College Tuition: More Bang for Your Buck

College tuition rates have sky rocketed 1200% in recent months. In fact, some studies show that some of the facts I use are exaggerated or even totally made up.

On a serious note, college tuition is no joke. I spent nearly $40,000 on my degree from UNT. And UNT is one of the more decently priced universities in Texas. One day I sat down and read through my tuition bill. I was paying all kinds of fees I didn’t know about. Library fee, sports equipment fee, advising fee, medical fee. What the heck was I paying a medical fee for? I was still on my parents’ health insurance. It was a non-negotiable. That’s how they make their money. They give you access to all these resources, charge you for it, and forget to tell you what you’re paying for!

I figured out that I had a lot of resources available to me that I wasn’t fully taking advantage of. Here is goes:

  • The library. Use it. All of it. Check out books, use the computers, use the Wi-Fi, print your class notes. Seriously. Get your money’s worth. If you have a “printing credit,” use that too! Don’t purchase every book on your syllabus. If it’s for a project later on, you can probably rent it or check it out. I guarantee you can’t sell a textbook back for what you paid.giphy13
  • The gym. If you’re into fitness, here’s your chance. Your college probably has one. And you probably already have a membership. Use it! Sign up for the free classes, if you want. Do some laps in the pool. Or just wear workout clothes and hang out in the locker room so people think you work out. You’re paying for it.giphy14
  • Academic resources. I used the writing lab ONCE in my entire collegiate career. I wish I would’ve gone more. My GPA might’ve been higher. Seriously. You pay a little fee for these services, and hardly anyone uses them. Have them proofread an essay or school you in that statistics homework. You can’t know everything. Just show up with questions.giphy15
  • It took me awhile to catch onto this one. Students have access to this Health Clinic/Wellness center. They even had a pharmacy! Routine wellness visits were FREE for students and we got discounted prescriptions. I had no idea.giphy16
  • Career center! You more than likely pay some sort of advising or counseling fee. Don’t feel pressured to make a major or career decision on your own. Talk to a counselor or academic advisor and see what they think. That’s what they there for. More often than not, they’ll be flattered that you need there help with something other than dropping a course.giphy17
  • Hello, the best perk of being a college student: Discounts. Because Broke College Student is kind of an understood stereotype, college kids get discounts all kinds of places. Restaurants, movies, memberships, even Spotify has a student discount. It never hurts to ask.b3f68afa7088cb5057f4d58d3b9b2c54
  • I’m pretty sure University transportation is also free. So if you live close to campus, skip the $300 parking pass and catch the bus to class. Nobody is gonna judge you. In fact, I’ll applaud you for being smart and saving your money. Because, hello, parking passes are stupidly expensive. Who pays $300 to walk a mile to campus? Me, that’s who. Ugh. giphy18

I doubt this list comes close to covering all of the discounts and resources available to college kids. It’s just a start. But help me out here. What are some other resources and discounts to college kids that you know about?

This blog was written by FTWCCU Marketing/Digital Commerce Assistant, Sammie Arriola.