15 College Snacks that Every Student Should Know About

With all the reading, writing and studying you’re going to be doing in college, eating habits can either help or hinder your academic performance. Proper nutrition obviously is important to keep your body healthy, but it also improves a student’s brain power. Good nutrition can positively affect a student’s alertness, reaction time (cognitive processing), memory, concentration, mood, energy, and overall well-being. Aside from the importance of eating nutritious meals, snacks shouldn’t be disregarded. When it comes to college snacks, it’s best to choose wisely.

Here are some excellent college snacks that can be perfect while studying, at home, or on the go. They’re also easily made and will keep you full. Here are our top picks.

The Best College Snacks for Students

When it comes to snacking, it’s all too easy to get the unhealthy snacks like chips and cookies. They’re pretty much everywhere and very cheap. But they’re downright not good for you and won’t help you when studying since all the carbs will make you want to crash about an hour after you eat.

College snacking should be about eating the right snacks at a reasonable price. These are 15 snacks that are great for every college student, whether you’re on-the-go, hanging out at home, or in study mode. The snacks we put on this list are all healthy and brain-boosting. Forget the sugar-high-crash snacks — opt for the energizing nutritious ones instead.

Snacks on the Go

These are the perfect snacks to have when you’re on the way to class, in class, or simply going from place to place. A few of them require some preparation at home, but you can make a nice amount and have them handy for the whole week. The best thing about these snacks is that they’re easy to make (or buy), inexpensive, and keep you content and full!

1. Chocolate, Peanut Butter, and Banana Smoothie

Source: Pixabay

Ingredients:

• 2 large bananas
• 1 cup almond milk
• 3/4 cup ice
• 1/4 cup peanut butter
• 2 tbsp cocoa powder
• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract

Instructions:

• Add all ingredients to a blender, and mix until well pureed

Benefits: Aids in digestion, curbs appetite, helps you lose weight, makes you feel full, full of antioxidants, enhances immunity, boosts brain power

2. Crunchy Roasted Chickpeas

Source: Pixabay

Ingredients:

• 1 can of chickpeas (garbanzo beans), drained
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• salt (optional)
• garlic salt (optional)
• cayenne pepper (optional)

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 450 degrees F (230 degrees C).
• Blot chickpeas with a paper towel to dry them. In a bowl, toss chickpeas with olive oil and season them to your taste with salt (and possibly garlic salt or cayenne pepper). Spread them onto a baking sheet, and bake for 30 to 40 minutes, until browned and crunchy. Pay attention in the last few minutes to make sure they don’t burn.

Benefits: Full of protein and fiber, which keep you focused and full.

3. Homemade Trail Mix

Source: Pixabay

Ingredients: Pumpkin seeds, cashews, sunflower seeds, pecans, almonds, dried cranberries, raisins… or any other mix of dried fruit, nuts and seeds which takes your fancy!

Directions: Simply mix them all together and enjoy! You can keep the trail mix in an airtight container for up to a month, so go ahead and make yourself a big batch.

Benefits: The nuts are full of protein, fiber, and good fats that make you feel full long and energized.

4. Honey-Nut Energy Bites

Source: Pixabay

Ingredients:

• 2 cups of crushed Cheerios
• 1 cup Unsweetened Coconut
• 2 tbsp Greek Yogurt
• 2/3 cup of Peanut Butter
• 1/3 cup Honey
• 1 cup Mini Chocolate Chips

Directions:

• Place the Cheerios in a ziploc bag and break them into crumbs with a rolling pin or spoon
• Add the unsweetened coconut, greek yogurt, peanut butter, honey, and chocolate chips
• Stir together and roll into small balls
• Refrigerate for at least 1 hour

Benefits: They’re full of protein and energy — exactly what a student needs when studying and in-between meals.

5. Granola or Protein Bars

Source: Unsplash

This is a snack that you can buy at any supermarket and if you can buy in bulk, it’ll be even cheaper. It’s the perfect snack when you’re out and about and need to stay full until lunch or dinner.

Benefits: High energy, keeps you full, and increases calorie burning if you’re already in a routine of fitness.

Snacks at Home

These are great snacks for when you’re at home since they require plates and bowls. Need to unwind and watch some Netflix? Or maybe you’re reading a book. Try making these snacks and see how much more enjoyable they can be!

6. Peanut Butter and Banana Rice Cakes

Source: Pixabay

Ingredients:

• Rice cakes
• Bananas and peanut butter (or apples and pears)

Benefits: Full of fiber and protein, the rice cakes are light and not heavy like bread (you won’t have the crash that bread can give you).

7. Greek Yogurt and Fruit Muesli

Source: Pixabay

Ingredients:

• Greek yogurt
• Cut up fruit (of your choice)
• Granola and nuts
• Honey (optional

Directions:

• Place the yogurt in a bowl
• Cut up the fruit, place on top of the yogurt, add the granola and nuts

Benefits: Greek yogurt is full of protein, B12, and probiotics, keeping your immune system strong, your brain focused and your body energized.

