Being a student can be a bittersweet experience. You get to learn more about things you are interested in and keep a flexible schedule, of many other things. However, it typically also comes with a price of not making a great income and living poorly, unless you have wealthy parents or a highly paid partner who can support you. Being a graduate student, I hate to think about how much debt I carry, especially during this time of year when all of those end-of-the-year statements come for tax purposes. Ugh. Anyways, one thing that students CAN use to their advantage is having a student ID card. Many businesses provide discounts to students, and its important to always ask/research even if it doesn't explicitly say.
Most commonly, I think students use their student IDs for movie theater tickets, which can give you at least a couple of bucks off of your ticket. These discount tickets can similarly also be found for other types of shows like concerts and plays. Universities and colleges tend to also provide discounts on computers and other essential technology from stores like Apple and Dell, which you can shop online for in addition to a school store. Microsoft Office, for instance, also provides a line of their software specifically for the student budget that can get you through college with the just basics. If you travel a lot, this is another great place to look for student discounts - Amtrak (Train) and Greyhound Bus lines provide student discount programs, and STA Travel and Student Universe provide excellent databases on airfare at a student price. Major cell phone service providers may also provide you a student discount, including AT&T, Verizon, and T-Mobile. I'd recommend googling these for more information, but I want you to know they do exist, and cell phone bills are insanely high, so be sure to check it out if its applicable for you!
The list can go on, so just be sure to look anywhere you go or stores that you frequent to see if they provide discounts for students. My favorite student discount I have found is through Amazon.com. They provide a free 1-year membership of Amazon Prime, which is a great way to get free 2-day shipping on most of the items Amazon.com sells. If you would like to learn more about how to sign up for a free student account, click here. I probably buy 75% of my non-grocery items from Amazon, simply because they have great deals for people on a budget, and fast free shipping only makes things even better! The point here is, NEVER stop looking for student discounts, because there are a lot of sympathetic businesses out there to help you during a financially difficult time in your life!
