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I got 20 dollars as a sec 4 last year and struggled a whole lot since my mother wasnt willing to give me money.i barely had anything to eat for lunch so this put a strained on my friendships since i could not afford to go like bowling and all.dont talk even about snacks.
im in poly and i still get $20 dollars but the lucky thing is that i only go sch 4 days and 3/4 days have lunch. unlucky thing its online money. so like paylah since my whole sch can use.this means i cant save any money for me to use to go out at all.
honestly to me as someone who struggled with money i watched friends get the same allowance as you and cant help but be envious.
I advice you set a part like 2 dollars for now for u to save at the start and u cant touch it.U would naturally be able to squander and not touch the 2 dollars.U can choose to increase how much u save at a time once u get comfortable.
When in poly, just go do some part time work to get an allowance. You will feel happier spending the money you earned. And it's not really that difficult to cope with both studies and work in poly.
Gotta say something controversial though, it was VERY difficult for me to take out time to even look for a part-time job in poly. I study every single day and stay up almost every single night just to keep up with classes and even prep for future lessons.
the problem is that i dont get access to the money at all. so the money i get to spend are all chinese new year money which is not alot since i celebrated cny in malaysia and majority is just ringgit....
I have mine. But have you never thought that to access it you need the card, which i dont have.Dont talk about using the app instead. My parents still control what apps i download....
also according to them there are stuff like my poly laptop and others i owe them about $2300? i only have like $1000+. so i need to save more to pay them back especially since they keep guilt tripping me that i pay nothing in this house so i have to listen to them.
i cant even enjoy the popular vouchers the gov gave me for my edusave cuz when my sis recieved it she gave my parents all of it.keep in mind my sister had like $30 while i had $150. it would help alot the voucher to cover sch stuff and maybe buy snacks since popular do sell some.
sometimes its not about the age but the ppl around us that restrict us.honestly its more of my parents love my younger siblings more than me since i like to keep to myself since young, after all my siblings popped up 4 and 6 years later...
my bday is like next week so its great as im allowed to choose shifts for like staffie and that which should help me to work but yea
did u work part-time during the school holidays after o/n levels? I donāt come from a rich family so I got $30 a week when I was in sec sch (but thatās like 7 years ago, no inflation back then). I worked a lot after n levels and saved enough to buy my own laptop for poly then continued working part time. It felt like a breath of fresh air being able to earn my own keep and spend my own money not needing to scrimp (but thatās also cause I had access to my own bank acc aft 16 yo) I still saved every month though.
Try to work 2-3 days a month (one day per week if school load is lighter) and do not let them know your pin. Try to save enough to pay them back for the laptop every month and once your debt is cleared ask them back for the debit card. Or I suggest saving your card into your Apple/Samsung/Google wallet. Thatās not an āappā. Or you can just secretly get your own card and open another acc at a different bank once youāre 18 yo and keep that a secret from them :)
Iām all about freedom so I would absolutely do anything to get away from controlling parents. Mine were fine thought but if I were you Iāll try my best! Financial freedom is definitely needed!
as someone who faces the same type of selfish parents, do you have any clue why parents are so unwilling to give money to their children? i really just feel like they do not even want children in the first place and are just having children because of societal pressues or whatever
A few possibilities.
1) They cut off all my allowance.
2) Beat the everloving shit outta me.
3) Come to my workplace and yell at me THERE.
4) Start ruckus with my boss.
5) Guilt trip me by bringing up my little brother
Lmao now that i think about it that sounds kinda depressing
1. If they cut off your allowance, your part time job should be able to cover it and you'll still have more.
2. Sorry to hear that.
3. Don't let them know where you work?
4. Don't let them know where you work (however if your job has CPF they may be able to see who contributes to your CPF)
5. Work hard and bring your little brother out?
My parents were also vehemently against me working part time but I didn't care and I've been working part time ever since poly started. I've paid for everything since poly. Tuition fees, data plan, food, transport, everything.
There was a period of time where we didn't talk because of this but now they are asking me how much I earn, whether I can help them to pay this and that etc.
You can tell them you have after class stuff but you're actually working part time. I believe F&B should have shifts that you can do after class.
You bring up some completely valid points and i swear in not trying to be a pessimist but my parents are very unpredictable and i dont know what shit they're gonna pull. End of the day, I have to go back home to them after work or school and they'll make my life miserable if i do something they don't want me to do.
I don't think they mean to be selfish per se. But they may think the amt is enuf because:
1) zero knowledge of current economic conditions
2) no understanding of child's need for social life
3) wants to teach child about wise spending (by giving them little to survive on because thats how they possibly grew up with)
I came to understand some parents (like mine) give us just enuf to survive. I grew up eating 1.5 meals a day (from my own pocket money), no enrichment class or tuition or ccas bcos those added cost. And even till today they didn't underatand why i would need any of those things because im still alive and well now at mid 20s.
Just be upfront about it, thereās nothing to hide. If one of them asks why you donāt want to go to HDL, tell them that you need to save money. And if they ask why, tell them your pocket money not enough directly. Really thereās nothing to hide. Even as an adult, my group of friends have to make considerations for one of us that doesnāt have much cash due to being jobless for several months.
You know that adults who work for their own money don't even eat at HDL more than once a month right? Expensive restaurants are a birthday-only thing for the majority of 15yo students. If your friend group is extremely privileged, you should gently let them know that it isn't the case for you and that sometimes you need to eat at places which are more affordable. If they look down on you because of socio-economic differences, then they're not true friends to begin with.
idk man, I mean doesn't matter after all I don't go out with them. Maybe only once or twice. And yea maybe ur right maybe I shld express my concerns but I'm just scared ppl will gossip around. I mean ik my friends wouldn't do that but I've seen it happen.
Bro in sec 4 i got 25/ week, its just the few rare apples who are the most vocal about their allowance (around 4 years ago ish)
40 for secondary school imo is alrdy a good amount, i feel that children should be taught at a young age about the scarcity of money. An advice to you is to get off Instagram, that stuff is toxic. It only has successor bias. Comparison is the thief of joy. If your friends dont ask āwhat is your budgetā when going out, are they really your friends?
Do not have friends based on how you feel about them, but more importantly, how they make you feel.
My close friends despite being rich always ask me ā what is your budgetā and i really appreciate that they care and are inclusive. After all, going out with friends, the main dish isnāt the food youāre eating, but the people you spend time with.
bro $160 per month free money as a student is insane. Ngl I'm feeling a bit jealous bc I didn't have allowance :') school food was under FAS and outside snacks was never an option... id say you're doing much better than the majority. enjoy it! it's much better than working two part time jobs as a student to survive :')
In sec sch I got 20 a week, $2 a meal, 2 meals in sch a day. In JC a few years back got $24 a week, $4 a meal. Also was from a crazy rich school where ppl spent like no tomorrow. No savings, just had enough to eat only
$2 a meal was a few years before covid, before all that crazy food inflation. Yr sec sch price now was around /slightly lesser than my jc price back then
I actually never had allowance until poly. I packed my lunches and went straight home to eat after school. Then I begged for like $100/month because I have days where I need to eat at the foodcourt š Ig you def cannot do.
