[Herr]

This is specifically targeted towards those who are 16+ and doing or will be doing A Levels.

How much money on average do you spend?

Please list on the following areas :-

Books : Any academic books.
Travel : Amount, distance from school to residence.
Clothes : Just an annual amount and how many pieces of clothes roughly.
Food : Daily please and how many meals taken at home.
Stationary : Include things like IT related stuff like printer cartridges, pens, paper, lab stuff if any.
Entertainment/Going out etc : Just a rough estimate.
Board : If any.
Other : Any other expenses. Eg. such as cosmetics etc.

What proportion of this money comes from your parents? Is this given to you in cash and you go purchase it on your own or do they bring you to buy it and pay for it.

Am particularly interested in knowing if you are doing a science based A Levels.

[princess.leia]

Many of these depend a LOT on the sixth form you're at. I don't have much to spend so I've had to be really careful. And yes I purchase the stuff I need myself.

Books: only used text books for french and maths and these were provided by school. The only books I bought were dictionaries and vocabulary books (between 5-10 quid for these sort of books) - always try ebay or amazon, they usually have really good deals and if you sell stuff on ebay too you can buy your books with the money you make!

Travel: I have quite a long journey to my sixth form so I had to buy a weekly oyster - it's expensive (17 quid) but because I had to take tube, train and bus. Used to use EMA for this but then it was scrapped.

Clothes: I'm very stingy and hate shopping - when I do I shop at places like h&m, new look, primark.. and especially during sales. Shop every few months and spend no more than about 20 quid.

Food: always packed lunch at school
Stationary: school provided us with folders for our subjects, and a pack of paper. Once this was finished I just knew where to find more in school which was just lying there unused hehe - pound shop for pens and stuff.
Going out: take advantage of student nights, orange wednesdays, 2 for 1 cocktails etc - on average I try not to spend more than 10/15 quid, normally don't even spend 10
Can't think of any other expenses right now..

[VickyDoodle]

Books : Any academic books - about £20 if that over the last 2 years? Just revision guides and if you wanted to buy a textbook from school, but you normally borrow them.
Travel : £350 a year - £70 per term for the school bus, about a 10 minute journey there and back.
Clothes : Probably spent about £100 at the beginning of Year 12 and wore 'till the end of 6th form.
Food : If I bought school meals it's £1.00 for breakfast, £3.40 for a full lunch plus a meal + a snack at home.
Stationary : £100? Good quality notebooks, performing arts journals and fineliners end up amounting to more than I thought..¬.¬
Entertainment/Going out etc : Far far too much. Spent about £900 since September.
Board : N/A
Other : Included in the entertainment section, I only know how much I've spent in total really.

I get £30 a week minimum from my job,which I spend on clothes,entertainment etc. Parents pay for transport and food, occasionally getting me stationary. I do Biology A-level with 2 non-science A-levels and a BTEC.

[03hope03]

Books : We put a deposit down for our books at the start of year 12 and we get the money back for them if they're all in good condition at the end of year 13. I had to put down £10 per maths book and £15 per science book, so ended up paying £70 in the first week of school. However, it isn't too bad as you get the money back I haven't bought any revision guides as I find you can get similar things online that are just as good for free. Paid for with money I have earnt

Travel : N/A (My mum drives me as it's on her way to work)

Clothes : Hm, probably £100/£150 per year on clothes, including shoes and coats. Bear in mind I am a girl Paid for with money I have earnt

Food : Breakfast and Tea are eaten at home. Lunch is a packed lunch (a sandwich, a packet of crisps, a chocolate bar and a piece of fruit). Paid for by parents

Stationary : At the start of the year I spent probably around £30 on stationary. I probably spend around £10 every 3 months on new pens and paper to replace the ones I've used up (I get through A LOT of paper) Ink cartridges I get through my stepdad's work for free. Cost split 50/50 between me and my parents

Entertainment/Going out etc : Probably £20 a month is spent on going out with friends. That's usually a meal, 1 trip swimming and a party. Paid for with money I have earnt

