How to Ask Your Parents for Money
Thursday, August 28, 2008 by Kelly Sutton So you've worked your ass off at your unpaid internship over the summer and you've loaded up your meal plan dollars with your student loans. But something goes wrong, you spent too much money here and there. All of a sudden it's the end of the semester and even a Ramen diet seem luxurious. You have to do the unthinkable. You have to ask your parents for money.
Assess the Situation
If you're white, chances are your parents are already paying for your food, gas, bills, car insurance, booze expenses and cab rides back from downtown late at night. This post is not for you.
But if asking your parents for money is a big deal, you'll need to create a strategy. If your parents are still paying off the house, they will disown you for asking them for extra cash. If there is a slight chance of milking some money out of them, you can't make a wrong move.
Promise Enclosure
Many schools have switched to doing their meal plans in the form of dollars, rather than number of meals. If you attend one of these schools, you can give your parents the guarantee that their money supplement won't go toward booze, drugs or movie tickets. Such a promise pulls at the heart strings of parents; they just can't say no.
You're probably better off too. You will be forced to avoid the habits that got you into the position you're in now, unless you're working on the Freshman 40.
Give Your Parents Your Bank Info
College is all about becoming an individual, right? Correct on most accounts. But if you're in a financial pinch and need some money for food, having your parents know your account number can be a Godsend. Bonus points if your account is with the same bank as your parents; transfers will take place much more quickly.
Be Careful with the Worst-Case Scenario Survival Handbook: College Edition
While the favorite Worst-Case Scenario Handbooks occasionally dole out life-saving information, the authors of the "College Edition" missed the mark on most accounts.
For example, the authors advise to "ask for more than you need." If you are out of money and turning to your parents--face it--you need to live on a strict budget until the summer. Then you can go into waiter/waitress mode to bring your bank account back to safe levels.
But the book does make some solid points: write a formal email, follow up with a thank-you and use specific examples of how the money is going to help you in the long- and short-run.
Make Yourself Useful
It is possible to make money on your own, believe it or not. Craigslist is full of freelance gigs for some quick cash.
But sometimes the course load is too tough to squeeze in a freelance gig or two. If your parents are completely soulless, you're in trouble. Switch in to Ramen mode, ask your closest friend for $100 and wait out the storm.
How do you deal with penny-pinching times? Do you have any personal strategies that have worked well? Let us know in some comments!
Reader Comments (19)
Most colleges have a special account attached to their student IDs -- ones that allow you to shop at local stores. Convince your parents to load up that card instead. They'll have the assurance that you're using it for groceries and school supplies, not bars.
If you’re white, chances are your parents are already paying for your food, gas, bills, car insurance, booze expenses and cab rides back from downtown late at night. This post is not for you.
I'm not sure if this was intended to be funny or not, but the racial characterization was completely unnecessary.
IMHO, out of context, it's very crass. Notice, though, that he linked to "Stuff White People Like" on the word "white," which indicates a quite different definition. Under the "Stuff White People Like" standard, even black people can be "white."
[...] How to Ask Your Parents for Money [...]
Maybe I'm just a little extra-sensitive, but as a "white guy" who had to work his way through school because times were a little tight after my father died when I was 15, I failed to see the humor in that throw-away line. Man, Lifehacker will link to anything these days...
Woah, the guy was deliberately making a point to link to a website that would perhaps interest the reader, as many blogs do, and suddenly he's being inappropriate?
And I find deliberately mentioning your father's death to provoke an emotional response and persuade the user to your point of view incredibly manipulative. Adding the further comment about Lifehacker equally cheapens your statement as well.
Take a chill pill. It's a topic that scares many people, and I think he covered it well.
[...] How to Ask Your Parents for Money [Hack College] [...]
Do you all work for hackcollege or something?
This is "comments" section, and he did just that. I bet he didn't expect the flame, he just offered a response to his first comment...
and I though you needed an Rx to get chill pills... let us all know your hook-up... sometimes we all need one.
YOU'RE AN IDIOT. SO YOU'RE SAYING THAT ONLY WHITE PARENTS PAY FOR THEIR KIDS NEEDS WHILE THE'RE AWAY IN COLLEGE? THATS WHT YOU SCUM ARE MOVING DOWN IN THE WORLD! ITS 2008, BLACK PEOPLE NOW HAVE MORE MONEY AND LUXERIES THAN WHITE PEOPLE. YOU HICKS ARE FUCKING LIVING UNDER A ROCK...OPEN YOUR EYES! LOL U MAKE ME SICK..FUCKING HILLBILLIES!! GROW THE FUCK UP...
If you’re white, chances are your parents are already paying for your food, gas, bills, car insurance, booze expenses and cab rides back from downtown late at night. This post is not for you.
Is this supposed to be funny?
I'm white and my parents don't pay for a single thing, don't be racist.
Dang man. Some people can't take a joke. I thought it was pretty dang funny. If you ain't laughin, you ain't livin' baby. For real.
Great tips on getting some cash in from the parents. I'll be going to college soon so you bet I will be back for more. HAHA dude great site man. (In my mind.) "Who comes up with this ****?" Lol Great page.
[...] public links >> ramen How to Ask Your Parents for Money Saved by terceraparte on Wed 29-10-2008 Co-Working….somewhere near Tipperary? Saved by [...]
Great tips. LOL. I got it. Thank's dude :)
Writing letters to family members (aunts, uncles, grandparents) always works when you mention things like learning to do laundry and having to do it "twice" cause you ruined a couple white things, blah blah blah. Fish for some cash.... that pond isn't dry yet.
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This was actually pretty funny. I'm white, black. mexican, and native american and my college is paid in full by my parents. But then again I'm adopted. And my parents are white.. Learn to take a joke people. All in all it made me laugh
People live to be offended. I am white, my parents helped me out lots with university but I also have a huge student loan because they aren't my personal ATM or anything. I still laughed at this because I have plenty of friends who didn't ever work or pay for a single textbook for 4 years in school. Can no one say anything funny anymore? Are you people really offended by this? If so, you probably need to build up some self-esteem because being offended over something like this is just petty and pathetic. Get offended about something that matters.
The "if you're white, chances are your parents are already paying for ..." joke was fucking hilarious. Haha.
Some of the people who've commented previously need to realize that, actually, you don't have a right to not be offended in life! Shocking, I know.
If something upsets your ever-so-delicate sensibilities, well, then you're just plain outta luck. If someone's joke really affects you like that, the real joke is that you probably need some therapy. Ah hah! How do you like them apples?