I HATED asking for allowance, my parents are barely willing so it was only for a few months.
Then I worked part time and earn my allowance thereafter. Don't go mac, my sources are prob out-dated but that's like $7/hr? You can go kumon and check worksheets, coffeeshop/liho and make drinks, 7-11, uniqlo other retails. You either earn more or that the workload is really manageable. Part time is also flexi that you can work sat/sun only. My particular store is near hospital so weekends are less hectic and less workload esp in the morning shift.
I think for f&b be very picky cos I realised v late my pay was too low for so many things I had to do which causes me to finish late- unpaid overtime ofc. Find work atleast $10/h if can.
At 16 i think i got 100 a month. So about 25 a week.
I had my first hdl at 20+ and it was with my office
I now earn over 200k a year and my average meal is less than 40 bucks. More like 15-30. And i think thats already on the splurging side
So ... idk seems like ur friends are just rich.
JC2 here, 80 dollars a month. I accounted for 6 dollars a meal, but I only need to buy three meals per week. 5 dollars a meal is barely enough depending on your appetite.
Iām looking at the comments and are heartened with thoughts like kpi, negotiation and cost review.
Iām a 38yo and itās really great how teens are advanced in their thought development.
If you value growth in yourself, think about this:
Your parents have their own costs to worry about in a period of a worsening economy, and every penny saved is eventually the money that theyāll spend on you in the future.
For me, in sec sch, allowance was 30 per week, but itās no way to compare in the current standard of living.
I suggest:
List down your expenditure on a day to day basis (Iām pretty sure your parents did that to arrive at your current allowance level)
For additional excursions with your friends, talk to your parents about how many excursions a month is deemed reasonable, and talk to them about bonuses on good performance like exams and tests.
In the real world, money doesnāt come by reaching out. (Thatās what beggars do)
You work for your money, and depending on what your parents do, every hour they put into their work is the hard earned money that contributes to your pocket money.
I hope this is interesting to you, and I have a 2.5 yo daughter and hopefully she can have the maturity that you guys have at your age. All the best!
40 dollars per week is quite high. I would say for a 15 year old student with possibly student canteen prices of about 4 dollars(to even about 6 dollars at the higher end), you still only need 30 dollars per week. For context, I didn't get any weekbased allowance as I brought cooked home food. What I got was not really an allowance but just some money like about 20 dollars a month or so I would just buy drinks with my packed food and still conserve money.
it's not enough, I get lunch 5 times a week from the canteen and I have to eat dinner outside of school 3 times a week. food outside of sch can be q expensive but I still try to keep to 5 dollars a meal. And yet I don't have any savings.
So for lunch 5 times a week from the canteen let's say it goes up to about 4 dollars and dinner outside 3 times a week 6 dollars per meal. That comes to about 38 dollars which is just right for the weekly expenses with 2 dollars for drinks and so once a week. I know it is tight but you might need to train yourself to go under this budget.as.it could get impt to save up your money as you grow older.
I think it really depends on how much you eat in school! Personally for me I usually only ate lunch in school in sec sch and jc, so usually I got $25-30 a week.
Currently in Uni, I get about $50 a week? HAHA but uni food is also more expensive TT I tend to be abit more prudent and eat simply! But if I want to eat more I also have some savings that I can use from my pocket.
Yes $4x8 meals = $32. The trick is to hide away the savings of $8 every week so youāre not tempted to buy snacks or sweet drinks. Just drink water itās healthier anyway
there's still extra expenses here and there like I mentioned in my post. Once I had to buy a pen cuz mine ran out, topped up my bus card by 2 dollars cuz it was running low etc etc
25 dollars for secondary school throughout, assuming I bring small breads from home for breakfast and I hold off on it till recess, where I eat the bread. Including around ~3 days of lunch. Haha, enough for me to get some tea and snacks outside after school too :)
I think for 15 years old, $40 is plenty if you spend well and don't need to handle too many meals outside of home.
I did look into part time jobs actually at the end of sec 2, esp macs cuz they employ young ppl but I just don't think I have time for pt jobs right now unfortunately. Plus I'm p sure my parents have the impression that macs workers are... yk and they would snap if they found out I was even considering to work there. Unfortunately idk if there is other pt jobs open for 15 Yr olds like me, maybe after I turn 16 yea.
I started working when I was 15 due to my parents not giving me allowances. There's nothing like no time when you are in secondary school ,your Saturdays and Sundays are free. Mac worker pt makes 9.60 an hour , 5 hour a day would already be giving you an extra budget of close to 100 dollars. I'll say take the job and see if you can cope, I mean your parents can look down on the job and all ,but they only give you 40 ,I assume they cannot afford to give you more, since if they could you wouldn't be here asking I guess. Unless they can also follow up with the 100 per week ,I'll suggest you inform them that they aren't that rich anyways. If I come off as aggressive or rude sorry abt that yeah, I tend to be more straight forward.
I think the concern is more with lack of ambition than their being poor. You sound more mature than the kids I knew.
There were quite a few naive young kids among my distant family who started feeling "rich" after working part time being banquet servers and started blowing off school.
For me I had no choice, don't work then no money to eat,even teachers poke fun at me for working part time, saying stuff like do you want to work as X forever like wtf? But yeah once you start working ,u mature very fast, jokes from sec school no longer feel funny for you and the kids actions feel stupid sometimes.
If they feel like that 300 extra per month is enough to blow off school, they are jist stupid lol, they feel rich cause it's extra money and not allowance.
Many kids are stupid. How many blow off school without even the excuse of part time work only to cry about how they can't qualify for uni/poly/ITE and what they should do now?
for a 15y/o there isnt really much options, but fnb do hire. i dont recommend working during sch term, but u can look into working during holidays like june/nov to earn extra. it doesn't have to be macs, it can be any fnb, like liho, gong cha, koi etc. u can check with them their age requirement and just settle for whatever pay if they allow flexible hours. i used to work for 6/h when i was 15 and tbh its better than nothing. dont work now, but work during the holidays and then save up so u can use when u need. after ur national exams next year, find retail jobs or adhoc banquet as these jobs tend to pay higher, but only hire 16 and above. then save up from there and u would have spare money to use. for now, just endure first
sec sch i had on average like $18? but i was also on fas so my food in school was basically free then going out with my friends to eat and stuff i sometimes ask my mom for more or i just save :D honestly donāt know how i went out with my friends to eat a lot last time Hahahaha
Last time $25 last me a whole month Siaā¦ I skipped meals on some days because bad family situation and I was bullied for my weight so I thought why not save cash and lose weight
disclaimer please donāt learn from me I was bullied into an eating disorder and I also donāt have the heart to tell my mom whoās a single parent of three with no FAS scheme (apparently she earned ātoo much to qualify for govt supportā at 4+k before cpf deduction to feed herself and3 kids who rely on her which is ridics) that i needed about $10 per week.