Board : N/A

Other : I spent about £10 per month on books to read as I really love books. Paid for with money I have earnt. I buy my own toiletries as well. Paid for with the maintenance my Father has to pay

I pay for the majority of this with the money I have saved and the money I earn. I am paid £80 per month as standard and then work extra shifts to bring it up to around £120 per month. I then get approximately £50 per month in maintenance from my dad that I've been receiving instead of my mum since I was 16 (I am expected to pay for almost everything I want or need though). Recently he hasn't been paying though so my mum has helped out with essential items. I try to put away around £100 per month into savings for university.

[lou_100]

(Original post by Herr)
This is specifically targeted towards those who are 16+ and doing or will be doing A Levels.

How much money on average do you spend?

Please list on the following areas :-

Books : Any academic books.
Travel : Amount, distance from school to residence.
Clothes : Just an annual amount and how many pieces of clothes roughly.
Food : Daily please and how many meals taken at home.
Stationary : Include things like IT related stuff like printer cartridges, pens, paper, lab stuff if any.
Entertainment/Going out etc : Just a rough estimate.
Board : If any.
Other : Any other expenses. Eg. such as cosmetics etc.

What proportion of this money comes from your parents? Is this given to you in cash and you go purchase it on your own or do they bring you to buy it and pay for it.

Am particularly interested in knowing if you are doing a science based A Levels.

Books : £0 for textbooks, as these are borrowed from my college for the year. I spent about £35 on revision books this year. (1 Psychology, 1 Biology and 3 Maths). My money.
Travel : £0. I walk for 20 minutes every morning and afternoon.
Clothes : I go for spells where I spend spend spend about £100 and/or buy a couple of really nice clothes from a more expensive shop and then months where I will barely buy anything. Can't tell you how many items. Probably about £400 a year on clothes. (all my money except for the few odd pairs of socks that my mum buys me - if that counts? haha)
Food : I eat food from home mid-morning and take microwave meals for lunch. My mum buys me my food. I think the meals are about £2-3?
Stationary : I spend about £30 a year. This probably comes half and half from me and my mum - it's not specifically assigned to someone, just whoever happens to be in town at the time that I need something.
Entertainment/Going out etc : normally about £10 every time I go out. That's the standard cost for most of my nights out. Sometimes a bit more. Always my money unless I'm skint - then my parents will give me a tenner so I don't have to miss out on the fun. But that's rare.
Board : N/A
Other : Makeup I hardly ever buy. I just buy a replacement when something runs out every couple months. £10-£15 every 2-3 months when some things run out. Always my money

I don't get any money from my parents in an allowance. I work. So when my parents pay for things, they normally buy them for me e.g. my food. Sometimes I'll buy some food for myself, get home, my mum will see the shopping bag and say "I'll buy your food, how much was it?" and offer to pay me back.

Only time I get cash handed to me before it's spent is when I'm going out for the night and am skint, like I mentioned before.

[11flon]

This year (second year of college):
Books : about £35, but I spent £20 on a really detailed Physics Revision guide as we ended up teaching ourselves most of it, you might not need to spend this much
Travel : £175 uni-rider for Stagecoach
Clothes : hmm, no idea, I tend to treat myself to clothes quite a lot as I have a job so I know I can afford it. Yearly, maybe £400?
Food : In first year I'd spend maybe £4 a day on food and drink, but I only have 2 full days this year so its usually around £8 a week
Stationary : Probably about £20, tenner at the start of the year then a couple of quid every few months replacing notepads. Then about £20 on Art Supplies throughout the year.
Entertainment/Going out etc : Probably averages at about £40-£50 a month
Board : none
Other : small amount on cosmetics: make-up hairspray etc. £20 a week for driving lessons

What proportion of this money comes from your parents?

