How to Save Money on Tech & Online Products as a Student

Quality education can be pricey. That price is not limited to the tuition fees students of their parents pay every year. It also includes all the educational materials and resources, and, naturally, all the time students invest in their future. Hence, the access to educational resources must also go to a student’s budget, but the good news is, one can always optimize it. Luckily, the internet offers as many opportunities to save money as it has to spend. So, if you want to be smart with your education money, here are some tips on saving on learning resources without compromising your grades. 

Optimize a Price Per Assignment

Students do not usually think about it a lot, but every assignment they complete actually has a price. It’s not only about the access to the internet and electricity, but, primarily about the materials, they need to use to write in. Luckily, a lot of information in many subjects is accessible for free, but it is not guaranteed. Sometimes, the only source one needs to use and cite is only accessible after purchase. Thus, it means both paying for access to the book or journal article and spending time on research and writing well. In such cases, it may be more reasonable financially to use services, in which professional writers write papers online in many disciplines. This way, a student can spend on it as much as for a journal subscription or article access. However, they will save time completing the whole assignment. 

Subscribe to the Services You Will Actually Use

Unlike articles students have you purchase separately, there are useful resources on the internet, and a subscription to them will help you long term. However, before actually buying a subscription, make sure it will help you consistently. To pick such a service, make time to check if the variety of disciplines it covers is diverse enough or, if it is dedicated to one discipline, that it’s specific enough. A subscription to a service with educational materials may be a good investment long-term. However, the search for a decent one may take some time and research, so it’s best to research the available ones well. 

Try the Trial, But Don’t Forget About It

The best way to see if the resource is worth paying for is by trying everything that it can offer. This principle works for educational portals, paid libraries, catalogs, online schools with diverse courses, and non-learning resources as well. Evidently, before paying anything, check if the limited access mode is certainly not enough—some services put extra features in the paid plan, yet they work well enough in the free ones as well. However, going for a free trial on one particular assignment can be of great help. To use a service episodically, go for a free trial and enjoy the plan during the trial period. However, if you want to keep the final decision until the end of the trial, it’s best to clock a reminder for the day of its expiration. The trick is, many services require their new user’s payment info and then charge them automatically. To avoid the unneeded payment, just cancel the subscription before it expires.    

Find the Right Student Communities

Studying is always easier and more productive in the format of exchange. This exchange works well far beyond the classroom. Students gather and discuss their disciplines during breaks or on campus, and, of course, as the technologies progress, in the online communities. Many students are ready and happy to share their achievements and make it easier for the younger ones to study in online forums and social media communities. If search engines do not work, just enter the familiar forum and be the first one to ask questions. You will be surprised how much help you can receive by just reaching out. 

Compose Your Own Online Courses

If there is a topic you want to study systematically and profoundly, the best way to do it is to take a coherent course on it. However, such courses usually are not for free. But there is still a way to complete the course or at least systemize the knowledge—with a few extra steps. Although online schools don’t give visitors full access to their courses, they usually publish the program or even provide demo videos. For a determined student, it is essentially a program of separate topics, and each of them is probably accessible on free resources, including YouTube. Therefore, all a student needs to do is copy the program and watch lessons separately. This will save a whole course budget. 

Make Use of Your Social Media

Social media is one of the most popular ways to waste time. But, when approached to learn, it can transform into a powerful learning tool. It is most useful for language learners, but there are also many communities and accounts for specific scientific and cultural topics. If a student sets up their mind to study, they can configure their feed on Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok the way learning will continue even during their free time. A huge plus of learning via social media is that the content there is presented in a small, intelligible, and engaging format. Plus, as many as there are posts, there are spaces for discussion and debate in the comment section. Thus, the free teacher is always in the pocket. 

The Bottom Line

Naturally, paid educational services are easy to use and convenient for students. However, most of them can be substituted with a little bit of effort and a genuine intention to learn—or reluctance to pay extra. The truth is, money still does not transport knowledge in human memory, which is why the intention is way more important than the initial resources. With a bit of creativity and a curious mind, one can optimize their learning budget to spend it on something more fun. Follow these simple tips to make your education easier financially. 

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