Management of finance is the primary challenge that students face in Kenya universities. Majority of them end up misusing the money, and some of them accumulate debts given by other students. Somehow, it depends on the family background of students in Kenya since those who come from a rich families do not have a problem with over-spending money since they are supplied with it when they are ‘broke,’ unlike those who come from poor families that try to survive. My advice to the students in the universities in Kenya is that, they should find ways of adjusting to life of managing finances despite the challenges they face, the majority of them come from families which are not financially able.
There are several ways which a student can become accustomed to in order to minimize spending of cash while studying in universities. One of the ways to manage finances students should use is to learn how to operate on a budget. Once you have been given pocket money, it is advisable that you draw your budget on that particular month or semester by prioritizing on the most important items such as academic materials and the foodstuffs which should be on the forefront. Other items should be budgeted after. The budget will help you minimize spending on unnecessary items that cost much leaving you ‘broke’.
Some lecturers give handouts to students on various courses or units. A wise student will compress the handout to much reduced pages, and at the end of the day he/she will have saved some cash than those who will photocopy the way handout is given. For those who like going to clubs in the evening for drinks (alcohol), if they cannot avoid drinking, they should do it on weekends and devote weekdays to studies. This will at least save some cash for other uses.
Friends at the university can be useful in terms of managing finances. For instance, five students can join and form a group where each member will contribute Kshs.200 each week and give it to one member and continue to do the same to the other members (the other four). This will help them to save and also minimize misuse of money. Some can also opt to open a student saving account at any bank but particularly Equity bank or Cooperative bank which are good for students. Then, you can deposit Kshs.100 or Kshs.200 each week, and this will help to save for future use when the need arises. The students could also start their own small businesses with the savings and get a source of finances while in the university in Kenya.
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