I get £30 a week off my mum as when I started all my friends got EMA so it was kind of a substitute for that and we've just stuck to it. At work I get anywhere between £130 and £200 a month depending on whether I work 1 day a week or 2 (This'll rise by quite a lot once I turn 18)

Is this given to you in cash and you go purchase it on your own or do they bring you to buy it and pay for it

All gets paid straight into my bank account.

Am particularly interested in knowing if you are doing a science based A Levels.

I'm doing Physics, English and Art. Other than that revision book and a calculator I've not really needed to spend much on my science subject.

[Kaisa:)]

Books : £50 which I get back at the end of term.
Travel : £50 a week, a weekly train ticket is £38.80 (Parents)
Clothes : £60-100 every month, considering my ideaL job revolves around fashion. (I have a job)
Food : About a £4 a day chicken and chips at college is £2.50+£1 drink & sweets.
Stationary : 0! I just borrow pens :L
Entertainment/Going out etc : About £15 every two weeks. (Cinema, meal, cab from the party home ect)
Board : N/A
Other : I steal my mums makeup!

[Herr]

A big thank you to all who have taken time to answer, the insight has been most helpful.

[JulietheCat]

Books: £40 in total but I get the deposit back when finished.
Clothes: I don't buy much clothes at all...
Travel: around £20 a week. I have to go from Zone 4 to Zone 2 every day to go to school.
Food: £5-£6 every day. The meals in my college area are so expensive!
Stationary - I don't know. 10p per pen and 5p per pencil at school and I spent £10 on my calculator.
Entertainment - £10 a week. I go out with my mother and bf once a week.
Board - N/A
Other - I "borrow" my mother's makeup.

[x-Sophie-x]

Books: About £50
Clothes: Quite a bit Around £100 monthly perhaps, woops.
Travel: Nothing -school bus is free except a £10 bus pass charge.
Food: £5 a day aprox
Stationary - £80 on maths calculator, maybe around £20 for the others, and £30 for folders and paper.
Entertainment - £40 a week...cinema, parties, just generally going out with friends. And the occasional visit to Thorpe Park, every now and again.
Board - N/A

And my parents pay, since I do not yet have a job, being 16. I'm going to get one during summer though (:

[DeadGirlsDance]

Books : I don't need any for my subjects, the teachers give us everything we need.
Travel : My parents drive me because my two younger siblings go to the same school.
Clothes : £600+ a year .
Food: £2 a day.
Stationary : £50 for the year, that includes folders, lots of paper (I do essay subjects), ink etc.
Entertainment/Going out etc : £250 for the year .
Board : N/A
Other : £50 a year on cosmetics.

I pay for clothes, cosmetics and going out, basically I pay for things that I don't really need.
I take English Language, Sociology, History, Religious Education and Welsh Bacc.

Will have to control my spending a lot more when I go to university.

[PhysicsGirl]

(Original post by Herr)
This is specifically targeted towards those who are 16+ and doing or will be doing A Levels.

How much money on average do you spend?

Please list on the following areas :-

Books: Not too much- mostly borrow the reading I need from local public libraries, and my teachers lend out books a lot (I'm an English Literature student, so there's a lot of required reading material). In terms of things directly related to my science courses, almost nothing- think I have bought over the two years two physics revision guides and one guide to maths that I did over the summer before starting as-level. Obviously, because I'm kinda a nerd, I buy a few popular maths/science books, but mostly second-hand off Ebay :-)
Travel: A bus pass for a college year costs £460 (full amount- for some people the cost is reduced to £345 if they're counted as low-income) where I live. Due to my circumstances though, I qualified for and successfully applied for a full bursary from my college, so I didn't have to pay for any of this.
Clothes : Uh, this is going to vary widely from person to person and whether you like new, branded clothes or old, cheaper stuff :-) (Ebay <3 )
Stationary : I buy reams of squared paper (500 sheets) from my maths department, roughly 2 reams a year at about £3.50 a ream, I think? And I buy lined paper in notepad form from Wilkinson's or Tesco's (Poundland is also a good place). I think at the start of the year, altogether, probably spent about £10 on folders, plastic wallets, note cards (I really like index cards, £1 for 50 [Tesco], I think?) and they've mostly lasted me throughout (although I have more tape than folder on my physics folder now, I think ) I bulk buy pens/pencils whenever I see them cheap/ on offer, or just whenever my ink runs out in the pens I have. My graphical calculator was probably the most expensive single purchase, £35 (again, secondhand, bought from my college).
Entertainment/Going out etc : Not doing too much of this at the moment- exams But I don't drink, so it's not usually too expensive. Transport to places is pricey though, taxis are really costly and public buses aren't too much better!
Board : Erm, if you mean resits, I've done one, and it cost me around £20.


