Lack of Funds Equals Lack of College Experience

This is an article of mine published in The Daily Gamecock:

College is not suited for those on a budget. The lack of funds can completely change your entire college experience.
Most students take around fifteen hours of class and then on top of that work a part time job. By the end of the day, there is no time for studying, hanging out with friends, or taking advantage of the endless opportunities here at USC.
What is the point in going to college if you can’t fully immerse yourself in the environment? Isn’t college about discovering new things and deciding how that will change your life?
Unfortunately, the only way for many of us to attend college is by taking out loans and working while in school. Some make this juggling act seem effortless but in reality it is almost impossible to fully enjoy the college experience while stressing over finances.
Not only is there not enough time to be as prepared academically for each class, but there is not enough money to cover any other activities you wish to participate in. If you want to go to a football game and you happen to be off work that evening, you can request a ticket online. If you are not chosen in the raffle to get a ticket, you have to buy one. Face value of a ticket is on average forty- five dollars. The cost alone can sway your decision whether or not you will attend. After the game, your friends may invite you downtown to celebrate. Food and drinks alone can break your bank, especially if you just shelled out forty- five dollars for a ticket. Then there is transportation cost. Taxis from downtown to campus are relatively cheap but if you are already stretching it, you may not have enough to cover the costs. Estimate the cost of this one night and it will be roughly around sixty-five dollars. Working a minimum wage job, like most students do, this is almost nine hours of work before taxes are taken out. Putting this all into perspective, many students would miss out on a common college experience, a football game, simply due to their inability to cover the bill.
Many of the experiences here at USC do not require a great deal of money; however, even small amounts of money can starts to add up quickly. Those that are fortunate enough not to have financial woes seem to have more opportunities to have a fulfilling college experience. Those that are struggling to stay afloat tend to miss out on memorable moments that make up college life.
College is often referred to as “an experience of a lifetime” but not having the money to fund those experiences makes college life seem less fulfilling.