<p>What is a reasonable cash allowance for a student that has a 14 meals per week plan? My S is a freshman and I want him to finish the year before he starts working. I am interested in both the parent and student opinion.</p>
<p>TIA</p>
<p>with the plan you get some flex bucks that can be used at the chili’s, pollo tropical, hardees, miso, some smoothie place and einstein bagels. You can also buy some sandwiches and other stuff at the trading post (like a campus small grocery store).</p>
<p>As for cash allowance, I can live decently on about 50$ a week of take home pay (after i pay bills)</p>
<p>Thanks. Do you have a car with you? If so, is fuel included in the $50?</p>
<p>I get 400 a month to spend on food, gas, and entertainment. Sometimes it’s not enough, so I have to be frugal near the end of the month, but I can just use my own money if that runs out. BTW I don’t have a meal plan.</p>
<p>50 a week for living is plenty. I have a car and spend anywhere from 20-50 a week on 10 meals a week.</p>
<p>Hint of advice: If he is living in a dorm that doesn’t require meal plan, don’t buy it. It’s a ripoff; trust me. There’s a reason a lot of the dorms FORCE people to get meal plans… It’s because they wouldn’t sell otherwise.</p>
<p>Just wondering, but when you say “10 meals a week”, are you only counting lunch and/or the occasional snack?</p>
<p>I mean the meal plan. 10 meals allows you to enter the all you care to eat places 10 times in a week. Obviously, to maximize the value, you would not go there just to snack but to eat a full meal. Someone with more meals would obviously need to budget less since more food is already paid for, hence why I mentioned it.</p>
<p>Again, if possible, I highly recommend you steer clear from meal plan. It’s not a good value. That said, if you are forced, the 7 meals a week deal is really a rip. Just my 2 cents.</p>
<p>If you really want to get your son a meal plan, get him the smallest block one, the X meals per week are such a rip off, I made that mistake, you waste so many meals because its hard to go x times per week. Especially during finals, I didn’t eat 1 meal on campus because of time. Then again, I lived in degraff which is kinda far from the dining halls, if you lived in Reynolds or sally or something close by its good, either way still get the block meal. And yes I do have my car, I don’t drive around much as I walk to campus. I fill up about every 3-4 weeks (driving to work/publix/etc and back) and it costs about $40 a tank, honestly in Tallahassee I don’t care what anyone says, I NEEDED my car (mostly for work), I took the bus to publix once, worst mistake ever, and often my friends are busy, etc so I can’t go. Its nice to not have to rely on anyone, however parking is a huge issue.</p>
<p>You all have GREAT parents.</p>
<p>If i ask mine for money, they will ASK ME for money…telling me I owe them for being raised under their roof as a child. </p>
<p>SERIOUSLY.</p>
<p>LOL Dymecaker305! Your comment seriously made my day. My parents say the same thing!</p>
<p>What Mannymix says is very true about using X meals per week, HOWEVER, the block plan is even worse of a deal. Their “best value” is the 150 block plan. 1,690 dollars and 300 flex bucks. So ultimately, you are paying 1,390 dollars for 15 meals. Do the math, and it’s 9.26 per meal. You can BUY meals for cheaper separately using garnet bucks (less than $7.40 for lunch and less than $9.40 for dinner)</p>
<p>As I’ve said, there’s a reason dorms force you to buy the meal plan; because nobody would be stupid enough to do it otherwise. If you’re lucky enough not to have to buy a meal plan, don’t do it.</p>
<p>I decided to get the ulimited plan because I like to eat a lot and all the other plans didn’t make sense economically. I could never feed myself on 7,10, or 14 meal a week. I also don’t have the luxury of having parents pay for my food.</p>
<p>Clearly we parents need to collect… :)</p>
<p>Kckoa91,</p>
<p>How often do you go to the meal plan place? I know two people who got the unlimited plan, and that one, more than the others, seems to be the sucker plan.</p>
<p>For one dollar less, you can get 21 meals a week (as opposed to unlimited) and 150 more flex bucks.</p>
<p>Matt,</p>
<p>I’m sure that this has been asked before, but … </p>
<p>I realize that the meals don’t roll over week to week, but can a student bring a guest and use one of his weekly meals (for the guest)?</p>
<p>wish I knew matt cuz im entering FSU this january so I don’t really know. I don’t ever remember seeing a 21 weekly meal plan; just 14 to unlimited. It really depends on your lifestyle. I’m very active/lift weights/running so I burn more calories and I’m always hungry. But if you’re not a heavy eater then maybe 14 is good for you. If your parents want to help then get one of the others. The biggest rip off is the 7 meals a week.</p>
<p>OK - Just looked, the meals are not transferrable, but there doesn’t seem to be a prohibition on bringing out an extra or two.</p>
<p>I didn’t see a 21 plan either. The unlimited didn’t seem so bad really in comparison (they all seem pricey to me)- especially if you snack a lot or definitely eat three meals per day and stay on campus on weekends.</p>
<p>Ah, you are right. I thought it was 21, not 14. Nevermind my post.</p>