Books are one cost you can count on. “Textbooks can run up to $1,000, so that is a great place to start when saving money,” said Kelly Tanabe, award-winning author of 10 books about paying for college. “The good thing is you can comparison shop.”
Don’t limit yourself to the student bookstore. Tanabe suggests looking online, and posting your own ads to find used books. Amazon.com carries student textbooks at a bargain. You can also check Craigslist for local sellers. Tanabe, who graduated from Harvard debt free, would post her own ads around her courses’ departments offering to buy other students’ used books, and to sell her own.
You can even check out the school or community library. Literary classics you may need for a lower level English class are usually plentiful at local libraries and that won’t cost a penny. Is the required text a new edition? You may not need to buy the latest version. If you opt for an older edition it will probably be cheaper, but make sure you know the difference between each edition. If you’re comfortable with co-opting, you could ask another student if they want to share a text for a semester. Also consider inter-library loan options through the school’s library. These programs allow libraries to borrow books from other libraries, most times free of charge.
Ensure your financial aid package includes these items and make sure you can cover all of these expenses.
If you’re going to a private school, the GI Bill payments may not be enough for the tuition. Tanabe encourages adults returning to, or just starting college, to apply for scholarships.
“You might not think it’s worth the time and effort to apply for scholarships, but there are a lot open to older students,” she said. “Take the time and put in the effort. If you think about it, you may spend three hours working on a scholarship, but if you win it and it’s $5,000, that’s a lot of money for three hours of work.”