I chose to go to college in my hometown so I would save money and be in a slightly better financial position to study abroad. That being said, my college savings account is quickly dwindling. No one in my family has ever attended a four year university, so it wasn’t necessarily expected that I would, and therefore my college account was always small. In fact, it wasn’t even created until I was already in high school. Attending school is more expensive than my family had anticipated and is able to pay. I don’t want my financial situation to get in the way of my dreams. To help pay for college I worked two jobs the previous two summers. I have continued to work throughout college to stay on top of the cost of tuition and textbooks. I am more than willing to work hard to be able to afford this incredible opportunity, but I know there is no way I can earn the money for this trip prior to leaving (especially not while attending school full time). In preparation to spend most of my money on studying abroad this summer I do every little thing I can to save money. I save money by taking the city bus to campus rather than paying for a parking pass and driving to campus, and I also pack lunches instead of purchasing food on or off campus. I don’t even pay for meal