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6 Tips To Help Kids Navigate College Spending

August 1, 2018 Is “your baby” about to leave home? Whether that has you mooning over their old first day of school photos or plotting how to repurpose their bedroom (or, maybe, both) there’s one topic you need to tackle now: smart spending. If your kid is like most, this is the first time they’ll be managing their finances on their own and they could probably use a little help. Don’t be shy — dive in! What they don’t understand about money could hurt them and an honest conversation now could make a big difference for years to come. Offer to buy them lunch and tackle the following:

1. Budgeting

Budgets give your student a reality check on what’s coming in and going out and help them avoid expensive mistakes. Summit’s got an easy, free way to track spending: . Set budgets for groceries, entertainment and more, plus get alerts when you’re close to your budget limit.

2. Paying tuition and room/board

Hopefully you’ve already had some frank talks about school-related expenses and who’s paying for what and how. Make sure tuition due dates are on everyone’s calendar. Some schools only send bills to the student, regardless of who’s paying, so make sure your child is checking their email as due dates approach.

3. Credit card debt

A credit card can be a handy thing—but it can also put your child into real debt, real quickly. Come into Summit and we’ll help your student find a card that’s a good fit and walk them through the ins and outs of managing it. Most students will need a co-signer for a credit card, so come in together.

4. hidden costs of debit cards/ATMs

There are two costs for students to be aware of: fees when they withdraw money and fees if they overdraw their account. To solve the first, encourage them to use a or any local ATM with no fees.
For the second, ask a Summit staff member to show you how to have purchases declined if there’s not enough money in an account. Sure, it will be embarrassing to have their card turned down, but the alternative could be an overdraft they don’t even know they have, which leads to fees and more overdrafts (and can be really expensive).

5. Mobile security

Whether they’re Venmo-ing money to split a pizza or checking their account balance, your child is probably conducting most — if not all — of their financial life via phone.  Do they have basic security safeguards in place? Do they know not to use the highly hackable coffee shop Wi-Fi to check their account? Stress the importance of protecting their PINs and passwords. Even better, have them check out our .

6. What they should — and shouldn’t — spend student loan money on

The whole topic of how much to borrow and where to borrow it from isn’t one we’ll tackle here (though check out Summit’s ), but you do need to spend some time talking with your child about the real cost of that money (i.e., interest) and what counts as a legitimate college expense. Tuition and books = good choices. Pizza and spring break trips = not so much. Good luck to you — and your student! And please stop by your nearest for help navigating our financial tools. Smart money tips brought to you by  , Summit’s exclusive financial wellness program. You might also be interested in Financial success isn’t how much money you have — it’s feeling good about what you’re doing with the money you have. Here are some tips on how to prioritize your debts and bills, negotiate with creditors and get your late payments back on solid ground. Even in these challenging times, there's  whole lot of good happening! At Summit, we've always believed financial success happens together and that's been truer than ever this past month. Here's what "together" has meant for our community. Navigating finances after college is hard, but you can take it one lesson at a time. Get tips for managing money and paying off student debt after graduation. Navigating finances after college is hard, but you can take it one lesson at a time. Get tips for managing money and paying off student debt after graduation. If you’re not sure if something is a scam, it’s ALWAYS better to act like it could be! Fraudsters are always coming up with creative new ways to steal from you and quick to take advantage of a crisis. Here are some of the most popular recent scams to watch for. With a little planning, you may be able to actually save a little money during the holidays. Check out these tips to keep costs down without missing out on the holiday fun. Some scams go right for your money; others try to get you to part with personal information – like account numbers, Social Security numbers, passwords, and personal identification numbers (PINs). Find out what you should look for and how to protect yourself. The holidays can be stressful & that’s why it’s important to prioritize your self-care. Use these tips to reduce stress without draining your bank account. Your home is your castle, your refuge and—let’s face it—a place where it can be very easy to sink a big chunk of money. Which is why you’re always on the lookout for “sweet spots”:  those home improvements that add comfort, safety or a little zing of style while you’re living in your house and will boost the asking price when it’s time to sell. And if you can find a way to save money on those improvements or cut home expenses at the same time, well that sweet spot just got a little sweeter! Featured Products Certificates Checking Accounts Home Equity Loans Home Loans Business Banking Certificates Checking Accounts Home Equity Loans Home Loans Business Banking Financial Education Upcoming Events Programs Tools & Calculators On-demand Webinars Podcasts Upcoming Events Programs Tools & Calculators On-demand Webinars Podcasts About Equity in Money™ About Summit Careers News Community Giving Equity in Money™ About Summit Careers News Community Giving Help & Support Contact Us Member Support Center Schedule an Appointment Find a Branch Contact Us Member Support Center Schedule an Appointment Find a Branch Please read the following before proceeding to: The website you are about to visit is solely the responsibility of the merchant or other party providing the site. The content of this third-party site, including materials and information, is solely the responsibility of the provider of the site. The Credit Union is not responsible for any such third-party content. Any transactions that you enter into with a vendor, merchant or other party that you access through this third-party site are solely between you and that vendor, merchant or other party. The Credit Union does not endorse the content contained in this third-party site, nor the organization publishing the site, and hereby disclaims any responsibility for such content. The Credit Union Privacy Policy does not apply to this third-party site, and for further information you should consult the privacy disclosures of the third-party site. NCUA Insurance Estimator Privacy, Security & Accessibility Rates, Fees, Terms & Disclosures Routing Number *  The Wisconsin's #1 Mortgage Lender designation is based on the number of loans in 2022, gathered from the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act data compiled annually by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. The results of the data were obtained through the LEI: 254900NTAC4H10MGSU23 **  SBA Lender of the Year Award for Credit Unions as awarded by the Small Business Administration of Wisconsin in 2023. Copyright 2024 © Summit Credit Union. All rights reserved. If you are using a screen reader and are having problems using this website, please call 608-243-5000 for assistance. Insured by NCUA