Budgeting is the backbone of any fiscal plan. While you are in school, you create a budget to help you live off of your available funds. A budget can help a student keep from having to take out emergency loans or use credit cards to make ends meet.

After you leave school and enter repayment, a budget will assist you in making financial decisions concerning your repayment options and or savings arrangements. A budget tracks your spending and helps create your monthly cash flow. Budgeting is a primary topic that is covered with every level of student. From basic to detailed, we are available to help our students create a budget that makes sense to them and works for their specific situation.

 

Behind every budget there is a specific goal in mind.

The goal can be as simple as saving an additional $10 a month, or as detailed as spending less on food, gas, and entertainment. Regardless of what a student sets out to accomplish by creating their budget, it is important that the goals are realistic and attainable. Setting unrealistic goals can cause for a student to become discouraged and stray away from the budgeting process out of frustration.

The idea is to set attainable goals so that a student can feel a sense of accomplishment when they have met or exceeded their budget target.

 

Student Resources

Budget Handout - A quick guide to creating a budget and determining some ways to cut costs.
View Handout

Budgeting Worksheet – Excel formatted monthly budget for students to download and edit to their liking. View Budget Document