According to the National Council for Responsible Gambling, over 75% of college students gamble each year. So most college students know how to gamble already, or they learn how really fast.
College students who are legally old enough to gamble in that state and who can afford the buy-in can play poker just like anyone else. I don’t recommend online poker for real money for college students unless you’re really serious about the game. Poker, though, is probably the best gambling activity for most college students. The Dangers of Online Gambling Essay. Gambling Among College Students Gambling is risking money or something of value on uncertain events driven by chance. Most people see gambling as just another form of fun. Gambling often becomes a sensitive issue for the gambler and their family. This is especially important to consider, since the. Gambling and College Students. November 1, 2012. Lindsay Neuberger recently received a grant from the Florida Council on Compulsive Gambling Inc. To conduct research on problem gambling behaviors among college students. She will be working with graduate students to develop moderator guides and conduct focus groups at universities across the state. Academia.edu is a platform for academics to share research papers. Grambling State Adopts Steve Covey’s “7 Habits of Highly Effective College Students” for Freshman Foundation. December 12, 2019 Grambling State Student Overcomes Paralysis to Walk Across Graduation Stage December 13, 2019. December 12, 2019 Grambling State University Names Two Valedictorians for the Class of Fall 2019. Block online gambling sites on your computer. Maintaining recovery from problem gambling or gambling addiction depends a lot on the reasons why you were gambling in the first place. Once you've quit gambling, reasons such as depression, loneliness, or boredom will remain, so in order to maintain your recovery, you'll need to address these problems. An older 2003 study of college students by The Pew Internet and American Life Project confirmed this crowding out effect, with nearly half (48 percent) of college student gamers reporting that gaming keeps them from studying. Perhaps the former Federal Communications Commissioner Deborah Taylor was ahead of her time in 2008, when she created a.
Of course, they define college gambling as any of the following activities:
- Casino games
- Lottery games
- Poker
- Sports betting
And, of course, all these activities DO constitute gambling if they involve risking money in the hopes of winning money.
Sites like the one above are concerned mostly with discouraging people from gambling at all. Some of them are more concerned with helping people with impulse control issues recognize problem gambling and get help for it.
There’s nothing wrong with that, either.
But for someone like me, the goal is to say, hey, if you’re going to gamble anyway, you might as well learn how to win—or at least get the maximum amount of entertainment for your gambling dollar.
And that’s the point of this post about how to gamble if you’re a college student.
If you ARE going to gamble anyway, how can you get the best odds as a college student?
You’ll find the answer to that question (and several others) below:
2 – How to Play Casino Games as a College Student
If you want to play casino games as a college student, you need to find a casino. Age requirements vary for casinos, too, but they’re generally the same as for the lottery. No matter what state you live in, you have to be at least 18 years old. In many states you have to be 21 years old.
Most states in the USA have at least one casino now. Only 7 states lack casinos. Even in the states where you can’t find legal casino gambling, you can drive to a nearby casino in an adjacent state. Just find out the legal gambling age at the casino you’re planning to visit before going there. It would be a shame to waste your time driving to a casino where you’re not allowed to play.
It’s also possible to find underground casinos—sometimes they’re even being run by other college students. I recommend avoiding such operation for multiple reasons. Their games might be rigged, or you might get into a situation where the police are involved. It’s better to avoid such situations at your age.
If you’re going to visit a casino to play casino games, you should make sure you can afford the stakes, first. Most casinos have minimum bet sizes that vary from game to game. Some casinos might offer blackjack games where you can bet as little as $1 per hand, but other casinos might have betting limits that start at $25 per hand.
Most college students are on a budget. You might be one of those rich kids with a trust fund or something, but even so, the cost of going to college can be high. And everyone, even the wealthy, should be a good steward of their family’s money.
Spend some time learning about which casino games offer the best odds and which casino games offer the worst odds before you go. All casino games have a mathematical edge that favors the house. But some games have a higher edge than others.
