Savvy student-only back-to-school discounts

Education can be such a cool thing. Forget all those questions about whether going to school is financially worth it - it IS. The fact that you're laying the groundwork for a better lifetime income aside, the serious discounts offered only to students make going to school the smart thing to do. Whatever a student needs, there's a discount for it. Most of the time all you have to do is flash a valid student ID card to get a bargain. And there is often no age limit, so if you're an older adult in college, you still qualify.

The student market is a boon for retailers. They strive to capture lifelong customers by offering deep discounts to student (who often have a limited amount of cash, but few bills to pay). Marketers encourage repeat buyers who refer their friends. Let's take a look at a few of the smart discounts available only to students.

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Discount Cards

There are dozens of student discount cards out there, which, for a nominal fee, provide percentage discounts on clothes, electronics, food and entertainment, among other perks. International Student ID Card (ISIC) (http://www.myisic.com/) offers 11% off flights on JetBlue Airlines 10% off at Macy's and tons of other savings from Amtrak to Target The card costs $22 per year, but you could easily make up that in savings on just one airline flight.

The Student Advantage Card is $22.50 per year and offers savings on everything from travel to food to clothing at name-brand companies ( www.studentadvantage.com/discountcard/ ). If you do buy in to a student discount card, be sure that the items on which it offers discounts are things that you would buy anyway - otherwise, the price of the card may not be worth the savings if offers.

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Food

Lots of restaurants offer student discounts. To find budget food in your area, visit www.metromix.com and type in your city. If you like to eat out once and a while, finding good deals is a great way to make this more affordable. (For more tips on eating cheap, read 22 Ways To Fight Rising Food Costs.)

Software

Many schools negotiate discount software prices for students and teachers on the most popular brands. A must-have for homework; savings of 10-80% are available directly from manufacturers or through consolidators like JourneyEd. The cheap prices apply to kindergarten through 12th grade, college students and even teachers (www.journeyed.com). Discounts can be as much as 90% at On the Hub (www.onthehub.com), a network that links students and teachers with software publishers and resellers. Before upgrading any computer software, check with your school to see what upgrades it.

Electronics

Each and every year, electronic retailers come up with new deals for students. This year, Apple has a great deal on the Macbook. If you buy one before September 8, the company will throw in a free iPod Touch (www.store.apple.com) - and engrave it for free. This deal is available for college students, and college faculty and staff. (Do you have an iPhone? Find out how it can help your finances in Managing Your Money: There's An App For That.) also has a special website for college students with multiple discounts on PCs, laptops

and printers (www.delllounge.com/delluniversity). Students can customize the skin on their laptops with more than 200 designs. The website will also hook you up with the systems most suited to your university's network and on-campus IT support.

Clothing

You can't head back to school without adding a few new pieces to your wardrobe. Retailers are hip to this. JCrew offers free shipping or back to school, and students can flash their ID cards in the store for 10% off purchases. Other popular stores like Delias, Old Navy, Gap and Target also offer special student coupons and discounts. Check out www.studentbistro.com/clothing.htm for more on how to save.

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