How can i get into small stocks?

[gam3r09]

I am a student in college, looking to spend about 10-30$ with stocks
is it possible to do this, just to get a feel for how it works etc??
i know i cant do much, but even small penny stocks would work?
if so how can i do it?

[kckid2]

You, a broker firm, and some cash. Generally, brokers have a minimum of $1000 or more.

Penny stock... that alone means you want to begin your education at the craps table and pay, percentage wise, huge markups.

I don't recommend that. I suggest you instead keep saving and get down to your library and start educating your self about what lies ahead. Many opportunies mulipled by 20 times the risks for those not informed.

[Neil Osborne]

This is generally, a bad idea - as a few other people have already pointed out.

Although I can understand the logic of the appeal of small stocks (smaller start up capital etc), the odds are stacked inexorably against you if you go down this route. You will have all sorts of issues to contend with - mostly due to liquidity issues.

Furthermore, small stocks behave in quite a different way from med sized and blue chip companies - and you will have to readjust a lot of your thinking and strategies in order to be successful with the "main stream" companies.

I would recommend that you first get a solid foundation of the stock markets. I have recently (last week), started a series of posts/articles, aimed at self directed traders/investors who want to learn how to make their money work hard(er), by utilizing the stock markets.

You may follow me on twitter @neilosb to receive notifications of new posts, or you may directly read the posts from my blog.

Once you have gained a solid understanding of what you are getting yourself into, I would suggest that you do two things:

1. Start paper trading (by following the posts I mentioned, you would have learned how to create your own trading/investment strategies)

2. Start saving some money for opening a trading account (the process of saving towards a goal in itself - i.e. 'delayed gratification', is a useful skill/discipline, which you will come to rely on as a successful trader/investor).