<p>My friends tell me that living costs at UT Austin is pretty pricey. How much does a typical student spend every month on non-school related stuff like food and going out with friends? My budget is gonna be like $300 a month, is that enough?</p>
<p>There is no such thing as typical. What do you spend now on going out, etc?</p>
<p>right now around $200-$300 a month, but won’t i be eating out and going a lot more. how often do kids at austin go out?</p>
<p>It really depends on what kind of person you are. I know plenty of people that stock up on food from home/parents frequently and eat off of that. I also know people that sleep at weird times and skip meals and end up hardly eating at all. Of course, there are also the people that eat out all the time and party and blow through money FAST. </p>
<p>In general, if you are living on campus your Dine-In dollar balance will begin at $1400. They say that this is technically enough for 2 meals a day, 5 days a week for both semesters but I think that’s only true if you eat at the more budget-orientated cafeterias (J2 and Kinsolving). You’ll also get $300 bevo bucks which can be spent at most stores and restaurants near campus. Most people go through this by November-ish though. Now this is only talking in terms of food. How much you spend on other things really just depends on who you are. Just don’t gauge your budget off of how much you spend in the first month or so because you’ll have a lot more free time then. Once school kicks in you’ll probably find yourself staying in more.</p>
<p>What’s the difference between Dine-In Dollars and Bevo Bucks? The way they explain it on their website is sort of confusing…Are Dine-In Dollars strictly for food bought at meal times, and Bevo Bucks for snack foods/groceries? And if the Dine-in dollars they give you is only enough for 2 meals for 5 days, what about the other meal and 2 remaining days of the week?</p>
<p>Dine In Dollars can only be used at the Division of Housing and Food venues, which are Jester City Limits, J2, Cypress Bend, Littlefield (which only accepts Dine In Dollars after 2 PM), and Kinsolving. Bevo Bucks can be used at a variety of places, such as Chick-fil-A, Wendy’s, and other places on and off campus. Bevo Bucks could also be used to pay for laundry, copies, and other services.</p>
<p>As far as planning, the amount of Bevo Bucks they give you is not even close to enough to get you through the year, and the Dine In Dollars are more than enough. Personally, I just used Dine In Dollars during the week, and used Bevo Bucks once or twice a week or for when I was staying on campus for the weekend. However, DO plan to add Bevo Bucks multiple times, and have extra cash for whenever you go out on weekends to eat (because you WILL get tired of the food on campus at times).</p>
<p>Also, I usually only use the Dine In Dollars for two meals a day (lunch and dinner). For breakfast, just buy a box of cereal and a bottle of milk for the week, maybe some fruit if you’d like, and you’re good to go. Although most of the time, I wake up right before class and don’t have time to eat.</p>
<p>Hope that helps! :)</p>
<p>Oh, so Dine-In Dollars are bascially like high school cafeteria money. But what’s the point of having Bevo Bucks? It seems kinda pointless since it’s the same thing as carrying around cash in your wallet…</p>