The key to living on a healthy student diet is to remember that vegetables are relatively cheap. Try and shop at a farmer's market to get high quality, cheap, local produce. Cheese is expensive, splurge every once in a while. Make sure you always have some source of vitamin C around (juice and fruits usually fill this roll nicely). Always have protein in every meal, but as far as cost effectiveness goes: canned beans and chick peas are a cheap easy solution, lentils work too, and ground pork is pretty much the cheapest actual meat you can get. Tofu is also relatively inexpensive. As far as grains go, pasta and rice are both relatively cheap, rice tends to be cheaper. My biggest piece of advice for students is to learn how to cook. It is not difficult to learn how to make a couple of basic recipes, then extrapolate from there by substituting ingredients. There's some trial and error involved, and you may make a couple of disgusting meals, but the results are so worth it in the long run. To be honest, people ***** about the student diet a lot, but I spend an average of about $30 on groceries a week and I eat very well. Buy smart, look for sales and eat tons of vegetables and you'll be fine. P.S. Kraft Dinner is significantly more expensive than just getting the ingredients for a basic pasta dish.