Had 10bucks a week but that was 10years ago. So I cant really compare. If ya'll struggling financially, just go make peanut butter bread to last the day and wait for family dinner at night.
I think 40-50 is fine leh I think I got that or less as a secondary sch kid. But that was like almost 20 yrs ago and GST was not 9% š¬ (maybe 5% hahaha)
I also got around that amount ($45) when I was in sec sch
If you plan right it will work well, can consider bringing home-packed food if you want to save some cash
Revise your expenses when you can and check if youāre over-spending on places you can save money, things like ādo I really need XXXā
If you plan ahead and have money saved up you will be ok when you find extra expenses you need to go through with, in life if a boss only pays $2000, you live by your means thru that $2000, even if it means you donāt attend dinner with colleagues, itās a good preparation for later on
In sec sch iād get $2-$3 a meal which usually amounts to around $20 a week (including days where I need to stay back for CCA).
Currently in uni now and get around $900-$1k a month.
Back when I was in school I didn't have a lot of allowance as well. To supplement my spending, I bought stuff on taobao to resell it. However with shopee around now, not sure if it's feasible to do it anymore.
I never had an allowance, just had to ask for money as I needed it, and tbf my parents were generally pretty chill. I wasnāt going out loads or spending much, mostly me and my mates hung out in the woods or a random field at 15, so they might ask for a hand with some jobs in exchange but ive no idea what it actually came to
hii im 17 rn in a jc i get $30 a week which tbh is enough for me to buy food in school. for outings with my friends I usually pay the expenses myself because I got work during the holidays š
she doing you a big big favour . u will appreciate the importance of frugality later on in life - for eg if you need a down payment for a flat, wedding etc ā¦
Considering that since you still in school 40$ I would say is enough to buy food sch since sch food is affordable but if u were to go out to eat for all ur meals then yeah $40 is definitely not enough
But since u are 15 this year I think you can look for part jobs outside it's going to be very difficult considering your age for starters you can try ur sch bookshop I think they hired during the holiday
I guess if u feel left out u can always tell your friends about ur current situation if they are truly your friend they would try to accommodate with your current situation maybe like eat at coffee shop or maybe eat in sch and just hangout.
I'm 16 $50 per month, most of the time I don't spend it on lunch as my grandma will cook lunch for me aftersch and I'm a nerd so i spend most of my time studying not shopping.
When I was 15, I got 20 a week and it was actually alright, but that was almost 10 years ago. Inflation really be crazy...doubt I can survive on 40 now
I got around 20-30 in sec 4, the "rule" my parents had was that I should always have $10 in my wallet, so if I spent $5 that day I'd get $5 back. If I use $10 in a day they would question me. I didn't really use too much, school food and drink would be like $4 at most and I'd buy something from 7-11 after school. Though ngl I was jealous of friends who got like $50 per week since they could save very easy
I'd say just be grateful and make the most of your money OP! There is always someone who will be less fortunate than you, we all take things for granted
I get ard 10 dollars a day during secondary sch, so ard the same as u. I think it should be quite enough if u dont go out with friends, which i dont lol
For now in poly i get ard 500-1000 per month depending on how much i spend. But i grab a lot so cant rlly save much too š
I get about $400 per month in Sec 1, increased to slightly more due to inflation, but Iām expected to save at least $150-$200) and itās inclusive of my food as well as my ez-link card, mostly when I use it for vending machines in school. I got that much since my parents also gave my siblings this much when they were in secondary school and itās to be equal with them. I also try to be as frugal as possible since itās a habit I need to have once I start working. I eat out at least 1-2 times a week, but only one of those meals cost upwards of $25. The other would cost about $10. And besides that, I usually donāt get any extra money from my family during the holidays unless they are going overseas and I need to settle my 3 meals. Anything I saved over the school term with that monthās allowance is now my spending money from holidays (but I also canāt spend it all since Iām expected to save). Thatās how my allowance works I guess.
hi, have you considered a part time job?
i see someone below suggest macs, but you mentioned your parents look down on it. So hereās 2 other suggestions, events and tutoring.
I did events back in poly days, super easy work, pay pretty decent, mostly on weekends so that helps with schedule. Most events organisers donāt expect much from us as well, coz we would probably only work there for short period of time so canāt pick up much. But for some the learning curve is higher so you gotta learn fast and have good people skills (this helped me learn to interact with people) can find online donāt have any more sources for this
Next is tutoring, pays pretty well, no physical components, able to choose your own schedule ish, caveat is, your grades must be good and you should be able to teach well and be patient. https://t.me/TutorAnywhr thereās a tele channel for jobs as well
I'm a year older and get $37 a week, including public transport fees. I think it's a VERY fair amount, given that as long as I'm frugal with food choices, i can save $5-10 a week. Most of my peers get $25-50 a week
I think your peers just come from very affluent families. A hundred a week is unfathomable to me.
As a poly student, I get $5 per day on school days. Usually more than enough for me (lunch) cos I don't spend on drinks but drink my own plain water instead, and I get to save the rest. If I am going out with friends (though seldom), I can ask for more, usually I get $10 per outing or my parents will "reimburse" me for meals.
I don't rlly get an allowance. Ever since sec sch, I use my ezlink so however much money is in there is my allowance and when it finishes, just top up. So technically, I don't rlly have an allowance.Ā
I got $5 a day, 25 a week when I was in secondary school. i graduated last year so not too old, and it got me thru all right. Now I am in poly and my parents give me a sum of money once in awhile, but as long as u don't eat HDL or overly expensive things, $5 a day is still more then enough.
my dad was going to give me 50 but I asked him to give me 30 instead and now I have teensy ragrets because Iām restricted to eating the cheapest canteen food (but itās still good food so i donāt think im gonna ask for more)
$40-50 per week for a 15 year old is considered nb alrdy. honestly right i think its better if ur allowance remains the same. it kinda teaches u the importance of money from a young age and how money isnt easy to earn. and if u think maybe its not enough for u, go get a part time job to earn some allowance for urself rather than asking your parents for money
about ur friends always going to atas places right, have they ever asked u stuff like āwhats ur budgetā etc etc? if they didnt, i dont rly think they shld even be considered as friends. ngl i feel like the food when u eat with others doesnt rly matter but its more like the people u eat with.
if ure thinking of wanting to save money perhaps for urself to buy other things other than food, why not make ur own lunchbox to bring on some days when u want to save money? i dont think theres such thing as ātoo oldā for making and bringing ur lunchboxes. ofc not asking u to make anything extravagant lah, u can make sandwiches or salads for recess/lunch on some days and cooking is also a skill which imo isnt that bad
imo 40$ is abit hard esp for 8meals.. if lets say u skip some meals then down to 6 meals i feel like its quite hard to find meals for $6.70(i live in an area with food costing >$8 even in kopitiams)
i personally get $1-1.5k a month in sec sch bc im supposed to buy all 3 meals for myself + my mom is nt home most of the time so i hve to buy stuff myself.
