There are a tons of perks to being a student that some people may not be aware of, including discounts offered by Turlock’s local businesses. Many cafes, shops, and services in the area provide special deals exclusively for students, yet these opportunities often go unnoticed.
You can find things from food, drinks, retail, and more at a discounted price if you just look a little closer. Even if a business doesn’t publicly advertise its student discount offers, it never hurts to ask anyway. You may be surprised! Tons of business owners love to support students.
Natalie Betoshana (first-year graduate, Business) who is still currently working on her teaching credentials, spoke about how she utilizes her VIP experience.
“I totally take advantage of the student discounts everywhere. Especially during the holidays, I love to go downtown and visit Little Red Door. I always find something cute there,” Betoshana says.
She talks about how Little Red Door offers a 15% off discount off of your total purchase. Little Red Door is a locally owned thrift shop that sells clothing, soaps and lotions, hosts local small business products, little trinkets, shoes, and more.
“Since enrolling as a college student back in 2020, I have also loved the app UNiDAYS. It’s my favorite resource for seeing even more discounts and offers all in one place,” she says.
UNiDAYS is a widely known app used by many that you can download and sign up for with just your student ID. After signing up, you will have access to tons of discounts online or in-person whether it be retail, food, and more. They will give you an in-store barcode to use at select locations or online codes to enter during checkout.
Students may also be eligible to take advantage of the Apple Music or Spotify student discounts with a valid ID. The offers are truly endless if you are enrolled in college, and they aren’t just restricted to food or retail.
Just because you attend college in Turlock doesn’t mean that you have to limit your shopping to strictly Turlock. The glory of being a student means that you can shop anywhere as long as you bring your student ID along. A local, Jordyn Elting, was able to share with me the discounts she received during her time of being a student at MJC.
“I think it’s cool how it doesn’t matter where you attend college and all of these businesses will support you no matter what.” Elting says, “Turlock is probably my favorite downtown area to shop. It gives me the best cozy feel and the food options are delicious.”
Elting says her favorite restaurant to go to with her mom is Bistro 234 whether they attend for lunch or dinner. They don’t offer a student discount, but they do offer amazing appetizers, entrées, and drinks. Elting also talked about how she was able to take her student ID with her and explore her other discount options in a completely different area.
“I mean, I remember going on vacation to Southern California for a bit, and even though I went to a college in Modesto, it was a good feeling to see that tons of businesses here still supported me just with the flash of my ID. It definitely made me feel like all of my hard work never went unnoticed,” Elting says.
She shares that she remembers receiving a student discount at The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf which is a coffee shop in Los Angeles, CA, Urban Outfitters, and LA Metro. When she jumped over to San Diego, CA, she also was able to use her student ID to get discounted prices at local small businesses such as jewelry shops, an ice cream shop, and soap shops.
“All I have to say is that I definitely miss the luxuries of being able to get things at a cheaper price for being a student, so utilize that power as much as you can before it’s too late,” Elting says.
Lauren Braga, an alumni of CSU Stanislaus, shared that her favorite way of using her student privileges were with the school’s campus gym. Being an athlete means having to stay in shape. Rather than paying for a gym membership outside of her regular practices and organized training, she was able to just drive to campus and workout for free. The campus gym is a perk that not a lot of CSU Stanislaus students may know about and Braga was excited to share her input.
“I didn’t know this originally, but most students who are enrolled in a semester already pay the Campus Recreation fee with their tuition. All you have to do is present a student ID at the front desk and you’ll have access to the gym. I know that it doesn’t apply for some students, but if you’re enrolled in a full semester taking structured courses, then definitely worth checking out in your free time.” Braga says.
After further research regarding the Student Recreation Center (SRC), CSU Stanislaus’ website discloses, “Students enrolled through Extended Education/Open University do not pay the SRC use fee with tuition, but they can pay it at the SRC Fitness Center welcome desk. Faculty, staff, and alumni: These individuals can purchase memberships to the SRC. Guests: Individuals can pay a daily use fee to enter the SRC if they are sponsored by a member in good standing.”
Braga makes a good point. If you pay for the fee within your tuition, you might as well get use out of it before you graduate.
If you’re curious to find out what other local businesses in Turlock support students, you can visit the Student Services page on CSU Stanislaus’ website to find an updated list. Just scroll down to “Warrior Discounter.”
The website informs students, “The Warrior Discounter program is designed to benefit both the students of Stanislaus State and the local Turlock, Modesto, and Stockton communities. Students can use their Warrior ID Cards at participating vendors for special deals and discounts on purchases. Don’t have a Warrior ID card? Visit the OIT office located in the Library, second floor, L256. Every semester more and more local businesses are offering deals for students and we’re excited to promote these deals to our University community!”
They update their page everyday and they also take applications for local businesses to put their company name and discount onto this list for exposure to more students looking to support their business. While students support their businesses, they support them back.