In no case can you gain an edge against the casino by using betting systems where you change the size of your bets based on your previous wins or losses. The math behind that just doesn’t work out. If you don’t understand why read some of the other blog posts about gambling math on this site.
Or consider taking a college class in statistics and probability.
College Football Gambling Sites
You can, however, get an edge at blackjack by counting cards. That’s practically a college tradition in at least one college—MIT. In fact, the most famous card counting team in the history of the technique is the MIT Blackjack Team.
In fact, if you are going to play a casino game, blackjack is the way to go. Even if you don’t learn how to count cards, if you master basic strategy, the house edge for blackjack is less than 1%. This means that every time you bet $10 on a hand, you only expect to lose 10 cents in the long run.
Uptown aces casino free spins 2019. You can play blackjack for a long time on very little money.
And that’s the best way for anyone, including college students, to look at casino gambling—as entertainment that costs money.
You should never assume that you’ve figured out some magical way to get an edge over the casino with some cockamamie betting scheme. Just accept that the casino has an edge, and keep that edge as low as possible.
And get as much entertainment for your money as possible.
4 – How to Bet on Sports as a College Student
My brother-in-law used to run his own bookmaking operation out of his apartment when he was in college. There were 4 people living in the same apartment, and their operation became pretty large within a couple of semesters. In fact, they wound up making so much money from the gig that they had to shut it down. The money was flying around, and the partying got out of hand.
I don’t think your goal should be to follow my brother-in-law’s example. I think you should focus on your studies. That being said, if I’d known anything about the bookmaking biz when I was in college, I would have probably gotten into it enthusiastically.
Indy slots scale racing hobbies. Most college students, though, aren’t interested in running a bookmaking operation. They just want to bet on football games. This isn’t as easy to pull off as other gambling activities.
Most states don’t have legal sports gambling, so you’re probably limited to using a neighborhood bookmaker or an offshore site. Both of these options can be reasonably safe if you do your homework beforehand.
Finding a neighborhood bookmaker (a “bookie”) is usually as easy as hanging out at a local bar and chatting with some of the other people watching sports there. Just ask them if they have any action on the game they’re watching. If they do, you can mention that you’re new in town and don’t have a local bookie yet, and you’d appreciate a referral to theirs.
Finding a reputable online bookmaker is trickier, but it’s not impossible. You just want to avoid shady outfits. A lot of offshore bookmakers don’t accept action from players in the United States—for legal reasons. The companies that do take action from U.S. citizens are slightly more likely to be problematic for a college student.
The biggest challenge with shady offshore sportsbooks is cashing out your winnings. Spend some time visiting online forums and look for complaints about specific sportsbooks. Also, read some reviews of these sportsbooks before deciding where to play.
I’ve published multiple posts about how to bet on specific sports on this site. You should review those pages carefully so you know what you’re doing before you risk your money.
6 – Balancing Your Schoolwork with Your Gambling Hobby
I used to argue with one of my girlfriends about her priorities. I’ve since given up arguing with girlfriends.
But we did have some interesting discussions about priorities.
She used to claim that certain activities were priorities to her, but I pointed out that priorities, by definition, are actions that you take first—before taking other actions.
What does this mean for a college student with a gambling hobby?
It means that if you’re behind on your schoolwork, you shouldn’t be gambling. You shouldn’t be sitting in the movie theater watching a movie if you’re behind on a term paper.
You also shouldn’t be sitting at a poker table calling someone’s bluff in that situation. How to be better at blackjack game.
As long as you’re keeping your schoolwork a priority, you’ll be fine.
Conclusion
Contrary to what seem people think, gambling as a college student is fine.
But you should start by becoming an educated gambler making rational decisions about your entertainment expenses.
Don’t gamble with money you can’t afford to lose, and get help sooner rather than later if your gambling becomes a problem.
If you’re a college student thinking about a gambling activity, which kind of gambling are you interested in and why?