1. Transport

With MRT and bus fares steadily rising over the years in Singapore, we have less money to spend on ourselves so here are some ways you can reduce expenditure for transport:

Primary, Secondary and ITE students will automatically receive the School Smartcard or the ITE student concession card. These cards will grant the user a discount when computing via train or MRT/LRT. The discount given is quite large when travelling far distances. For example, when travelling from Woodlands MRT to Dover MRT, the MRT adult fare would be $1.81 but with the School Smartcard or the ITE student concession card the fare would be just $0.59. The fare can be calculated here.

Polytechnic students can apply for the Diploma Student Concession Card and apply for the Monthly Concession Passes (MCPs).

If the student did not apply for the MCPs, they will have to pay adult fare. So only apply for the MCPs if your monthly transportation expenses is greater than the rates given by the MCPs. You can calculate your fare here.

University students can apply for the Undergraduate Concession Card and the MCPs for undergraduates.

If the student did not apply for the MCPs, they will have to pay adult fare. So only apply for the MCPs if your monthly transportation expenses is greater than the rates given by the MCPs. You can calculate your fare here.

If you tap in before 7.45am, $0.50 will be deducted from that fare you have to pay.

2. Stationary

Stationaries are essential for education in Singapore. So here are some ways to reduce expenditure on Stationary

Instead of buying overpriced stationary at retail stores search online for cheaper alternatives. For example, in iprice.sg, you can compare find where to buy what stationary you want for the cheapest price.

You can also reduce expenditure on stationary by buying pens that do not stop working after dropping a few times, instead buy more durable pens so that you will not have to fork out extra money to replace broken pens as often.

3. Budgeting

You can save more money if you plan out how you are going to spend your money and stick strictly to the plan you will have more money saved than if you just spend money on the fly.

4. Discounts

You can also save money by exploiting your student status for discounts.

For example, if you frequent Popular bookstore, you can buy the Popular student card at a cheaper price as compared to the Adult card while enjoying the same discounts as a member.

There are also many stores where you can get discounts for being a student like 4 Fingers Crispy Chicken where you can get $2 off by showing your student pass and many more.