What proportion of this money comes from your parents? Is this given to you in cash and you go purchase it on your own or do they bring you to buy it and pay for it. Umm, it's my money mostly, so I spend it how I see fit but I'd think it would be pretty odd if my mum or step-dad brought me something home and then asked me to pay for it (unless, obviously, I'd asked them to).

Am particularly interested in knowing if you are doing a science based A Levels.

If you're concerned about the costs of college, I would try to get part-time work, and just be careful with what you're spending. Usually, the cheapest ways of getting hold of things that are essential is to either buy from your college (if it's truly essential, they'll almost definitely sell it) or buy secondhand online / from older students. There are also a few bursaries and things like that which your college will have more information about. I don't think I know anyone who is seriously struggling financially (i.e. to the point where they've had to drop out of college) so I wouldn't worry that much

[GeneralOJB]

Starting in sept

Books : Mum pays for all revision guides/work books but hopefully I'll be able to borrow them
Travel : Not sure how many buses, the school bus is £50 a month, not sure if I need to get a bus to where it stops though, but mum will pay for travel.
Clothes : Just get my mum to order 'em when I'm running low. Not sure what it all adds to.
Food : Will bring my own salad to college, so no cost. (except for the organic veg ofc!)
Stationary : Again, mum buys it whenever it runs low - not much, but I'm always losing equipment.

And I go to classical concerts every month, £30 for tickets. Other than that I rarely go out..

[soempty]

Wow, i am surprised at how little money girls spend on clothing. 150 Quid a year is unbelivable. I spend like 2000 on clothing a year (well maybe considerably less, by about 500) and i am a boy...

[Jippet]

My parents pay for my travel but I buy everything else.

I work at Ryman's so I get a bulky discount on stationary so that always helps

I probably spend about £700-£800 on clothes per year. I don't buy the overpriced designer stuff and I don't buy the really cheap stuff, middle of the road stuff so I get quite a lot

Before I was 18 I probably spent about £15 a week on going out but since I've turned 18 it's more like £50 every time I go out which is usually twice a month. Fortunately I haven't spent much lately thanks to exams ha

This was posted from The Student Room's iPhone/iPad App

[Beckyyyy]

I'm in year 13 and I study French, German and English Language

Books : For the courses I take, books are optional. I just learn by copying down teachers' notes and possibly borrowing textbooks from friends for a day or so to make notes from that, I save money that way.

Travel : I'm lucky that my grandparents paid for my yearly £600 bus pass, otherwise transport would cost me nearly £7 per day. From my house to sixth form it's a half hour-45 minute journey depending on which bus I manage to catch.

Clothes : I only tend to get clothes with my christmas/birthday money, aside from that I probably spend £40 max on clothes all year.

Food : Take my own lunch in whenever I can, but quite often we're running out of food so I have to buy my own at school, which generally costs a couple of quid.

Stationary : I have no idea how much over the course of a year, but all I've bought is a few folders at the beginning of year 12, and since then just pens and lined paper when I run out. Considering how often I lose pens though/other people nick them, the total is probably quite a lot.

Entertainment/Going out etc : Going into town to see friends costs nothing because of my bus pass, so the only time I spend money going out is when I'm going out at night. It usually costs me about £10, it costs most people a lot more but I pre-drink to save money I also generally split a taxi with like 4-5 other people so that doesn't cost much either.

