Advice on Getting Started for Beginners (Students)

The best investment depends upon your personal needs. Some things take a while to bring in $$, some bring in profits more quickly but are riskier. You need to know your own personal tolerance for risk.

Check out www.fool.com -- they have a lot of good information.

Thank you for the information....

Do you think starting out with stock market is a good idea? What are the basic types of investments? I dont care taking risks... Please give me some suggestions regarding the various types of investments that are in vogue.

I think saving regularly is the best thing; start "paying yourself first" and get money flowing into some kind of savings. As far as investing, begin by learning. The Motley Fool (mentioned earlier) is a great place to begin.

A not-too-bad show to watch for financial matters is The Suze Ormond show. I've actually learned some tips once in a while.

When you get a job you will be provided with information on the company 401K. Read up on the options carefully and decide what your risk-appetite is. A lot of younger people (your age) are less fearful and go for riskier options than say someone who is nearer retirement age. Since you will probably have several jobs in your lifetime and have the option to transfer your 401K funds from one to another, you can change your risk appetite as you age. One thing that I would be wary of - investing too much of your money in the company you work for. This used to be the only option in some companies. If you worked for them, your retirement account was invested in them only. This has changed. Personally I like to spread my investments - I have some risky, some moderate, some safe investments. I like to make sure that if some particular industry/company/investment goes belly-up that I won't bleed indefinately. For those with a much riskier appetite, it's the knowing when to invest and when to get out, that produces profitable returns. It takes some knowledge and experience to be good at this.