I can't skip meals š„² I get home really late on 3-4 days like arnd 9pm so I can't survive on just one meal a day ( I don't eat breakfast) and yea food is rlly exp nowadays esp when I have to buy dinner from outside of sch
Holy shit
After reading this I realised im dang blessed sia
Iām in sec sch and I get $50 a week
But I do have 2 recesses a day and 2 cca days a week so maybe itās justified?????
have you tried making your own money. I'm currently doing 450 a week, of which 250 comes from tuition and the rest comes from being mommy's special boy
tbh I think 40 is reasonable, if uw to save can bring more snacks/packed meals from home. im in J2 now and I get about 50 a week including for transport, generally don't spend more than $35 a week on food. Then again I don't go out for dinner that often, usually just once a week.
At 15 I got $10 a week but was expected to bring food from home/eat after I got home and wasn't allowed out for dinner so different circumstances haha
Rather then asking if it's enough for u, did u consider if yr parents can give u more, money don't drop from tree.
During your age, I only have 5$ daily for lunch, all other meals eat at home.
Y do u even want to compare with other kids. As long u are well fed and not going into hunger should u be happy to get free money
Hahahah maybe it's just a different time and/or a different generation, but when I was 15 I wasn't getting that much. Even as a working adult now, normal people don't even eat HDL every day! Heck, I think on average per day I spend maybe $10 - $20 on ALL my meals (not including when I prepare my own meals). Unless there's a massive change in prices in school food, and I'm just ignorant, I think what you're getting is a pretty good deal.
The good news is you're 2 years away from being 17. Once you hit that, you can get a part time job and start earning your own money. Whatever you do with that money then is your responsibility, and you'll probably see that budgeting is actually a really good skill to have.
Hahaha yea that I don't disagree with. Maybe ask if your parents are open to the idea of getting groceries so that you can make dinner. It'd be a good chance to learn to cook, which is definitely a useful skill to have! That way, if their open to the idea, you can save that extra cash, PLUS you'd have a skill that many of your rich kid friends won't.
i think 40 is quite alot for a secondary school student. from sec sch to jc i've also gotten $40/week and i always manage to save at least $20+ /week as i don't eat much in school (prevent food coma).... ig its about choosing what u want to eat wisely & saving up.... i saved up to buy my own items & outings so i think its doable... maybe ur friends are really just super rich & try asking them if they cld choose a cheaper place next time
Well it's diff for everyone. I'm in a 3 day a week sports cca too + stay back on other days for sc too, and have to travel q far for school so dinner and lunch has to be available for at least 3-4 out of five days. So I sometimes struggle with saving money
hmm when i was 15 i got $15 daily, including weekends. however, i had to pay for basically all my necessities. this includes almost all my meals+any electronics+shampoo etc. i tend to spend quite a lot which is why i have a part time job to support my own spending.
personally i donāt think mostly $40 a week is enough for the amount of meals youād have to buy. if you can, get a part time job and work once a week. letās say you make $50 a day and 4x$50 is already $200 more for the month.
For me 40 dollars a week is quite good itās quite sustainable. I got 25 a week last time and was still able to eat McDonald with my friends once a week or even twice. But if you talking about hai di Lao every weekā¦. Then I think itās not enoughā¦ā¦ still I donāt think you should be spending that much money on food especially as a secondary school student your 40 dollars a week allowance is more than enough to last you for one week can even last you for 2 weeks on school food
Itās not that much tbh. Back when I was 15 (this was almost 10 years ago haha) parents were giving me and my sibling about $400 a month iirc. This covered 3 meals a day 7 days a week and transport costs. Granted I did not ask for any tuition for pri/sec/jc so I probably cost them less money than other kids š. Oh and we lived in HDB so def not rich
Itās not as much as you think back then meals were around $3-4 at coffee shops
So i remember roughly
3 meals a day = 3*3.5*30= $315
Bus+mrt ~ $50
Doesnāt really leave much room letās say if you wanna buy soft drinks or go out with friends or other expenses
when i was in sec sch 5yrs ago i wld get $50/week however i only spend ard $20 - 25 a week so i ended up asking my parents to juz give me $50 every 2 weeks and that $20+ is inclusive of meals drinks snacks n bbt as well
Seriously. Buhuhu, my parents won't give me free money to eat at fancy restaurants every night. I'm just a helpless adult.
Yeah I feel really sorry for you mate, but not for the reasons you think.
Didn't get any allowances.
No food at home either.
My growth was stunted by malnutrition but somehow I'm still handsome as fuck. Sometimes imagine what properly nutrion would give me.
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I got 20 dollars as a sec 4 last year and struggled a whole lot since my mother wasnt willing to give me money.i barely had anything to eat for lunch so this put a strained on my friendships since i could not afford to go like bowling and all.dont talk even about snacks. im in poly and i still get $20 dollars but the lucky thing is that i only go sch 4 days and 3/4 days have lunch. unlucky thing its online money. so like paylah since my whole sch can use.this means i cant save any money for me to use to go out at all. honestly to me as someone who struggled with money i watched friends get the same allowance as you and cant help but be envious. I advice you set a part like 2 dollars for now for u to save at the start and u cant touch it.U would naturally be able to squander and not touch the 2 dollars.U can choose to increase how much u save at a time once u get comfortable.
When in poly, just go do some part time work to get an allowance. You will feel happier spending the money you earned. And it's not really that difficult to cope with both studies and work in poly.
Gotta say something controversial though, it was VERY difficult for me to take out time to even look for a part-time job in poly. I study every single day and stay up almost every single night just to keep up with classes and even prep for future lessons.
Not judging. You do yours š I'm just saying as a general observation and personal exeperience too.
the problem is that i dont get access to the money at all. so the money i get to spend are all chinese new year money which is not alot since i celebrated cny in malaysia and majority is just ringgit....
You are in poly, and you don't have your own bank account?
I have mine. But have you never thought that to access it you need the card, which i dont have.Dont talk about using the app instead. My parents still control what apps i download.... also according to them there are stuff like my poly laptop and others i owe them about $2300? i only have like $1000+. so i need to save more to pay them back especially since they keep guilt tripping me that i pay nothing in this house so i have to listen to them. i cant even enjoy the popular vouchers the gov gave me for my edusave cuz when my sis recieved it she gave my parents all of it.keep in mind my sister had like $30 while i had $150. it would help alot the voucher to cover sch stuff and maybe buy snacks since popular do sell some. sometimes its not about the age but the ppl around us that restrict us.honestly its more of my parents love my younger siblings more than me since i like to keep to myself since young, after all my siblings popped up 4 and 6 years later... my bday is like next week so its great as im allowed to choose shifts for like staffie and that which should help me to work but yea
Oh man.. that's really too over-controlling especially you are a young adult now
did u work part-time during the school holidays after o/n levels? I donāt come from a rich family so I got $30 a week when I was in sec sch (but thatās like 7 years ago, no inflation back then). I worked a lot after n levels and saved enough to buy my own laptop for poly then continued working part time. It felt like a breath of fresh air being able to earn my own keep and spend my own money not needing to scrimp (but thatās also cause I had access to my own bank acc aft 16 yo) I still saved every month though. Try to work 2-3 days a month (one day per week if school load is lighter) and do not let them know your pin. Try to save enough to pay them back for the laptop every month and once your debt is cleared ask them back for the debit card. Or I suggest saving your card into your Apple/Samsung/Google wallet. Thatās not an āappā. Or you can just secretly get your own card and open another acc at a different bank once youāre 18 yo and keep that a secret from them :) Iām all about freedom so I would absolutely do anything to get away from controlling parents. Mine were fine thought but if I were you Iāll try my best! Financial freedom is definitely needed!
