<p>Hey all,</p>
<p>I've been arguing /w my parents about this for a little while now. They wont give me a monthly allowance. They deposited 2k in my account at the beginning of the year and expected that to be enough. My roommate gets 300/mo, and my boyfriend gets 500/mo. What is the avg monthly allowance? I've gone through various fin aid guides, but couldn't find a recommended amount. I would say 300/mo is reasonable. What do you guys think?</p>
<p>mm</p>
<p>I get about 470 dollars per month if you divide up my financial aid deposit.</p>
<p>Why dont u just get a job.</p>
<p>I get $1200 per month to pay for EVERYTHING.. rent, internet, tv, electricity, food, phone etc.. and since my rent is $960, that leaves $260/month for everything else.</p>
<p>i got... $200 put into my bank account when i ran out of money a couple of weeks into the semester. i just ran out again.</p>
<p>its amazing what not eating out all the time or buying clothes can do.</p>
<p>Errr...2000 is a lot...I mean, what's that supposed to cover? (I'm assuming no rent) Maybe it won't go as far as </p>
<p>Most universities, on their financial aid site, have a little chart of "estimated costs", and usually one row is for personal fees. For example, at my school, they put personal fees at 1,326 living on campus, and 1,534 off campus, then another 1,266 for books and supplies. </p>
<p>I personally admit to spending more than 2000 during a school year, but I know it's unnecessary so I wouldn't ask for more and so I have a job. My parents put in 1500 for me for the school year. </p>
<p>You can read more about spending habits here: <a href="http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/showthread.php?t=185678%5B/url%5D">http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/showthread.php?t=185678</a></p>
<p>That's huge compared to the money I go through in a month. I only work during the summer and allot myself about $100 a month for spending money. Not once have I ever had to spend more than this (usually, I'll only spend about $50 a month).</p>
<p>My only advice would be to try to find out what you spend the most money on, and then try to cut back on those items/services. Some of the most common things people spend too much money on (IMHO) are:</p>
<p>Food - Buy cheaper food. 'Nuff said.</p>
<p>Eating out - This is huge. I'm blown away by how much money people waste by eating out(ie restaurants, fast food) when they could eat for a fraction of the price at home. Even if you only eat out every second day, you could save a ton of money by cutting back.</p>
<p>Snacks - Don't buy impulse items or stuff from vending machines. If you absolutely must have junk food, buy it at the grocery store.</p>
<p>Booze - If you love to party, you can save tons of money by simply cutting back on your partying and/or the amount of booze you drink and/or the type of booze you drink.</p>
<p>Movies - If you are a huge movie-goer, this would be another thing to cut back on.</p>
<p>Clothes - This mostly affects women, who seem to spend insane amounts of money on clothes. If you're a guy, you really shouldn't be spending that much money on clothes (unless you're a tool, in which case I hate you).</p>
<p>Aside from those core areas, try to keep all entertainment relating spending to a minimum. Looking back at the OP, I realize the poster probably wasn't looking for a rant on how to squeeze every penny. In any event, they've found one.</p>
<p>That's more than enough. You are very fortunate to receive anything.</p>
<p>I have to pay for everything myself :(</p>
<p>My parents are giving me $200/month allowance and I consider that to be fairly generous. I am living on campus and will have a meal plan, so as long as I don't go shopping every week that should be more than enough. Are you living in an apartment? I can understand if you need money for groceries or for rent, but if you just want $300-$500 in spending money - I think that might be pushing it a little. Perhaps your parents have supported a cushy lifestyle for you up til now, but part of going to college is becoming more independent. I have had a part-time job since I was 16 and bought all my own stuff, so my parents are giving me a break from that my first semester so I can get used to school, but I don't think people should expect their parents to just throw all their savings at them so they can go to the mall. Take a look at how much your parents are already spending to send you to college, and maybe you might consider getting a job.</p>
<p>Your parents give you allowance even though you moved out?? Wow. You should be happy to be getting anything.</p>
<p>u should be happy with anything u get.</p>
<p>you are complaining about free money. u dont work for it. u may not belive it but many students dont get anything from their parents. Such as my Parents dont give me anything. My moms words to me. I paid for my own college fully, now you can also.</p>
<p>you just are spoiled. get a friggin job and stop complaining.</p>
