Tip of the Day Launch

As things start to gear up here at Money Smart Students, I'm happy to launch the first entry in our new 'Tip of the Day' feature. Every day - Monday through Friday - I'll be posting a tip which will help you either save money or make money as a student. I've seen lots of lists out there giving what I would consider to be absolutely useless tips ('Only use one Q-Tip to clean both ears - use one end per ear!' - give me a break). I do not intend to do the same thing.
Today's tip is this - Make sure you have the best account for your needs at your financial institution.
Most large banks and credit unions offer student accounts with either no fees or very small fees - other than ATM charges. Make sure you have the right account type to qualify for the 'no fee' feature. If you aren't in the right account - ask at the counter the next time you're in the branch. All they can say is you don't qualify or they don't have one. You could save yourself upwards of a couple hundred dollars in fees over the course of the year. Multiply that by 3 or 4 years at school and it adds up.