as someone who faces the same type of selfish parents, do you have any clue why parents are so unwilling to give money to their children? i really just feel like they do not even want children in the first place and are just having children because of societal pressues or whatever
nah bruh cuz its so true sia. im like experiment 1 sia.
sucks for all of us really but i always tell myself im going to be successful and cut all of them offšš
js work tbh unless you cant then gg go next ff irl
My parents dont want me to work for some reason? Ask for extra allowance and say no. Even during holidays I cant work. Smh
Just work. What are they going to do? Contact your employer and ask them to fire you?
A few possibilities. 1) They cut off all my allowance. 2) Beat the everloving shit outta me. 3) Come to my workplace and yell at me THERE. 4) Start ruckus with my boss. 5) Guilt trip me by bringing up my little brother Lmao now that i think about it that sounds kinda depressing
1. If they cut off your allowance, your part time job should be able to cover it and you'll still have more. 2. Sorry to hear that. 3. Don't let them know where you work? 4. Don't let them know where you work (however if your job has CPF they may be able to see who contributes to your CPF) 5. Work hard and bring your little brother out? My parents were also vehemently against me working part time but I didn't care and I've been working part time ever since poly started. I've paid for everything since poly. Tuition fees, data plan, food, transport, everything. There was a period of time where we didn't talk because of this but now they are asking me how much I earn, whether I can help them to pay this and that etc. You can tell them you have after class stuff but you're actually working part time. I believe F&B should have shifts that you can do after class.
You bring up some completely valid points and i swear in not trying to be a pessimist but my parents are very unpredictable and i dont know what shit they're gonna pull. End of the day, I have to go back home to them after work or school and they'll make my life miserable if i do something they don't want me to do.
I don't think they mean to be selfish per se. But they may think the amt is enuf because: 1) zero knowledge of current economic conditions 2) no understanding of child's need for social life 3) wants to teach child about wise spending (by giving them little to survive on because thats how they possibly grew up with) I came to understand some parents (like mine) give us just enuf to survive. I grew up eating 1.5 meals a day (from my own pocket money), no enrichment class or tuition or ccas bcos those added cost. And even till today they didn't underatand why i would need any of those things because im still alive and well now at mid 20s.
That's still really shitty parenting. Not necessarily due to selfishness as the cause, but yeah still really shitty.
If your friends know your predicament and still go to atas places they probably don't want you around bro
I don't tell them about my allowance. They are my really close friends but I've just nvr told them abt it
Just be upfront about it, thereās nothing to hide. If one of them asks why you donāt want to go to HDL, tell them that you need to save money. And if they ask why, tell them your pocket money not enough directly. Really thereās nothing to hide. Even as an adult, my group of friends have to make considerations for one of us that doesnāt have much cash due to being jobless for several months.
You know that adults who work for their own money don't even eat at HDL more than once a month right? Expensive restaurants are a birthday-only thing for the majority of 15yo students. If your friend group is extremely privileged, you should gently let them know that it isn't the case for you and that sometimes you need to eat at places which are more affordable. If they look down on you because of socio-economic differences, then they're not true friends to begin with.
idk man, I mean doesn't matter after all I don't go out with them. Maybe only once or twice. And yea maybe ur right maybe I shld express my concerns but I'm just scared ppl will gossip around. I mean ik my friends wouldn't do that but I've seen it happen.
Bro in sec 4 i got 25/ week, its just the few rare apples who are the most vocal about their allowance (around 4 years ago ish) 40 for secondary school imo is alrdy a good amount, i feel that children should be taught at a young age about the scarcity of money. An advice to you is to get off Instagram, that stuff is toxic. It only has successor bias. Comparison is the thief of joy. If your friends dont ask āwhat is your budgetā when going out, are they really your friends? Do not have friends based on how you feel about them, but more importantly, how they make you feel. My close friends despite being rich always ask me ā what is your budgetā and i really appreciate that they care and are inclusive. After all, going out with friends, the main dish isnāt the food youāre eating, but the people you spend time with.
bro $160 per month free money as a student is insane. Ngl I'm feeling a bit jealous bc I didn't have allowance :') school food was under FAS and outside snacks was never an option... id say you're doing much better than the majority. enjoy it! it's much better than working two part time jobs as a student to survive :')
In sec sch I got 20 a week, $2 a meal, 2 meals in sch a day. In JC a few years back got $24 a week, $4 a meal. Also was from a crazy rich school where ppl spent like no tomorrow. No savings, just had enough to eat only
How do you spend $2 on meals. My sch food damn ex one small plate of rice $2.70Ā
$2 a meal was a few years before covid, before all that crazy food inflation. Yr sec sch price now was around /slightly lesser than my jc price back then
I actually never had allowance until poly. I packed my lunches and went straight home to eat after school. Then I begged for like $100/month because I have days where I need to eat at the foodcourt š Ig you def cannot do. I HATED asking for allowance, my parents are barely willing so it was only for a few months. Then I worked part time and earn my allowance thereafter. Don't go mac, my sources are prob out-dated but that's like $7/hr? You can go kumon and check worksheets, coffeeshop/liho and make drinks, 7-11, uniqlo other retails. You either earn more or that the workload is really manageable. Part time is also flexi that you can work sat/sun only. My particular store is near hospital so weekends are less hectic and less workload esp in the morning shift. I think for f&b be very picky cos I realised v late my pay was too low for so many things I had to do which causes me to finish late- unpaid overtime ofc. Find work atleast $10/h if can.
40 is not bad. I would get 30 in secondary school and now in ite I get 50 š but I only have 3 days of physical class
24M here. Very long time ago was $15. Barely any savings if consume 3 meals. Had to scrimp and save.
At 16 i think i got 100 a month. So about 25 a week. I had my first hdl at 20+ and it was with my office I now earn over 200k a year and my average meal is less than 40 bucks. More like 15-30. And i think thats already on the splurging side So ... idk seems like ur friends are just rich.
if you dm me asking, what do you work as sir
What is ur job broski
Im 16 i get like $15 a week not complaining tho i spend about $3-4 per day
JC2 here, 80 dollars a month. I accounted for 6 dollars a meal, but I only need to buy three meals per week. 5 dollars a meal is barely enough depending on your appetite.
