Tips from Students

We asked these students what budgeting and spending advice they would offer to incoming members of the Brown School community.

“Take time during the first months of your program to review your income (paychecks from work, scholarships, student loans) and your expenses (tuition, rent, groceries, ‘fun-money,’ utilities) and make a budget you can stick to based off of that information. It has helped me to understand and track my spending habits.”

DAISZHA COOLEY

“When searching for a neighborhood and apartment, try to find a space a bit below your budget line—the cost of living here may surprise you! Also, there is more to St. Louis than the neighborhoods around the WashU campus. I found a location 40 minutes away via public transportation, and that commute is often my favorite meditation and self-care time!”

BRAVEHEART GILLANI

“There are many ways to access textbooks for free. You can request books through the university’s interlibrary loan, and it will be delivered to campus for you to pick-up and borrow. Other readings are available for download as pdf. Additionally, the Brown School library has books on reserve for you to borrow.”

ANGELLA SANDRA NAMWASE

“I meal prep on Sundays so I don’t cook or eat out during the week, and I’ve found that helps keep my budget down. But every month I also designate a ‘FUN-d’ where I decide a certain budget for things that are not living/expense related. That helps keep impulse spending under control.”

KELLAN

ROYBAL

“I came to the Brown School after 18 years in the professional world. It was an exciting change, but a difficult transition from full-time income to living on part-time earnings and loans. The Office of Financial Services has been an enormous help to me. They can help you create and stick to a budget or troubleshoot tough decisions about spending and debt.”

ANYA WEBER