The increase in inflation has been affecting the everyday lives of many teens, to the point where spending habits and applying for colleges have become a much more costly process which has greatly changed how people spend their money and where they decide to go to college.
This issue has been a widespread problem that has reached the All Saints’ community, specifically high school with things such as gas prices, food, clothing, applying for colleges, and working longer hours for jobs.
Inflation in Gas Prices
The rise in Gas prices has been one of the many issues inflation has caused, especially with many teens being new drivers. Numerous people have come out saying how it has been affecting more than ever. Senior, Hope Monk’s thoughts resonate across all responses, “Gas prices are wacky.” Others, like Nathan Daches ’27 are seeing gas prices impact them for the first time as a new driver, ” I have seen how the Gas prices have gone up a lot.”
Many teens are having to pay for their own gas, which is really putting the pressure on wallets, “Gas money has gone up and since I have to pay for it myself it costs me a lot of money,” said Ryan Beard ’27.
Applying for Colleges
Another process that has been stirred up has been the process of applying for colleges. This has played a big factor in where teens decide to go to college and decisions they decide to make while applying for them. This was addressed by Monk ’25 when she remarked, “ College applications are SO expensive.”
She is just one of many teens who feel this way. College applications on average cost around $50 each, with some application fees for schools getting close to $100.
After-School Jobs
With uphill prices, teens have had to work longer hours in order to keep up with daily expenses. Inflation has not only influenced how much teens spend but also how much they decide to work with 50% of teens in the All Saints’ community having to get a part-time job or work extra hours to keep up.
Monk ’25 remarked that she is having to work more hours on top of her athletic and academic commitments. Addison Wentworth ’28 said that her dog sitting jobs are becoming less frequent because people aren’t going on trips as much.
Everyday Costs
Many teens reported the prices of food and basic gifts for the holidays has really hit their wallets as well. Teens across the board are seeing beauty, clothing, and even streaming services raise prices more and more every year. Ana Landeros ’26 says, “When buying things I always look for the cheapest thing or get less than I wanted originally because of the prices.”
With seemingly no end in sight, will we ever see our everyday costs reduced? Only time will tell.