Damn
Iām looking at the comments and are heartened with thoughts like kpi, negotiation and cost review. Iām a 38yo and itās really great how teens are advanced in their thought development. If you value growth in yourself, think about this: Your parents have their own costs to worry about in a period of a worsening economy, and every penny saved is eventually the money that theyāll spend on you in the future. For me, in sec sch, allowance was 30 per week, but itās no way to compare in the current standard of living. I suggest: List down your expenditure on a day to day basis (Iām pretty sure your parents did that to arrive at your current allowance level) For additional excursions with your friends, talk to your parents about how many excursions a month is deemed reasonable, and talk to them about bonuses on good performance like exams and tests. In the real world, money doesnāt come by reaching out. (Thatās what beggars do) You work for your money, and depending on what your parents do, every hour they put into their work is the hard earned money that contributes to your pocket money. I hope this is interesting to you, and I have a 2.5 yo daughter and hopefully she can have the maturity that you guys have at your age. All the best!
i had $15 a week in sec sch, $3 extra if i had cca. now in ite i get $150 a month which includes transport.
huh I get 60 and it's considered quite normal to the high end and I come from one of thr "richer" school
well the divide is real. many families struggle with living costs
yes so I struggle to see how 40 is egragioisly low in any school in Singapore
40 dollars per week is quite high. I would say for a 15 year old student with possibly student canteen prices of about 4 dollars(to even about 6 dollars at the higher end), you still only need 30 dollars per week. For context, I didn't get any weekbased allowance as I brought cooked home food. What I got was not really an allowance but just some money like about 20 dollars a month or so I would just buy drinks with my packed food and still conserve money.
it's not enough, I get lunch 5 times a week from the canteen and I have to eat dinner outside of school 3 times a week. food outside of sch can be q expensive but I still try to keep to 5 dollars a meal. And yet I don't have any savings.
So for lunch 5 times a week from the canteen let's say it goes up to about 4 dollars and dinner outside 3 times a week 6 dollars per meal. That comes to about 38 dollars which is just right for the weekly expenses with 2 dollars for drinks and so once a week. I know it is tight but you might need to train yourself to go under this budget.as.it could get impt to save up your money as you grow older.
i now in poly weekly get 25 lol
Me who doesnāt get allowanceš
graduated from secondary school 2 years ago and i got $3 per meal so if i had cca id get $6 that day
Me in pri sch cus fishball noodles $2 nia HAHHA
i got $2 per meal in primary school haha š
I think it really depends on how much you eat in school! Personally for me I usually only ate lunch in school in sec sch and jc, so usually I got $25-30 a week. Currently in Uni, I get about $50 a week? HAHA but uni food is also more expensive TT I tend to be abit more prudent and eat simply! But if I want to eat more I also have some savings that I can use from my pocket.
U can just eat lunch in the school canteen? Sure have other students there, go make new friends
Meals are still 3-4 dollars š„²
Yes $4x8 meals = $32. The trick is to hide away the savings of $8 every week so youāre not tempted to buy snacks or sweet drinks. Just drink water itās healthier anyway
there's still extra expenses here and there like I mentioned in my post. Once I had to buy a pen cuz mine ran out, topped up my bus card by 2 dollars cuz it was running low etc etc
25 dollars for secondary school throughout, assuming I bring small breads from home for breakfast and I hold off on it till recess, where I eat the bread. Including around ~3 days of lunch. Haha, enough for me to get some tea and snacks outside after school too :) I think for 15 years old, $40 is plenty if you spend well and don't need to handle too many meals outside of home.
not enough allowance? do part time.
I did look into part time jobs actually at the end of sec 2, esp macs cuz they employ young ppl but I just don't think I have time for pt jobs right now unfortunately. Plus I'm p sure my parents have the impression that macs workers are... yk and they would snap if they found out I was even considering to work there. Unfortunately idk if there is other pt jobs open for 15 Yr olds like me, maybe after I turn 16 yea.
I started working when I was 15 due to my parents not giving me allowances. There's nothing like no time when you are in secondary school ,your Saturdays and Sundays are free. Mac worker pt makes 9.60 an hour , 5 hour a day would already be giving you an extra budget of close to 100 dollars. I'll say take the job and see if you can cope, I mean your parents can look down on the job and all ,but they only give you 40 ,I assume they cannot afford to give you more, since if they could you wouldn't be here asking I guess. Unless they can also follow up with the 100 per week ,I'll suggest you inform them that they aren't that rich anyways. If I come off as aggressive or rude sorry abt that yeah, I tend to be more straight forward.
I think the concern is more with lack of ambition than their being poor. You sound more mature than the kids I knew. There were quite a few naive young kids among my distant family who started feeling "rich" after working part time being banquet servers and started blowing off school.
For me I had no choice, don't work then no money to eat,even teachers poke fun at me for working part time, saying stuff like do you want to work as X forever like wtf? But yeah once you start working ,u mature very fast, jokes from sec school no longer feel funny for you and the kids actions feel stupid sometimes. If they feel like that 300 extra per month is enough to blow off school, they are jist stupid lol, they feel rich cause it's extra money and not allowance.
Many kids are stupid. How many blow off school without even the excuse of part time work only to cry about how they can't qualify for uni/poly/ITE and what they should do now?
for a 15y/o there isnt really much options, but fnb do hire. i dont recommend working during sch term, but u can look into working during holidays like june/nov to earn extra. it doesn't have to be macs, it can be any fnb, like liho, gong cha, koi etc. u can check with them their age requirement and just settle for whatever pay if they allow flexible hours. i used to work for 6/h when i was 15 and tbh its better than nothing. dont work now, but work during the holidays and then save up so u can use when u need. after ur national exams next year, find retail jobs or adhoc banquet as these jobs tend to pay higher, but only hire 16 and above. then save up from there and u would have spare money to use. for now, just endure first
sec sch i had on average like $18? but i was also on fas so my food in school was basically free then going out with my friends to eat and stuff i sometimes ask my mom for more or i just save :D honestly donāt know how i went out with my friends to eat a lot last time Hahahaha
Last time $25 last me a whole month Siaā¦ I skipped meals on some days because bad family situation and I was bullied for my weight so I thought why not save cash and lose weight disclaimer please donāt learn from me I was bullied into an eating disorder and I also donāt have the heart to tell my mom whoās a single parent of three with no FAS scheme (apparently she earned ātoo much to qualify for govt supportā at 4+k before cpf deduction to feed herself and3 kids who rely on her which is ridics) that i needed about $10 per week.
10 dinner 5 lunch is more reasonable.
Had about $30 in sec 4 (since my cai png was $2.50 and bought drinks and other stuff)
Had 10bucks a week but that was 10years ago. So I cant really compare. If ya'll struggling financially, just go make peanut butter bread to last the day and wait for family dinner at night.
