<p>I would appreciate any suggestions on how to set up finances for our soon to be freshman S. </p>
<p>He will have his meal plan; and money on his school debit plan for books and all expenses on campus--</p>
<p>And we are wondering how much he might need in addition and if it's best to give this monthly or by semester.</p>
<p>Also, how much of his money should we let him leave in his atm account, to spend on other things (like if he wants to go visit a friend at another college, or buy tickets for concerts or sporting events in the city where his college is located.)</p>
<p>Any experience on what has worked and not worked would be appreciated!</p>
<p>We actually put our son in charge of his own spending money. He had his own bank accounts, and earned money to spend during the summer. Last year he also had a small part time job at school. It was up to him to budget his money himself. He figured out how much to put into his college accessible account and how much to leave here at home. He also figured out how much he could afford to spend on entertainment and recreation, and travel...things we felt he should be paying for on his own. This helped him have some responsibility...and he also knew we would not replenish his accounts (he had earned about $3000 during the summer which is MORE than adequate for most students for spending money for the 9 months they are away at college). The only help we gave was to help him set up his accounts. For our kiddo, this worked well.</p>
<p>We did the same with our son. He had a work study job to earn spending money and with the summer job savings he had more than enough to live on comfortably during the school year. </p>
<p>He really liked the idea of "my money" and the independence with the spending. When he knew he was spending "his" hard earned money, he thought twice about how to spend it.</p>
<p>My parents told me that they would cover tuition and room and board (including meal plan), but that all other expenses were going to be up to me. I worked my butt off this summer making money so that I would have enough saved for my textbooks, laundry, any other expenses, while still having enough to have some fun. I'm definetly not complaining, my parents are already paying a small fortune for me to attend college, and I really built up a good work ethic this summer.</p>
<p>My older sister controlled/controls her money. Besides tuition, etc, she is responsible for all other expenses, including her rent, food, and books. (she lives in an apartment now so she discontinued the meal plan)</p>
<p>I'm with thumper1 and laxmom. Tuition/RB/a RT plane ticket is all there is from us. She works during vacations (long winter break and summer) and has a work-study job. She has her own bank accounts (checking/savings), ATM card, and student VISA card. I don't want any control. She's old enough to handle consequences. As laxmom said, when it's their own $$, they think twice before spending it. My D has become quite the miser since having her own accounts under her control. Once $ is deposited (direct deposit from jobs), she is extremely reluctant to visit the ATM.</p>
<p>In a perfect world all college freshmen would be able to make and manage their own funds. But given that it's not a perfect world, you have to decide how much you are willing to let him learn with. It sounds like most of his expenses are covered already -- life shouldn't take more than $100/month IMO (Unless he's in NYC or something). We gave our daughter a semester at a time the first year (she went to college 2 years early and had never worked except for babysitting), and she managed it well. I would hesitate to go monthly -- really they need the experience of managing their own funds. This summer she worked and will fund all her own personal expense.</p>
<p>what do you mean if it's best to "give" him money monthly or by semester? It's best to not give him money at all. You're paying for his tuition, board, and meal plan. You aren't seriously going to give him spending money too, are you? Isn't he old enough to pay for something of his own by now? If he has any savings, tell him to use those and budget them wisely. If he wants more, he can get a campus job. Work study paychecks are great for covering the basic expenses outside of food and tuition. I mean, sure he'll love it if you buy him candy and CDs and concert tickets. And he won't be alone, I knew far too many people at my college who walked around with their parents' credit card in their wallet and thought nothing of spending money at every turn. But that's no way to actually live on your own.</p>
<p>Bridie - Your question is how much is needed in addition to the expenses you mentioned. There isn't a one-size-fits-all answer. A small-town LAC would require practically no extra $$. Big college town would have more opportunities to make a financial decision. Your S has his own $$. IMESHO, once you've discussed expenditures he expects to encounter, you should let him control the spending and management of his accounts. If you're concerned he'll blow it all in a week, perhaps you can suggest he divide it into semester increments.</p>
<p>My son's meal plan covers 2 meals a day, according to the college's dining website. We're giving him an additional $35 a week to buy that third daily meal (or more likely snacks) off campus, his toiletries, occasional bus or metro tickets, haircuts, miscellaneous stuff outside of his text books. We totally guessed on the amount, and I think we're being very generous. We could have decided to just add dollars to his dining card when he ran out, but thought he would appreciate being able to eat off campus or skip a meal and buy a book, etc... We've told him not to call home for more money, period. If he needs more, he will need to find a job. We've also told him that he will work next summer to support himself. And that he'll need to save his own extra money for year 2. Freshman year, we're cutting him slack. He's responded by signing up for a heavier class load, and we're encouraging him to volunteer in the community. I didn't have to work my freshman year of college but did work the other years and summers.</p>
