By Becca Carlson
College life can be expensive. Tuition, books, lab fees and additional required materials are a big concern for many students that do not qualify for financial assistance. On top of living expenses, these expenditures can really stress a person out.
Not to mention many students are parents or caregivers balancing daily life while pursuing higher education and presumably higher pay opportunities. It’s no wonder that student discounts are a welcomed marketing tool for some businesses. It’s a win-win situation– students save and businesses gain new customers. Everybody’s happy.
Spotify Premium with Hulu
Topping the list is an opportunity to save big with two very popular services. Spotify Premium now comes with a Hulu limited commercial plan at $4.99 a month for both services that can be cancelled at any time.
Students only need to sign up with a valid educational institution verified by Spotify through SheerID, Inc. Whether users are looking for chill study music or to take a break and binge watch a favorite TV program, students score bigtime with this offer.
Best Buy
In the market for a new laptop or printer? Best Buy offers exclusive student deals on certain models. To access these savings, create an online account with a student email and look for products with the student banner advertisement. Print the coupon provided online and take it to the local store. Prices and models will vary but if you’re in the market for a particular item it might be worthwhile checking with Best Buy before you buy elsewhere.
FedEx
FedEx Office Print and Ship center offers a 10% discount on printing and shipping services with valid school ID.
Sam’s Club
Sam’s Club offers a Collegiate Membership for $45 a year which is the same as a basic membership, but they are currently offering a $25 eGift Card to use on the first purchase which brings the total cost down to $20 annually. Buying in bulk is a great idea for students with families or roommates. With a Sam’s Club membership, stocking up won’t break the bank.
Car Insurance
Many car insurance companies offer students with good GPAs a special discount.
For example, Geico offers full-time students with a “B” overall average up to a 15% discount on certain coverages in most states including Florida. Of course, other terms and conditions may apply but it never hurts to ask.
Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society members could save more with Geico by mentioning the program during the quote process. Each quote also helps to support the Phi Theta Scholarship Fund.
Amazon
Possibly the biggest savings on this list is the Amazon Student Program. Get six months of free two-day shipping that includes email alerts. After that, students pay $49 a year or $5.49 a month for a membership that includes the Prime shipping and streaming benefits. That’s a savings of $50 annually or $7.50 a month. Depending on how often one uses the Prime free shipping option the savings could be more.
Adobe Suite
Art and design majors rejoice with the incredible savings offered by Adobe. This software trailblazer offers special discounts for both students and educators. Signing up with a school email will provide access to up to 60% off the Creative Cloud All Apps plan. These savings drop the plan from $49.99 to $19.99 a month and includes all the popular programs like Photoshop, Lightroom, Illustrator, InDesign, and Premiere Pro. Creativity not included.
Faculty and staff
Like Adobe, many discounts extend to educators as well.
For faculty and staff members trying to save a few bucks, try asking for an educator’s discount such as the 15% off the entire purchase including sale items offered at Michael’s craft stores. Joann fabric and craft retailer also offers a 15% off Teacher Rewards program.
Barnes & Noble regularly recognizes educators by offering 25% off select books, movies and music plus 10% off in the café for the Educator Appreciation Day events.
Spring semester savings were available every Saturday and Sunday during the month of January. Not to worry, though, the offer will reappear throughout the year (usually once a month) along with the month-long fall semester appreciation event.
Veteran and active duty military students may want to compare student discounts to those offered for military service. Either way, military students can save big for being awesome.
A full list of savings opportunities would be too long for this article.
Every penny counts and can be saved in a variety of surprising places. The next time you’re shopping online or at a brick-and-mortar, don’t forget to ask about discount options and have that ID card handy.