#95 - Managing Variable Income as a Busy Graduate Student: Jasmin Green, PhD Student UC Davis
Jul 24, 2024
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Jasmin Green, PhD student at UC Davis, shares insights on managing variable income in grad school with YNAB. Topics include budget categories, financial priorities, credit card management, rent expenses, bill organization strategies, and the benefits of budgeting for non-monthly expenses.
Managing variable income as a PhD student requires meticulous budgeting and planning for tax implications.
Prioritizing self-care expenses in budgeting promotes intentional spending and financial well-being.
Utilizing digital tools and custom budget categories allows for tech-savvy financial management and community support efforts.
Deep dives
Financial Stability and Academic Funding
Navigating through the financial challenges of being a PhD candidate, Jasmine shares insights into securing funding for her academic pursuits at UC Davis. From grants for research to recurring stipends, the ever-changing landscape of academic funding, including the struggle between secured external grants funding versus the time-consuming TA positions.
Smart Budgeting Strategies
Jasmine's journey with budgeting reflects a proactive approach towards financial stability. From utilizing YNAB for managing income replacement categories to strategic savings for technology replacements and annual tax dues, her meticulous budgeting demonstrates a balance between calculated spending and planning for future financial needs.
Intentional Spending and Self-Care
By prioritizing categories like haircuts, clothing, cosmetics, and self-care essentials, Jasmine showcases an intentional approach towards personal grooming and well-being. Her budgeting philosophy encourages setting aside funds for gifts, holiday decorations, and occasional splurges, emphasizing the importance of self-care and treating oneself within the budget.
Tech Savvy Financial Management
Leveraging digital tools like OnePassword for securely managing passwords and maintaining online security, along with a pragmatic view on website domain reservations and professional society memberships, Jasmine's financial journey highlights a tech-savvy and forward-thinking approach towards managing personal and academic expenses.
Organizing Expenses and Planning for Emergencies
Managing expenses such as massages and bulk purchases, the speaker discusses the need to allocate funds efficiently, suggesting strategies like cash infusions to cover expenses. Moreover, they highlight the importance of planning for emergencies and unexpected costs, using examples like bulk purchases and home improvements to illustrate the necessity of budgeting for varying needs.
Personalizing Budget Categories for Diverse Hobbies and Community Support
The podcast delves into the speaker's personalized budget categories tailored to hobbies like roller skating and gaming, demonstrating the flexibility of YNAB for diverse interests. Additionally, a unique 'coalition of black ecologists' category showcases community support efforts and specific allocations for conferences and personal wish lists, emphasizing the depth of customization and intentionality in budgeting.
The Budget Nerds have covered the spending habits of a lot of married folks with families, but what about the single people out there? In today's episode, Ben and Ernie speak with Jasmin Green, a PhD student in the Department of Plant Sciences at UC Davis. Jasmin is an avid YNAB'er, who credits the methodology with keeping her bank account in order during the financially challenging years of graduate school. As a PhD student, Jasmin's income is highly variable, with several streams of income from stipends, grants, and emplyoment as a TA -- each with their own tax implications. Despite the lumpy income, Jasmin has successfully used YNAB to navigate the costs of living in graduate school while remaining relatively stress-free, at least when it comes to money!
Jasmin breaks down the categories in her spending plan in full detail, and how they each fit into the big picture of her financial life.
