One of the reasons college tuition continues to rise at alarming rates is competition. Universities are constantly competing with each other to attract new students, and they go to great lengths to do it. Whether it’s building a state-of-the-art recreation center or giving out laptops to students, colleges and universities have to spend more and more money to encourage new students to enroll.
The result is that it costs a lot for us to pay for college, but it does come with some great perks. When I think about my college years though, I start to wonder if most students even take advantage of these perks while they’re in school. You’re paying for these perks with your tuition and fees, so you might as well make the most of them. Here are 6 common perks that students don’t take advantage of in college.
1. The Gym
At practically every public and private university, a membership to an on-campus gym or recreation center is included in your tuition and fees. Depending on the size of your college, the facility could be anything from a small single building gym to a massive recreation center filled with basketball courts, racquetball courts, a swimming pool, a weight room, a rock climbing wall, beach volleyball courts, badminton courts, soccer fields, etc. Do you realize how awesome this is? (You will once it’s gone, but then it’ll be too late.) So use it now!
2. The Library
Imagine a place where everything is free, and there are countless shelves filled with books, CDs, DVDs, and other media. Then imagine that there are even people there just to help you find what you’re looking for. Well, it really does exist, and it’s called the library. You know, that ominous building that you’ve avoided like the plague because you see people going in to study but never coming back out. Forget Netflix and Blockbuster, you can have a free movie night by checking out DVDs from your campus library.
3. The Student Health Center
After getting sick or injured for the first time at college, your first instinct may be to run to Mom, but suddenly, you realize that you can’t. If you live close to home, you could drive all the way back home, but there’s an easier solution. Colleges and universities typically have a Student Health Center with physicians on staff and specialists that come in a few times a week. The best part is that you don’t have to pay anything for the office visits.
4. Discounted Movie Nights
Both of the universities I attended offered discounted movie nights on campus a few times throughout the year. Typically, they would show relatively new movies before they were released on DVD. The price of admission was only a dollar or two for students and slightly higher for non-students. Of course, you get what you pay for, so don’t expect the optimal theater experience when watching a movie in a campus auditorium.
5. Educational Discounts on Software
Never let yourself or your parents pay full price for essential software while you’re in college. Whether it’s Windows Vista, Microsoft Office, or anti-virus software, you can get significantly discounted, or sometimes free, copies of these programs through your university’s software store. You’ll most likely find a few other useful programs that are available at really cheap prices, so take advantage of them while you still can.
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What they really neglect using to the fullest is their time. Studendts, especially grad students think they are incredibly busy. The thing about that is, all of their time is their own. You work when you want to, as long as you meet your deadlines. I think much of the time they don’t realize how much time they had until they start working full time. Just my two cents.
#5 indeed. I used to get huge discounts on Photoshop and other software through the School of Visual Arts in Manhattan. I still use those versions I purchased. No need to upgrade for a few nifty improvements.
I think another one that is hardly ever used is discounts on cell phone plans and service. You have to ask for them, but I’m pretty sure all of the mobile carriers (except for T-Mobile) have discounts for students.
On of my all-time favorite dating techniques were taking out girls to the cafeteria for dinner, and then the university movie theater right after
of course, the girls i were trying to woo knew it was half-way a joke, but it still did the trick! And super cheap too.
Good list, I always used the gym at school because it cost so little for the year. Also took advantage of student tix to sporting events, something you may add. I went to a big sports school so that was a big one for me. Another I would add to the list would be recruiting services. This is something I didn’t take enough advantage of. Most schools have free resume review, interview reviews, etc to help you improve your marketability for companies. Students should take advantage of these.
Luckily, most people still have access to a library even after graduation!
The gym is a big one — a gym membership can be expensive, and I think a lot of college students don’t appreciate that fact until after they graduate. I think its good to try to get in the habit of using a gym while in school — that way, when you eventually hit the real world, you’ll know whether or not you would actually make use of a gym membership if you got it.
Amen to the software discounts, too — although many companies offer similar discounts (and just as many employees seem to not know about them!).
How about plain and simple student discounts for food & other shopping? I am a college senior and have only recently realized the abundance of special discounts out there available with a .edu email. Next time you’re picking up a slice of pizza, ask if they offer a student discount. It seems many places offer these discounts but don’t openly advertise them (why!?) If you’re shopping online, there are also great sites geared at helping students find bargains. http://www.studentrate.com is a perfect example – free sign up gives you coupons to local and national retailers.
I had found while doing my MBA part time at night that just having a student card can get you discounts in unusual places. I never really thought about it until I’d be out somewhere buying tickets for a museum or something and see a “student discount”.
Additionally, while in school as an undergrad, the gym was such a great freebie. It set me up for a routine later in life to stay with it, helped burn off all those “beer calories” and working out keeps you healthy (hence never missed a class due to illness) and it’s a good place to meet people as well.
I recall when I departed for college, my dad told me “these will be the best years of your life”. While life is great now and I love being a husband and father, etc., he was certainly on to something. Having very little responsibility and much freedom while learning and enjoying your circle of friends was something I’ll always look back fondly on.
Might as well take advantage of EVERYTHING that college has to offer, since you’ll potentially be paying for it for a long time when you get out!
I agree with 2 and 5. However, I find that the local public library (also free) contains a lot more “recreational” content than the school library. For 5, I was able to pick up a copy of Microsoft Office, the “professional” package, for $99.00, which was an amazing deal. However, the gym at my school requires a fairly expensive membership because it is owned by the student association and not the school. My college also offers free counseling, tutoring at $4.00/hour (they pay their tutors $11.00/hour; the school makes up the $7.00 difference), resume and interview help, as well as a career center where they accept resumes from people and place them in the workforce.
#1 isn’t free unfortunately here.
I must agree with #2… which is nice with our 20+ libraries.
I’ve used #3 quite a few times…now if it was only easier to get an appointment time.
#4 – - quite a few free movie nights too!
#5. Not really cheaper than ebay.
I would say infosessions are great too (free food, prizes?)
2. You can also sometimes check out course books for the entire semester (my school does that)… beats paying for it.
That’s a nice list, I didn’t realize how useful my University’s Library resources were until I had a class that required me to use them. But I’m finding all sorts of resources that are available to students that aren’t even promoted, but are really useful (and of course I’m finding these out in my senior year).
Some services to look for (may not apply to every school), but free legal services for students; business incubators (helps you come up with a business plan, how to run a starter business efficiently, and help project business costs); and career services (helps you form your resume, set up appointments for mock interviews; and can help you get a job or internship in a field related to one’s field of study)