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6 Ways to Save Money on Printing at University
Guest Writer
Updated Aug 15, 2024Save
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Guest post: Nicholas Brown
The life of a university student certainly isn’t cheap. Between textbooks, late night calzone deliveries, and a dozen cups of coffee per week, expenses build up quickly – and that’s before we even get started talking about room and board. Every dime you save helps take the pressure off your bank balance and, in time, can go towards paying off your loan debt. Despite the popularity of tablet readers and laptops, print is still an integral part of the college experience. It’s also a major expense when you aren’t careful about how you do it. Saving money on printing is easy though! Here are a couple of tips to get you started.
1. Print only when necessary.
Some folks advise students to forget the printer altogether, but I don’t agree. There are moments when having a printed copy of your reading or term paper really comes in handy. Being able to quickly and coherently jot down notes in the margins is a lifesaver when you have a great thought. Personally, I find printing out my work for editing is super helpful too – it means I don’t get caught up reworking one or two sentences into oblivion rather than looking at the bigger picture. However, you don’t need to print everything! If you’re reading something you aren’t going to incorporate into a review or term paper, don’t print it, or print only the pages you need. And definitely don’t print out a new term paper every time you find a typo. Make sure you thoroughly vet your work before you start printing. Print wisely.
2. Take advantage of free printing when available.
In many cases, undergrads are given access to free printing in the library, writing center, or department offices… to a limit. Your library isn’t going to be too pleased when you decide to print out the entirety of Swann’s Way a week before finals. Take a look at what your school offers students by way of free printing and use that when convenient. If you make regular trips to the library, this is easy as pie. But if you live in the dorms far from the nearest library, take a look at other places where free printing is available. Also, be sure to keep track of your print allotment. Once you reach your limit, you may have to pay more for each print than it costs to print from home.
3. Reduce text size.
Save money by printing on less paper. It’s easier than you think! Reducing the text size and widening margins on drafts for editing will put more words on each page. For long reading assignments, change your print settings when you get to the print preview to put two text on each sheet of paper. The font may be smaller than you’re used to, but likely won’t be any smaller than the lettering on vintage paperbacks.
4. Print front and back.
Setting your printer to print on both sides of the page immediately cuts the amount of paper you use in half. Not all printers have front-and-back print capability, but often spending a little extra for one that does will end up saving you quite a bit in the long run. Plus, the quality of your images will improve, and you’re less likely to find yourself replacing your cheap budget printer in a matter of two or three semesters. Plus, better quality printers often use printer cartridges that hold more ink and print more pages between replacements. Speaking of which…
5. Avoid brand-name cartridges.
If you have your own printer, there’s really no reason to spend on name brand printer cartridges for school work anymore, especially if you have a cheap unit. A range of companies now offer compatible/recycled printer cartridges that print just as well as brand-name cartridges but at half the cost. If the recycling facilities that service your community don’t have the capability to process ink cartridges, buying recycled cartridges also limits the amount of waste that goes into landfills. Many manufacturers will say that third-party cartridges don’t pass the quality test and won’t work with their printers, but that’s mostly because that’s how they make their money back after selling cheap printers. Choosing a compatible ink cartridge with a strong guarantee and responsive customer service department will give you the same results for significantly less money.
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6. Use the back side of printouts for writing notes.
If your professor didn’t double side print a handout (tsk tsk!) they just provided you with eight-by-eleven inches of quality clean white note writing space. While this doesn’t explicitly save you money on printing, it does go a long way towards making the most of the resources you have. Scribble down grocery lists, library book titles you need to pick up, daily to-do lists… whatever you need to keep in mind, but don’t want to waste a fresh sheet of paper on.
And of course, always remember to recycle. Most universities today encourage recycling by making it easy to do around campus. Don’t just toss away valuable paper that can be made into new paper! Try out each of these steps and over time you should see the amount you spend feeding your paper habit decreasing. The amount you save can go towards getting more earth-friendly products, which helps in some small way to motivate companies to make more recycled paper.
Nicholas Brown is a research editor for LD Products, where he frequently writes about the ways businesses in various industries can utilize printing technology for improved cost-efficiency and performance.
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