You should be able to cut that food bill. Some specific methods of attack:
- Decide when you're "allowed" to eat out. Since you're kind of spoiled in that way right now, you might consider every two weeks. It's still better than you're doing now. When you go out, minimize the cost by going to places with a coupon (college towns tend to have loads of these), skip drinks and appetizers and dessert.
- Consider take-out from the deli. It's much less expensive than eating out (no drinks, no tip), but you get the benefit of not cooking.
- Make your freezer your friend. When you make a casserole or sauce, make 2-3 of the same recipe and freeze the extras. On a busy night, you already have dinner ready.
- Search for non-grocery store food sources. For example, I shop at a farmer's market, a beef co-op, a super-expensive health food store that has great prices on spices, a salvage store, and online for food.
- If you're really desperate, consider dumpster diving. I've been that hungry, yet I lived to tell the tale.
- Keep your eyes open for college events that serve free food. My daughter is constantly attending this or that something that offers food: A welcome-back midnight pancake breakfast in the cafeteria, snacks at a lecture offered at a lecture by the International Students' group, socials in the dorms. Most of these things welcome all students.
- If you're going to work at a low-paying job anyway, make it waiting tables. Often you can bring home unsold food at the end of the evening, which can be a godsend.
- The worst college job is retail clothing sales; the store expects you to wear "their stuff", and you'll be tempted to buy all the cute things that come into the store. Worst of the worst is a clothing store at the mall. If you go to the mall multiple times a week, you can't help seeing stuff that you want, and constantly saying no to yourself is a bummer.
- Cut out most beverages (other than free tap water). 30% of the average grocery bill goes to drinks, most of which offer little to no nutritional value. Develop the habit of carrying a water bottle with you to class so you're not tempted to buy drinks from vending machines.
13 credit hours? Are you on track to graduate on time with so few hours? I crawled through school a few classes at a time like this (because I had to work so much), but my trade-off was that I didn't borrow anything. It looks like you're getting the bad end both ways: You're stuck with debt AND you're moving slowly through your classes.
Books. Are any of your books available in the library (perhaps on reserve so that you have to do the reading there) or online? As an English major, quite a few of your books are going to be widely available. If you're reading Ivanhoe, for example, you don't have to read THE EDITION that the professor suggests.
As an English/Spanish major, you might not be in great demand as a tutor, but LOADS of college students (especially the engineers) need help with their writing, which is probably a strength of yours. I'd suggest advertising yourself on bulletin boards as a proofreader /grammar coach. Being an English teacher myself, I re-read your initial post, and I'll say this: With one exception, your commas are good, and that tends to be the hardest concept for most people. Do brush up on the difference between few and less; if you advertise yourself as a proofreader, you must be flawless.
Looking for paid internships in your fields is a great idea. It will "pay you" beyond the paycheck.
I was an RA, but I don't think that'll be an option for you. Typically you must currently live on campus to be eligible to apply, and they hire individuals -- not married couples. Additionally, since you are a transfer student and can't be expected to be quite "up to snuff" on all things campus-related, you wouldn't have a chance. Put your efforts elsewhere.
