine launderer scrounging,
Eight members a-hoping,
Seven students a-saving,
Six savers a-blogging,
Five scholarship points,
Four recycling rootbeer buddies,
Three frugal shoppers,
Two tips for savings,
And a point code in a survey!

Yep,  see what being snowbound in the house for 3 days (without a a car of you own to skid around town) does to you!     OK,  the song’s a lame & cheap gift but so what … didn’t your mother ever tell you that it’s the thought that counts?      So, be gracious already and just say “Thank You, Matt.”   

Disclaimer: Read at your own risk – may make no savings sense!

ZZZZZZZZ

It sure has been a long, tiring week!  As you can see from my picture, I am asleep at my desk after an exhausting week of final exams.  Actually, I just woke up for you – my savings friends – to share my weekly savings story with you.

However,  I simply do not have the energy to even think (never mind write) at this moment.   So, let’s just cut through the chase and get to my bits of good news for the week:

1. Hooray … Final exams are over and the long awaited winter break has finally arrived!   I can’t even express how much I look forward to being a lazy bum for a few weeks and catching up on my precious sleep!  <yawn>
2. Mysteriously, my wallet somehow still had $20 left in it by end of last week.   Amazing, isn’t it?  Yet, it really is not much of a mystery where this “extra money” came from.   I was so busy studying last week that I had absolutely no time on my hands to spend any money.

Hmmm … What to do with this “extra money”?   Oh, the possibilities to consider!   This never happens to me;  I never have money leftover at the end of the week to spend at my will.   So, guess what I did with the money?  <yawn> No, I did not buy more rootbeer (tempted though).  No, I did not buy YOU a Christmas present (never even crossed my mind). Yes, I deposited the money into my ING Savings Account.

Impressed, aren’t you?  Well, don’t be just yet!  Hey, I know I have come a long way in my savings habits since this saving challenge started, but I’m really not that good yet.   The plain truth is that I simply was too exhausted to do anything more than hit the ING savings account deposit button.   But, it’s all good because now, with the money out of sight & out of mind, I can go back to sleep in peace (in the same broke student state that I have grown so accustomed to).  

So, in the end – with this Savings Challenge just about over – I bid you goodnight and goodbye telling you that although I did not reach my $500 savings goal by yearend, I am still much better off for my participation.   I can now say that I have some personal savings, which is much more than I could say just over two months ago.   And, I really hope that you can say the same thing!

Happy Holidays to everyone!   Hope to talk to you all again sometime next years!

ZZZZZZ   zzzzzz  ZZZZZZ   zzzzzzzz

This post kind of builds off of Kuri’s post. I think she’s got a point. Eating out is expensive when you go to a sit-down restaurant. When you go with a fast food place because it’s cheap, you end up eating food that is less than healthy. Learning how to cook a few simple things can greatly benefit your wallet and your gut.

Not so good at cooking? For all of you who enjoy video games, there is a new one out for the Nintendo DS called Personal Trainer: Cooking. It basically walks you through cooking a decent meal. I don’t have it yet, but it’s on my Christmas list. Don’t like video games? There are plenty of things you can buy at the store that require little more than boiling or throwing it in the oven. A lot of these could probably even last more than one meal. Eating in is a great way to stretch your money.

What if you don’t have a stove/oven? I have this problem while I am in my college dorm. The only cooking apparatus they allow is a microwave. There are some decent things you can get for the microwave, but be careful. A lot of them are relatively expensive. I suggest looking for foods that can be cooked in the oven or microwave (like pizza rolls). Buying in bulk helps cut costs even more (get the 90 pack instead of the 40 or 15).

That’s all I have for now.

-Brad

I was going to blog at the end of the week last week, after studying all the rest before, but then life got in the way: an ice storm knocked out power, telephone…everything.  Layers of ice continued to build, as people rushed to get their usual supplies: salt for the sidewalks, scrapers, shovels, generators, gasoline, blankets, milk, bread, eggs, alcohol (yeah, seriously… some people were stocking up on beer).  Times like these, priorities change and they change quickly.  The cell phone I keep for personal emergencies became the lifeline for finding out the status of others, if they needed anything: wood, candles, even cat food!  My own house was lucky, since we had a working fireplace with lots of wood, and a gas stove, so we could keep warm and do some cooking.   I also found out one roommate had a collection of flashlights and a radio, so we could stop walking into walls so much and listen to the devastation that took place.

So, I guess in terms of ING challenge, I’m not doing so great.  In terms of coping with one of the worst storms in such a long time…. I’m content.

Wednesday is my last day of this semester. One more final and I can finally roll around doing nothing. (My favorite pastime.)

Have you ever noticed to save money, we eat cheap? I’m thinking dollar menus at quick drive-bys. Have you also notice our waists pay the price when eating cheap? Sure, it’s a lot easier on one’s wallet to spend a dollar than to spend six dollars on a healthy meal. But the price we ultimately pay? A body with less energy, and a brain with no juice. Occasionally having that cheap meal is all right. However, running into that mess may make everything harder to run away from. So save money, but at the same time, watch your health!

Home-cooked meals are a lot more appetizing and can save your wallet’s life! When you’ve mastered the art of cuisine, then BAM! We control the ingredients and in turn, we control the amount of fat we place onto our plates. Don’t forget, always be on the look-out for sales. Just yesterday, I went to the supermarket because I was bored. (Yes, I go to supermarkets to kill my time) And you know what I found? I found CAKE MIX. FOR SALE. Instead of the usual 1 for $2.25, it was a measly 2 for $1.99. I was in cake heaven. I trotted home happily and had a weeks supply of endless cake-eating!

Ok, so maybe some of you don’t do cake diets. Try your very own. You like them burritos!? Try making them. You control the ingredients. On an earlier blog, look look look for sales and if you could, clip some coupons!

One last helpful tip that I found is this website: http://www.retailmenot.com
Have you noticed before paying for some online item, there are “Redemption Codes” or “Discount Code” somewhere on the payment website? Retail-me-not finds those codes for you and you pay less. Sounds great, huh?

KURI UPDATE!
I haven’t been depositing money into my savings account. BUT I WILL! Watch me, Scholarship Points! I will reach that goal by December 31, 2008!

10 days till Christmas. (And counting)

Happy Holidays!