College Investments *You* Can Make

By Lev Novak

Let’s talk investments.

Chances are, you don’t have the money for a stock portfolio. Neither do I. We can hug it out. But, with any luck, you do have some money, even if it isn’t enough.

Finding out where to invest your money is a difficult question, but investing your disposable income is a little easier. When it’s your fun money, getting the most value (or even, in a perfect world, money) out of your initial investment can be done.

How? Read on.

1. Buy In Bulk

This is obvious, but a truism of life. The more you buy at once, the more of it you’ll have per penny. This is especially useful for non-perishables (read: alcohol and ramen) that are staples of college life. If you buy eggs in bulk, you better like eating eggs, buddy, or else that investment goes bad.

Buying in bulk makes a lot of sense for even odd choices. If you’re in a class with a friend, buy your books together online, and maybe you can save on the shipping. If you’re buying pizza, maybe buying two pizzas gets you a third pizza free- if you don’t mind eating cold pizza, you just got a pizza bargain, anytime, anywhere. If you and your friends love smokable herbs, it may make sense buying together and dividing the take later; that ten bucks you save can go to some “free” snacks happily instead.

2. Make Investments That Can Earn

Do you like music?

I bet you do. But if you really like music- and you know your stuff- it might make sense to break even on your hobby. Consider, for a moment: if you got really good speakers and really good head-phones, you’d be really excited, right? Well, if you went to work as a DJ for fraternities- something easier said than done, it should be noted- than you can earn your money back pretty easily.

Do you want to travel and take a trip? See if you can get yourself sponsored by a travel company of any sort, or talk to your school and see if there are any related programs you can take advantage. Worst case scenario, if you want to go to Japan, set up some tutoring lessons in Japanese. It might help.

3. Invest In Longevity

It’s important to ask yourself what investments of your spare money are going to mean the most to you.

Do you want a really nice sweater? That might be a good idea, especially colder climates like Boston. Even if that price is expensive, you can divide it by the use you’re going to get out of it. A sweater that costs $128 is expensive, but if you wear it and love it for a year, it might be worth it. You can divide it a little and think; well, that’s more like $64 a year for an amazing sweater. That sounds a lot better, especially if the other option is a scratchy one you’ll toss out after two months. A mediocre sweater might cost $40 but if you can’t stand it, it’s a waste of money.

I recommend, personally, a pair of nice jeans and a good thin sweater. Those are things you can wear anywhere; casual, slightly formal, fall, winter, spring, or even a cold summer night. That’s money that gets stretched out for your investment, where, for example, two taxis you get being lazy aren’t.

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