Furnishing your new apartment or dorm room might be a little difficult for you if you do not have parents who are well off enough to pay for it for you or if you cannot get scholarship money to help you with it, but if you can stay realistic as to what you need and what you do not need, you can make a little bit of money go quite a long way.
The first thing you need to do is make sure you are renting a place that you can pay for if you are not in a dorm room. If you can afford a studio by yourself and it is enough for you, then by all means, get a studio apartment. But, if you cannot afford a studio apartment on your own and a 1 bedroom is just a little more expensive, you could take roommate and one have the bedroom and one have the living room as a sleeping space. This allows you both to split the rent and it end up being less than a studio or 1 bedroom apartment for each of you. I would only suggest this if the person is someone you really get along with, though.
Figure out what furniture you absolutely have to have. Right now, I only have a futon, coffee table (serving as a TV stand at the moment), a computer desk, and a computer chair. This is the only furniture I have in my 700 square foot apartment, because it is all I need. I could splurge and go pay for a TV stand, but I do not really need it. My apartment would look nicer, but it is not a necessity for someone on a very tight budget.
If you have to have more seating for your apartment, bean bag chairs can be an okay solution. They are not typically expensive and depending on your own taste, they can be stylish.
Something else you should not forget about is the existence of thrift stores. You can find a lot of unique items here that you probably would not be able to find anywhere else and typically at a good price, although they may need a little love. Some pieces of furniture only need a little sanding, stain, and polish to look like new. There are plenty of places online to learn how to strip paint and refinish wood furniture. Take a look around.