<p>Also, he set up his own checking/debit, savings account and has full control over it. We transfer in money online. He makes his own decisions and mistakes. Example: he just had to use half of his first month's allowance to buy a new cell phone because he broke his by being careless.</p>
<p>I'm on a 14 meal/week plan, and my parents give me $30 a week. It's more than enough. Most things to do on campus are free or very cheap ($2 movies, instead of almost $10 at home). Aside from when I bought school shirts, I probably spend like $10 a week. Less if I can keep myself away from the Wawa. I save as much as I can (while I hope for the DC housing market to take a heavy hit between now and when I need a place to live =P)</p>
<p>He will transfer some of the money in his ATM account into his regular savings account so that it will earn interest, leaving him with a reasonable amount in his checking acct that he can spend throughout the school year.</p>
<p>And thank you for suggestions on how much additional he might incur in expenses/week. It seems that around our area, most parents are talking about giving their kids some type of spending allowance. Obviously, others strongly feel that is not necessary.</p>
<p>Since I don't want our kids to feel they have to take an on-campus jobs--they got to schools where keeping up with classwork is hard enough--they receive a monthly allowance that covers expenses above room-and-board and books. $185/month. This amount seems to require that they make choices about how they spend their money, without leaving them too strapped. </p>
<p>When I was in college, my parents begrudged every single penny I spent but refused to allow me to take out loans or to fill out financial aid paperwork. It made it very difficult. I see little point in making my children similarly miserable. The process of growing up is hard enough. </p>
<p>This doesn't seem to have affected their work ethic. D worked for our small business this summer (more than earning her keep, even though she didn't much enjoy it); S created a product, had it manufactured, and is selling it successfully. They both want more money than they get.</p>
<p>What do they buy with their money? An occasional evening out. Gas for D's car or for S's friends cars. Movies. Clothing. Travel (S likes to go to NYC, D to the Oregon coast). Savings.</p>
<p>A long time ago, I read something about an allowance being something you get because you're a family member, not because you do chores, which made sense to me. Chores you do because things have to get done in a family. My husband doesn't give <em>me</em> an allowance, even though he does the bulk of the money earning; we share. The kids right now have an important job: getting ready to go out on their own. So we share.</p>
<p>Bridie: you should check on what kind of interest is available where. Our "savings" account at BofA gets less than 1% interest, while our <em>checking</em> account gets about 2% interest. Both amounts are negligible. Keeping money in the ATM account may be a bad idea--too accessible--but not because of interest.</p>
<p>Don't give your kids allowance. It won't teach them anything. 2 meals is usually enough for anyone, so the money might go towards buying beer anyways. Class time always leaves enough for a 10 hr/wk job, if you manage time well. Let them learn for themselves.</p>
<p>I gave my D a clothing allowance. Since she's attending school in MA, her Florida wardrobe wasn't quite the thing. She's expected to cover entertainment & living expenses (concert tickets/laundry) while we pay for anything class related (school supplies, lab fees) and medical expenses. Also airline tickets home of course! I put in money for a semester in Sept. It was apparently more than enough since she didn't ask for more in Jan. She has a checking acct with a debit card for everyday spending and a credit card, with the bill sent to me, for emergencies and those airline tickets.</p>
<p>dmd77, I just wanted you to know that many students attend schools "where keeping up with classwork is hard enough" and yet manage to work 10 to 15 hours a week at campus job. Some students are bound by their financial aid and scholarship agreements to take a work-study job. These students still manage to excell academically even while working. Of course, if they had a choice they'd probably love to spend those 15 hours a week going out with friends and spending the allowance their parents gave them. But somehow they manage to have a good time and enjoy their college experience, and not be miserable, even with the heavy responsibility of a job.</p>
<p>I think it fascinating that the kids (I presume, they are college kids) are saying don't give the bums an allowance, while the parents are more evenly divided. </p>
<p>We will give our daughter an allowance, but it will cover only a portion of her expenses (ie books, entertainment) - tuition, r&b, laundry and 2 airline tickets home we will pay. We will adjust her allowance after she has a better handle on her expenses - she will also have to buy a whole wardrobe of winter clothes.</p>
<p>We've had the added problem of no bank locally that is also a local bank in her college town, and she isn't 18, needs to do primarily online shopping, etc. - the finances just get more and more complex! </p>
<p>Our solution is to do nothing to foster independence the first quarter. She has worked this summer, she has a tidy nest egg, when she gets to campus in a couple of weeks, she can open a new account and transfer about $1000 from her home account to cover books, the winter clothes and shoes and incidentals until Christmas.</p>
<p>Over Christmas break, we'll review her spending, and set an allowance, and what has to come out of that money. I just want her to have the same attitude I had - my parents gave me enough, but I hated asking for more, so I had a job so that I had money I could spend as I pleased, and I made a game of seeing how little I could spend for books and supplies while still having all the books I needed - she's heading in that direction now, she just needs to learn how to budget, rather than just be cheap.</p>
<p>i agree with zombie, there are high-achieving students who work part time and still have fun</p>
<p>i actually find myself getting more done when i have more responsibilities. and it would somehow feel weird to me spending my parents' money on things for entertainment.</p>