Board : N/A

Other : I'm a smoker, so I spend about a tenner a week on that.

As for where my money comes from, I get £20 EMA per week, that goes mainly towards food when I'm at sixth form and other academic extras (pens, paper, library fines because of my awful organisational skills, school shoes when my last ones have fallen apart, etc) and whatever's leftover (usually a couple of quid) gets saved in a jar for anything I want. Unfortunately in my region it's near impossible to get a job, so my grandparents pay me to do work for them, such as walking the dog, cleaning the house, helping with the gardening, etc...

[DeathByBSOD]

Books : £100 study guides, revision books per year
Travel : £20 a week.
Clothes : Hardly buy any clothes...
Food : £2-3 a day, i go home to eat @ lunch.
Stationary : 10p a week, just a pen lol/
Entertainment/Going out etc : Alone as usual
Board : N/A

[Deziah]

Going to sixth form college in September, so this is just an estimate really.

Books : I've bought a £10 revision guide for biology, already got an advanced French dictionary, will probably buy a chemistry revision guide for £10 and then just see what else I will need.
Travel : £1.20 a day, so that's £6.
Clothes : I'd spend about £15 on jeans/chinos and less than £10 on a top. Really trying not to go over board in this...
Food : I eat fruit and water, so it'll be next to nothing really.
Stationary : Pens will be about £3, folders were £4 for three, notepads will be about £4 I'm guessing. Already got a memory stick and my dad bought a scientific calculator by accident when I did my maths GCSE, so that'll be useful for A-level haha.
Entertainment/Going out etc : £10 a week for fitness classes? Me and my friends all go out once a month for a meal or something, which is only really about £10. I'm also the person who drinks water at parties, so they're really cheap for me haha.
Other : £30 every few months to get my hair done. £10 on makeup every few months.

I'm going to try get a job when I've started my A-levels, but I'll either save that money in the bank or start paying for my own stuff so I don't have to rely on my parents.

[meeow]

Going to sixth form in September too, but i've already bought a few things-

Books: My sibling has given me 4 revision guides and some set texts, as she did similar subjects, although i've gotten an A2 maths revision guide (already finished AS) for £13, but my parents pay for school stuff
Travel: will be driven in, so £0
Clothes: about £50 a month? I'm going to buy a lot this summer for next year, i have a job
Food: probably a packed lunch, but if not £2 a day max.
Stationary: Massive pack of 50 pens (£3.50), 5 folders (~£2 each), some refill pads for £2 each and stuff like pens and post it notes- i like stationary shopping also treated myself to a fancy new calculator yesterday (Casio 991ES PLUS)
Entertainment/going out etc: um depends on how busy we are with exams, could be anywhere between 0-£25 a week!
Board: hopefully no resits ...
Other: i have sport classes? but my parents pay for those. Makeup and shampoo etc. probably about 0-£10 a month depending on what i have/need. Birthday presents ~£10 a month

[letsdothetimewarpagain]

Books : We got them all free from the school, did buy a couple of revision guides seperately but they were about £20 total over the two years and all for English Lit
Travel : £70 a month, had to catch a train as I lived 10 miles away.
Clothes : About £100, helped our dress code was lax so didn't need to buy anything specifically and I tend to do a lot of sales shopping rather than expensive stuff
Food : About £3 a day, although also had dnner at home and sometimes dad made me a lunch instead of buying it.
Stationary : Paper, 3 x big refill pads, 2 lever arch folders and a small ring binder, maths book was supplied so about £15
Entertainment/Going out etc : £5 a week for the first 18 months, then as soon as I hit 18 about £40 a week
Board : None.
Other : Driving lessons at about a grand total.

The general rule of thumb was we went halves on everything, but I did also get £30 a week EMA in the second year which paid for my driving lessons and I also had a job the entire way through.

Did maths, history and english lit so perhaps not the most relevent for you