8. Apple Sandwiches

Source: Pexels

Ingredients:

• 1 tbsp rolled oats
• 1/8 tsp ground cinnamon
• 3 tbsp unsweetened peanut butter
• 3/4 tsp honey
• 1 tbsp raisins
• 1 medium apple

Directions:

• Combine the oats and cinnamon in a pan over medium heat and toast, stirring occasionally until the oats are golden. Then cool before using.
• Mix together the peanut butter and honey.
• Core and slice the apple into 6 rounds. (If you don’t have an apple corer, you can slice the apple first and cut out the centers with a knife).
• Spread the peanut butter on 3 of the apple slices and sprinkle with raisins and oats. Top with the other apple slices to form sandwiches.

Benefits: The apples are full of fiber and the peanut butter has lots of protein. The snack will keep you full and ready to study while staying focused.

9. Vegetable Sticks With Avocado Dill Dip

Source: Unsplash

Ingredients:

• Cut up carrots, celery, and bell peppers
• 1 avocado
• 1/4 cup plain Greek yogurt
• lime juice, a pinch of garlic powder, and 1/4 teaspoon salt (optional)

Directions:

• Mash the avocado
• Mix in yogurt, lime juice, garlic powder, and salt.

Benefits: Aside from the nutritional benefits of carrots which are good for your eye health, avocado has many proven benefits, including being healthy for your heart, lowering cholesterol levels, being full of antioxidants and nutrients, and can even help prevent cancer.

10. Avocado Toast

Source: Unsplash

Ingredients:

• 1 or 2 slices of whole-wheat bread, toasted
• 1/2 avocado, sliced
• Salt and pepper
• Olive oil
• Crushed red pepper flakes (if desired)

Directions:

• Place the slices of avocado onto your bread and mash the avocado with a fork.
• Sprinkle it with salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes then drizzle some olive oil on top.

Benefits: We already mentioned the great benefits of avocados, but olive oil is also a good item to add to your diet. Olive oil is rich in healthy fats, antioxidants, and anti-inflammatory properties. It can help prevent heart disease and strokes.

Snacks for Studying

These are great snack ideas for when you’re studying, whether at home or at school, alone or with study friends. They’re all healthy and very simple to make!

11. Hummus and Pita Chips/Carrots/Celery

Source: Pixabay

This one doesn’t really require any directions. Just choose your favorite veggies and dip them in your favorite type of hummus. Hummus comes in all kinds of flavors, so have fun with your choices! Some great veggies to cut up: carrots, cucumber, red pepper, celery, or sugar snap peas.

Benefits: Hummus is high in protein, calcium and the brain-boosting omega 3 fatty acids. The veggie sticks are also full of vitamins and fiber. So it’s the perfect studying snack.

12. Fruit Salad

Source: Pixabay

This is another self-explanatory snack. Simply cut up fruit and put them in a bowl. Some fruits you can include are: apples, oranges, grapes, strawberries, blueberries, kiwis, pineapple, bananas, and pears. We recommend you make a big batch and you’ll have some for the next day, too. And if you add some Greek yogurt, you have yourself a meal!

Benefits: All these fruits will give your brain a boost of energy and fill you up with vitamins, minerals and fiber.

13. Greek Yogurt and Granola

Source: Pixabay

Plan on spending the next few hours (or the whole night) studying? You’re going to need a snack that fills you up. Have some Greek yogurt on its own, or add some granola for an extra crunch (and extra fiber) and honey to make it sweeter.

Benefits: Greek yogurt is higher in protein than regular yogurt, which will help fill you up and curb your hunger for longer than many other snacks. It’s also full of bone-healthy calcium and gut-friendly probiotics.

14. Air-Popped Popcorn

Source: Unsplash

Who said popcorn was for watching movies only? Popcorn is actually a great studying snack. Why? Well, it’s not only cheap. It’s also super easy to make and a lot healthier than microwave popcorn.

Ingredients:

• A bag of popcorn kernels
• Olive oil
• Salt
• Cinnamon (if desired)

Directions:

• Use a pan or a popcorn maker if you have one.
• Drizzle a little olive oil over the pan and sprinkle on some salt (or cinnamon if you’re craving something sweet)

Benefits: Popcorn counts as a whole grain, which contains more fiber and nutrients than refined grains. Popcorn is also one of the better sources of an antioxidant called polyphenols, and antioxidants can help lower your risk for a number of health problems, including cancer, heart disease and loss of vision.

15. Blueberries

Source: Unsplash

Blueberries are the perfect studying snack because they’re excellent for the brain! So you should eat them as much as you can. By themselves, in yogurt, or in a smoothie!

Benefits: Blueberries offer many health benefits, specifically for your brain. Blueberries (and other deeply colored berries) have anthocyanins, which are a group of plant compounds with anti-inflammatory and antioxidant effects. Antioxidants act against stress and inflammation and can even accumulate in the brain, helping to improve communication between brain cells.