You can count on me!

"It's clearly a budget. It's got a lot of numbers in it." George Bush

If your budgeting knowledge is about as good as the American President's, you could have some major trouble ahead of you.

For many students money is constantly scarce - I've heard horror stories about students scraping copper coins together in order to have enough cash to buy food for the day, and it simply doesn't need to be that way. Creating a simple and effective budget is easy, and here are my top tips:

PLAN

The key thing with budgeting is being aware of what your expenditure will be, and being prepared for any one-offs that you will need cash for.

It's an absolute must to write down everything you expect to spend per month, and by this I don't mean JUST your outgoing bills and rent etc.

To avoid any nasty surprises, also budget how much you'll need for nights out, books, travel, gifts, takeaways etc.

BE SNEAKY

When you get paid/get your loan through, think ahead.

Online savers (most banks give quite competitive interest) are both easy to use and a clever way of putting a little bit aside without really noticing it.

Setting up a direct debit into your savings account for £20 (or whatever you can afford) each month for a 'rainy day', Christmas, or a month where you use your card a little over-enthusiastically means panic over.

Another savvy budgeting idea is to overestimate your costs - it's likely you'll spend more than you think, plus if not you'll have some welcome extra money at the end of the month for extremely important things like shoes, online bingo or getting the iphone (OK maybe you won't have that much extra cash).

PRIORITISE

When planning your budget try and gain a little perspective and remember that the best things in life come for free - much as I don't want to go all hippy on you, I think I have a valid point - for example gym memberships on a budget are pointless when - for instance - walking, jogging and dancing are free.

Making your own pizza is also far more fun and money-smart than ordering in (plus you get to choose as many toppings you like!)

REVISE

No, doing finals does not mean you'll be lucky in life.

I mean that every couple of months you should go over your budget, and see if you need to adjust anything.

You'll be surprised how quickly it can change - your outgoings can shoot up quicker than Pete Doherty can (allegedly.)

Keeping on top of it means you catch signs that you're spending too much early.

AND LASTLY...

Chill out. I don't advocate being complacent about your budget in the slightest, but remember that there's always a way out - if you have a bad month, you can get back on track.

The little things do add up - 2 for 1 deals at the supermarket, having a week of staying in, selling some old junk on Ebay. Just be smart.

As a wise friend of mine once said, "You get by on what you have in your purse."