Life at college can be difficult to navigate, especially your freshman year. But over my years at Moravian, I discovered a life hack or two that can help you save money, save time, and life hack your way through school. When you’re in a pinch or just feeling exceptionally mischievous, test out one of these hacks to see how they help you.

1. Take out dinner while you eat lunch: Don’t want to deal with the rain or snow to get dinner (or just too lazy to walk up to the dining hall twice)? Invest $6 (or a swipe!) in the reusable to-go containers in the Star or Clewell to eat lunch and take dinner with you! Bonus: Another two-for-one swipe!
2. Swipe in commuter friends to use up swipes: If you have too many swipes left in your account by the time the end of the semester rolls around, swipe in all of your commuter friends or friends from home! They help you to use up swipes, and they also get to have an excuse to visit you more often!
3. Use Tapingo to skip the Starbucks line: 7:30 class got you down and you’re in desperate need of an iced coffee from Starbucks? Don’t fear the crazy morning line that could make you late to class and order with Tapingo! The mobile ordering app lets you select all of your favorite drinks and lets you skip the ordering, checkout, and pickup lines! So hit that snooze button one more time!
4. Check Tapingo and the kiosk for differences in price: This one’s for the real penny pinchers out there. Occasionally, there are subtle differences in the prices of food items on the Tapingo app versus the kiosk in each eatery. For example, I discovered at one point last year a falafel plate from Garbanzo was $9 when you ordered it off the kiosk in the B & G, but the price of the very same falafel plate when you ordered it on Tapingo was $8. It’s not much of a difference, but considering that the only difference was that you ordered it on your phone instead of in-person, it could eventually save you some serious dining dollars. 
5. Using Tapingo multiple times gives you coupons for your favorite foods: Users of Tapingo often receive coupons for free or discounted food for future uses. They are sometimes specific, like a free smoothie from Natural Smoothie or 50 cents off a meal from Garbanzo, but sometimes they give you an actual free meal or drink that you can use! It’s worth keeping an eye out for!
6. Use the Bite app to see what meals are offered during the day: If you’re anything like me, you’ve already swiped in to the Star with a certain meal in mind and are disappointed to find it unavailable. Rather than accidentally waste a swipe when you don’t actually like any of the options, check out the meals ahead of time! Using the Bite App by Sodexo, you can see what meals are going to be offered in each dining hall all day everyday. This is also super helpful if you’re budgeting your meal plans and decide what meals you would forgo in the Star to spend some dining dollars in DeLight’s or the B & G.
7. Don’t waste money buying water bottles in the B and G: While there are many varieties of water for purchase in the B & G like Voss, LIFEWTR, and Aquafina, don’t waste your precious dining dollars on water. Be eco-friendly and budget-friendly by refilling a reusable water bottle! Each water fountain has a water bottle tap that provides filtered water. Plus, it’s more hygienic than a regular water fountain so there are no worries about using it. If you can’t get your hands on a reusable water bottle, buy a bottle from the B & G, drink it, then continue to refill it at the fountain. Always be sure to recycle!
8. Night classes = less nightly reading: Do you dread nightly reading, but can’t get away from reading-heavy classes? Try a night class! Technically, you only have reading due once a week instead of two or three times a week, which generally means you have less to read. This is not always a guarantee and can depend on the professor or the subject, but it’s worth a shot!
9. You can renew your library books online: Renewing your library books is a must for a big paper or research project, but did you know you can do it online? No need to visit Reeves to renew your books. Simply open the link on your email from the library reminding you that your books are due soon, and follow the link on the email that says to renew your books. One simple click and the books are yours once more without you ever having to leave your room!
10. Purchase textbooks at the Book Shop to save on shipping costs: Everyone knows the rule of waiting until the first day of class to buy your textbooks to make sure you really need them, but another hack to save money on textbooks is one a little more discreet. If you are waiting until you move to campus to pick up your textbooks, you can order them online and then pick them up in the Moravian Book Shop when you move in. That way, you save space in your car moving in, you save on shipping fees, and you help save the environment by reducing shipping emissions. Plus you get to visit the Book Shop! It’s a Win-Win(-Win-Win)!
11. Wait for clearance sales to buy Moravian merch…: The Moravian Book Shop holds incredible sales a few times a semester, and it’s worth it to wait to do your shopping until those sales pop up. Keep checking your email because they often do Extra 50% off Clearance sales, and they only last one day in store. Those days, carve some time out of your schedule to hop the shuttle and visit the Book Shop. I once bought a $70 new jacket for $26.50! It’s a fantastic time to buy Christmas presents for your family and friends while staying on a budget.
12. … Or wait to get free t-shirts: Moravian has a knack for outfitting you with t-shirts. You can get them from Moravian activities like Springfest, Fallfest, Wingo, club fairs, USG Town Halls, and so much more! I assure you by the time you leave after graduation, you will have an entire collection of college shirts that you won’t want to part with.
13. Keep breakfast in your room for mornings you don’t want to deal with the dining hall: It’s no secret that sometimes you oversleep in the morning or that the dining hall can be a zoo at popular meal times. For both of these times, it’s a good idea to have a breakfast option in your room. Because I enjoy cereal for breakfast, I kept a box of cereal and a small jug of milk in my kitchen so I could have a quiet breakfast in my room before a busy day. But, you can substitute any breakfast like toast, bagels, or even Pop-Tarts.
14. Bring a large monitor to double as a TV: Living in a dorm room with limited space? Bring a large monitor to double as a TV! You can place it on your desk in your room to save space, but then you can turn it to face your bed and your roommate’s bed so you can watch your favorite Netflix show on the big screen!  It beats huddling around a single laptop screen! Plus, it gives you some extra work space when you have too many taps to manage on your laptop during a heavy homework night.