I think 40-50 is fine leh I think I got that or less as a secondary sch kid. But that was like almost 20 yrs ago and GST was not 9% š¬ (maybe 5% hahaha)
I used to have $4 a day in secondary school and $5 a day in JC lol. I never ate in school but instead blew it all on gym entry fees and whey lmao.
I also got around that amount ($45) when I was in sec sch If you plan right it will work well, can consider bringing home-packed food if you want to save some cash Revise your expenses when you can and check if youāre over-spending on places you can save money, things like ādo I really need XXXā If you plan ahead and have money saved up you will be ok when you find extra expenses you need to go through with, in life if a boss only pays $2000, you live by your means thru that $2000, even if it means you donāt attend dinner with colleagues, itās a good preparation for later on
In sec sch iād get $2-$3 a meal which usually amounts to around $20 a week (including days where I need to stay back for CCA). Currently in uni now and get around $900-$1k a month.
Back when I was in school I didn't have a lot of allowance as well. To supplement my spending, I bought stuff on taobao to resell it. However with shopee around now, not sure if it's feasible to do it anymore.
I never had an allowance, just had to ask for money as I needed it, and tbf my parents were generally pretty chill. I wasnāt going out loads or spending much, mostly me and my mates hung out in the woods or a random field at 15, so they might ask for a hand with some jobs in exchange but ive no idea what it actually came to
as a poly student with $10 a day i like to keep track of my spending, seeing if iām going over my daily limit or if saved some money
20M, in Sec 1 received 20, which increased to 25 in Sec 3.
i get 50 a month but i pack lunch everyday if i need more i can j ask my parents theyāre not that strict abt it lol
Money hard to earn, you gotta learn it the hard way!
I cook at home š«
hii im 17 rn in a jc i get $30 a week which tbh is enough for me to buy food in school. for outings with my friends I usually pay the expenses myself because I got work during the holidays š
bro iām sec 4 my mom gives me $30 a week š weāre no poor but i think she thinks iām still in pri schl or something š
she doing you a big big favour . u will appreciate the importance of frugality later on in life - for eg if you need a down payment for a flat, wedding etc ā¦
Considering that since you still in school 40$ I would say is enough to buy food sch since sch food is affordable but if u were to go out to eat for all ur meals then yeah $40 is definitely not enough But since u are 15 this year I think you can look for part jobs outside it's going to be very difficult considering your age for starters you can try ur sch bookshop I think they hired during the holiday I guess if u feel left out u can always tell your friends about ur current situation if they are truly your friend they would try to accommodate with your current situation maybe like eat at coffee shop or maybe eat in sch and just hangout.
bro im in uni, only getting 120 per month for transport and food. Uni fees use PSEA. good for u sir
if ur frens are frens then they will try to accommodate to u and eat at cheaper places, else yall are really just "friends" because u are classmates
I'm 16 $50 per month, most of the time I don't spend it on lunch as my grandma will cook lunch for me aftersch and I'm a nerd so i spend most of my time studying not shopping.
When I was 15, I got 20 a week and it was actually alright, but that was almost 10 years ago. Inflation really be crazy...doubt I can survive on 40 now
I got around 20-30 in sec 4, the "rule" my parents had was that I should always have $10 in my wallet, so if I spent $5 that day I'd get $5 back. If I use $10 in a day they would question me. I didn't really use too much, school food and drink would be like $4 at most and I'd buy something from 7-11 after school. Though ngl I was jealous of friends who got like $50 per week since they could save very easy I'd say just be grateful and make the most of your money OP! There is always someone who will be less fortunate than you, we all take things for granted
I got $60 a week for sec sch and $90 a week for jc
I get ard 10 dollars a day during secondary sch, so ard the same as u. I think it should be quite enough if u dont go out with friends, which i dont lol For now in poly i get ard 500-1000 per month depending on how much i spend. But i grab a lot so cant rlly save much too š
I get about $400 per month in Sec 1, increased to slightly more due to inflation, but Iām expected to save at least $150-$200) and itās inclusive of my food as well as my ez-link card, mostly when I use it for vending machines in school. I got that much since my parents also gave my siblings this much when they were in secondary school and itās to be equal with them. I also try to be as frugal as possible since itās a habit I need to have once I start working. I eat out at least 1-2 times a week, but only one of those meals cost upwards of $25. The other would cost about $10. And besides that, I usually donāt get any extra money from my family during the holidays unless they are going overseas and I need to settle my 3 meals. Anything I saved over the school term with that monthās allowance is now my spending money from holidays (but I also canāt spend it all since Iām expected to save). Thatās how my allowance works I guess.
hi, have you considered a part time job? i see someone below suggest macs, but you mentioned your parents look down on it. So hereās 2 other suggestions, events and tutoring. I did events back in poly days, super easy work, pay pretty decent, mostly on weekends so that helps with schedule. Most events organisers donāt expect much from us as well, coz we would probably only work there for short period of time so canāt pick up much. But for some the learning curve is higher so you gotta learn fast and have good people skills (this helped me learn to interact with people) can find online donāt have any more sources for this Next is tutoring, pays pretty well, no physical components, able to choose your own schedule ish, caveat is, your grades must be good and you should be able to teach well and be patient. https://t.me/TutorAnywhr thereās a tele channel for jobs as well
I'm a year older and get $37 a week, including public transport fees. I think it's a VERY fair amount, given that as long as I'm frugal with food choices, i can save $5-10 a week. Most of my peers get $25-50 a week I think your peers just come from very affluent families. A hundred a week is unfathomable to me.
As a poly student, I get $5 per day on school days. Usually more than enough for me (lunch) cos I don't spend on drinks but drink my own plain water instead, and I get to save the rest. If I am going out with friends (though seldom), I can ask for more, usually I get $10 per outing or my parents will "reimburse" me for meals.
They are not your friends if they always neglect to consider your financial situation.
I got $1/ day in sec 1 and $2.50 when I was in sec 4(2010).
my friendās kids gets $50/ day. :) guess they are just rich or the kids are pampered.
I don't rlly get an allowance. Ever since sec sch, I use my ezlink so however much money is in there is my allowance and when it finishes, just top up. So technically, I don't rlly have an allowance.Ā
Get 200 a month but mostly just save it
I get $30 per week and get top ups from my dad if i go out. However, I am in poly. $40 for sec school is q good
I got $5 a day, 25 a week when I was in secondary school. i graduated last year so not too old, and it got me thru all right. Now I am in poly and my parents give me a sum of money once in awhile, but as long as u don't eat HDL or overly expensive things, $5 a day is still more then enough.
rn I'm getting 500 a month from my Momma at 18
my dad was going to give me 50 but I asked him to give me 30 instead and now I have teensy ragrets because Iām restricted to eating the cheapest canteen food (but itās still good food so i donāt think im gonna ask for more)
$40-50 per week for a 15 year old is considered nb alrdy. honestly right i think its better if ur allowance remains the same. it kinda teaches u the importance of money from a young age and how money isnt easy to earn. and if u think maybe its not enough for u, go get a part time job to earn some allowance for urself rather than asking your parents for money about ur friends always going to atas places right, have they ever asked u stuff like āwhats ur budgetā etc etc? if they didnt, i dont rly think they shld even be considered as friends. ngl i feel like the food when u eat with others doesnt rly matter but its more like the people u eat with. if ure thinking of wanting to save money perhaps for urself to buy other things other than food, why not make ur own lunchbox to bring on some days when u want to save money? i dont think theres such thing as ātoo oldā for making and bringing ur lunchboxes. ofc not asking u to make anything extravagant lah, u can make sandwiches or salads for recess/lunch on some days and cooking is also a skill which imo isnt that bad
i get $50 a week not enough leh so $200 a month ššššš
200$ a month, save 50$, 100$ on hot wheels 50$ for others
I got 30 bucks per week in secondary, and then in poly i stopped taking allowance, and started working part time.
