Happy National Predental Week! This week is all about recruiting predentals to join ASDA. Why join? ASDA has resources that can help you get into dental school and become educated about all things dentistry. You’ll also have access to exclusive member benefits and discounts on things like DAT study resources. But it’s really about something more. Watch this video if you’re ready to become a part of something bigger.In honor of National Predental Week, Mouthing Off will feature all predental-focused content this week. You’ll even have a bonus post on Thursday!
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A great deal of our financial advice in the past has been geared toward the dental student or young practitioner. As a predental student, you have many years ahead of you to focus on dental specific financial planning. Now is the time to focus on the basics. The two most important parts of becoming financially aware as a predental student relate to understanding your personal budget, using it and choosing a dental school that fits within that budget. As many dental students now graduate with anywhere from no dental school debt to nearly half a million dollars in dental school debt, a budget should be at the cornerstone of a predental’s overall plan. But what is the best way to track your finances? In the past, we’ve recommended use of a written budget or one created in Excel. As students, most will not need the advice of a financial planner. There are some good tech savvy choices that you can use easily on your phones, tablets or computers. These are good streamlined options that will allow you to track your finances at the tap of a few buttons. These apps keep you accountable and are easy to use.
Try out one or several of these apps and find one that you like. Once you have a way to track you spending and can create a budget, you can use this budget to ensure that the schools you are considering will fit within this budget. Applying to dental school itself carries significant cost, so it is important to consider your budget when deciding whether to even apply to a school.
- Mint: This is a good option if you want something that allows you to connect your personal bank accounts and credit cards to an app. You can create a budget in this app and also set alerts so that you are notified when you are about to hit a particular limit. Mint has an app for iPhone and Android.
- Budgt: This app does not ask for your personal information and is very simple to use. It is probably best for those who already have a pretty good handle on their finances but want something to track expenses.
- AndroMoney: If you’re an Android user and like to have information at your fingertips no matter where you are, AndroMoney works with GoogleDrive and allows you to export data into Drive easily.
- Toshl: Toshl has a free version and a “pro” version that you pay for annually. Toshl also allows you to export data easily to Excel or GoogleDocs. Toshl divides tasks into four groups for easy tracking: Expenses, Income, Sum Up and Budget.
These are just a few of the more popular apps for financial tracking out there. There are hundreds of apps available to track your finances as you approach your post-college education. What apps have you tried to track finances? Which do you like best?
~Megan Mathers (Hille), JD, accountant at Pesavento & Pesavento