<p>I'm gonna get $300 because I can't get a job</p>
<p>I'm not in college but i had manage my own finances for around 2 years now so I'll tell you how it breaks down in my case (<- i live in my friend's house)</p>
<p>Rent is fairly cheap for me (bcuz its my friend) and it doesn't go into my money usage...</p>
<p>I got 1000 dollars in the beginning of the year and supposedly, I used 100 dollars a month or whatnot...But other stuff does come up every now and then so I used some money for that (I have a seperate account for my checks so I'm guessing I passed 100 dollars per month thing...) Also there was prom which just took up 100 dollars by itself (dress, hair, ticket, food sigh) So for me, i would guess around $150 per month. Most of the money I spent was on fastfood during lunch and like many said, this is the biggest money spender.. (least for me.. i don't go shopping much because i have no money)</p>
<p>My bro used to be worse than me (i guess around 300?) but he got a job (!!) so now he pays for his own toys (Like soundcards and speakers and lcd monitor he's trying to buy right now) I need a job... bad.</p>
<p>I've gotten $350 from my parents for my entire freshman year. Doing work-study and another part-time job at the school has added another $1200. I'll probably have $3-400 of that left over at the end of the year.</p>
<p>I'm supposed to use the all of the money I earn from working this summer for my college expenses. I have a feeling I might get a small allowance, however, because my mom's brother gives his kids one and my parents are going to miss/worry about me a lot. I plan on finding places to continue my dance and voice lessons and maybe starting acting lessons, however, and I am expected to pay for those myself.</p>
<p>Geez...what's with all of these parents giving out allowances???</p>
<p>I've been 100% fiscally-independant since I was 20 (when I moved out of the dorms...I am now 24) and felt very lucky that my parents helped me out a little bit before then! </p>
<p>I feel the key is that if you need more money than your parent's can afford or are willing to give you, take that as a challenge. Get a part-time job to make up the difference! In a few years when you are looking for a full-time job or trying to get into grad school, you'll feel great knowing you can do it all by yourself and are able to budget your money successfully.</p>
<p>Compared with me , you are the lucky one . I only got 800RMB/month (about us$100)allowance.But i can live easily ,because i live in China .I am a chinese.</p>
<p>I'm going to school on the opposite coast from where I live, and I have to pay for my own plane tickets. I also had to buy winter gear and a printer (which is probably only a one time cost, really) last Fall. That put a dent in my account. I've worked, but it's to pay off my FWSP so I don't really pocket anything. My internship this summer is unpaid, and I'm working off those costs (rent, travel) while I intern... Probably 9-5 on the Hill, followed by waitressing nights and weekends. I think I'm going to give psych studies a try, or sell my soul to Kaplan... I don't know. My parents have that Asian "study don't work" mentality, too. But I really don't want to burden them. Thanks for all your input!</p>
<p>Hey modestmouse...hmm a lot of stuff you're writing reminds me of my situation! ...I have to pay for my own plane tickets too, and I'm doing an internship in my state capital this summer so no money there :/, and my (Asian) parents are also against working during the year.</p>
<p>Of course, I've ignored them and worked since September of my freshman year! But, all the same, $2000 is livable (if not superdupercomfy), and if you don't want to get a job during the year, do some psych studies or maybe some one-time jobs. One of my friends just made $300 writing a brief bio for a real estate agent; she found the gig on craigslist.</p>
<p>I get $80 per month for gas because I don't work all that often during the school year. Typically I don't use the entire $80 so I put the rest in reserve so I can save it for other car expenses (oil, tranny fluid, brakes, tires, etc). Although my current car is 18 years old, I am hoping to get enough cash from it to repair the A/C on the car I will be getting soon, which is otherwise in perfect working order.</p>
<p>I usually use all this cash in the long run because I'm really OCD about car maintence. On Thursday, I'm getting a tranny flush even though I've only gone about half the interval between recommended flushes.</p>
<p>The cash I get from work I use on other stuff, notably clothes.</p>
<p>Also, if it counts in allowance, my mom pays my cell phone bill (which is always the minimum amount; I never go over) and she doesn't make me pay for the food...as long as I go to the grocery store. Fair enough deal if you ask me...I really don't mind grocery shopping and it gives me something to do on a boring weekday afternoon.</p>