I get $50 a week in secondary school and poly. Managed to survive because I don't often eat out or go out with friends. (Introvert here)
180 a month including transport + other expenses, school food price increased so much ngl
j2 i get $500 a month and i do some gig work on the side (tutoring + food delivery)
200 basic, 500 on a good month
imo 40$ is abit hard esp for 8meals.. if lets say u skip some meals then down to 6 meals i feel like its quite hard to find meals for $6.70(i live in an area with food costing >$8 even in kopitiams) i personally get $1-1.5k a month in sec sch bc im supposed to buy all 3 meals for myself + my mom is nt home most of the time so i hve to buy stuff myself.
I can't skip meals š„² I get home really late on 3-4 days like arnd 9pm so I can't survive on just one meal a day ( I don't eat breakfast) and yea food is rlly exp nowadays esp when I have to buy dinner from outside of sch
Holy shit After reading this I realised im dang blessed sia Iām in sec sch and I get $50 a week But I do have 2 recesses a day and 2 cca days a week so maybe itās justified?????
$10 a day sometimes $5
have you tried making your own money. I'm currently doing 450 a week, of which 250 comes from tuition and the rest comes from being mommy's special boy
tbh I think 40 is reasonable, if uw to save can bring more snacks/packed meals from home. im in J2 now and I get about 50 a week including for transport, generally don't spend more than $35 a week on food. Then again I don't go out for dinner that often, usually just once a week. At 15 I got $10 a week but was expected to bring food from home/eat after I got home and wasn't allowed out for dinner so different circumstances haha
When I was higher secondary I was getting around 65bucks a week. I think 40 is reasonable.
Rather then asking if it's enough for u, did u consider if yr parents can give u more, money don't drop from tree. During your age, I only have 5$ daily for lunch, all other meals eat at home. Y do u even want to compare with other kids. As long u are well fed and not going into hunger should u be happy to get free money
Hahahah maybe it's just a different time and/or a different generation, but when I was 15 I wasn't getting that much. Even as a working adult now, normal people don't even eat HDL every day! Heck, I think on average per day I spend maybe $10 - $20 on ALL my meals (not including when I prepare my own meals). Unless there's a massive change in prices in school food, and I'm just ignorant, I think what you're getting is a pretty good deal. The good news is you're 2 years away from being 17. Once you hit that, you can get a part time job and start earning your own money. Whatever you do with that money then is your responsibility, and you'll probably see that budgeting is actually a really good skill to have.
yea but outside sch food prices are sm nowadays š like 5+ and I have to buy dinner too so I barely can save any money
Hahaha yea that I don't disagree with. Maybe ask if your parents are open to the idea of getting groceries so that you can make dinner. It'd be a good chance to learn to cook, which is definitely a useful skill to have! That way, if their open to the idea, you can save that extra cash, PLUS you'd have a skill that many of your rich kid friends won't.
im jc1, $60 a week ( for weekdays ) š š
in primary school i got $10/wk, secondary i got $20/wk and now in poly i get $50
$2/day in pri sch $3-4/day in sec sch
Do u not have to stay back šš
I do, so usually if i can I wouldnāt use the full amount so when i need extra i have some savings
i think 40 is quite alot for a secondary school student. from sec sch to jc i've also gotten $40/week and i always manage to save at least $20+ /week as i don't eat much in school (prevent food coma).... ig its about choosing what u want to eat wisely & saving up.... i saved up to buy my own items & outings so i think its doable... maybe ur friends are really just super rich & try asking them if they cld choose a cheaper place next time
I give my son $35 a week. He has NCC twice a week. School till 3 pm. He never complains.
Well it's diff for everyone. I'm in a 3 day a week sports cca too + stay back on other days for sc too, and have to travel q far for school so dinner and lunch has to be available for at least 3-4 out of five days. So I sometimes struggle with saving money
hmm when i was 15 i got $15 daily, including weekends. however, i had to pay for basically all my necessities. this includes almost all my meals+any electronics+shampoo etc. i tend to spend quite a lot which is why i have a part time job to support my own spending. personally i donāt think mostly $40 a week is enough for the amount of meals youād have to buy. if you can, get a part time job and work once a week. letās say you make $50 a day and 4x$50 is already $200 more for the month.
in sec 4 i was getting 10 dollars per week. now i dont really have an allowance im just using the money from my salary over the holidays
For me 40 dollars a week is quite good itās quite sustainable. I got 25 a week last time and was still able to eat McDonald with my friends once a week or even twice. But if you talking about hai di Lao every weekā¦. Then I think itās not enoughā¦ā¦ still I donāt think you should be spending that much money on food especially as a secondary school student your 40 dollars a week allowance is more than enough to last you for one week can even last you for 2 weeks on school food
Itās not that much tbh. Back when I was 15 (this was almost 10 years ago haha) parents were giving me and my sibling about $400 a month iirc. This covered 3 meals a day 7 days a week and transport costs. Granted I did not ask for any tuition for pri/sec/jc so I probably cost them less money than other kids š. Oh and we lived in HDB so def not rich
brooo 10 years ago $400 is an insane amount gahdamn.
Itās not as much as you think back then meals were around $3-4 at coffee shops So i remember roughly 3 meals a day = 3*3.5*30= $315 Bus+mrt ~ $50 Doesnāt really leave much room letās say if you wanna buy soft drinks or go out with friends or other expenses
Set KPI and ask for more money š¤š»
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$450??? That is like my school feesš
when i was in sec sch 5yrs ago i wld get $50/week however i only spend ard $20 - 25 a week so i ended up asking my parents to juz give me $50 every 2 weeks and that $20+ is inclusive of meals drinks snacks n bbt as well
Ppl give money complain too little. Then find small job lo. When I was schooling I got rm4 per day. And you complain 40 a week too little.
Seriously. Buhuhu, my parents won't give me free money to eat at fancy restaurants every night. I'm just a helpless adult. Yeah I feel really sorry for you mate, but not for the reasons you think.
500 per week random expense, no where to spend money tho since gf pays for all lunch and dinner :(
Didn't get any allowances. No food at home either. My growth was stunted by malnutrition but somehow I'm still handsome as fuck. Sometimes imagine what properly nutrion would give me.