The Student Room Group
Mappin Building
University of Sheffield
Sheffield

living expenses in sheffield

Hi, I'm wondering how much do you spend per month while studying here? Is it any cheaper than living in other cities? How much do you spend on food/accommodation/books/etc? And is it easy to find a part -time job in Sheffield?
Any answers would be appreciated!
P.S. info about life in sheffield in general would be appreciated as well.
Reply 1
Food: £20 per week on average
Accommodation: Depends where you live, I think I pay about £120 per week (first year) which is more than a lot of other unis but the accommodation is very good and I think its reasonable. Houses for second year onward are usually around £70-100 per week, not including bills etc.
Books: Depends on your course, most of the books I needed were provided for free (well, £9000 per year but...) by the uni but I have bought some others. A lot of people I know on other courses did have to buy all their books and they go for £40+ each so it can get quite expensive but that's the same at any uni
Jobs: I haven't got a job in Sheffield but I know a couple of people who do and I think they got them pretty easily

Hope this helps, feel free to ask me any other questions :smile:
Mappin Building
University of Sheffield
Sheffield
Original post by simjang
Hi, I'm wondering how much do you spend per month while studying here? Is it any cheaper than living in other cities? How much do you spend on food/accommodation/books/etc? And is it easy to find a part -time job in Sheffield?
Any answers would be appreciated!
P.S. info about life in sheffield in general would be appreciated as well.


Hi there,

The cost of living for students in Sheffield is quite low in comparison to other cities. Accommodation wise, if you're planning on living in university accommodation then the cost will depend on which type of residency you choose. Private accommodation ranges from as low as £50-60 per week, to over £100 - again this depends on your personal choices (which area you choose to live, the type of house you choose, who you choose to rent with etc.) More information on private accommodation in Sheffield can be found through our propetywithUS service: www.sheffield.ac.uk/propertywithus

Food is dependent on how or where you choose to shop. When I was a student in Sheffield, I found I could eat far more cheaply by a) buying most of my food from local shops like the greengrocer, b) cooking large meals in bulk and then freezing the portions to eat later and c) cooking healthy meals rather than buying expensive ready meals from the supermarket. I definitely recommend learning to cook a few basic, healthy veggie meals before you come to uni if you want to live more cheaply - vegetables are by far the cheapest food you can buy, and you can make a whole range of incredible, tasty meals if you're willing to get a bit creative in the kitchen!

The cost of books I imagine doesn't really vary from city to city - I can't see the course books in Sheffield costing any more or less than anywhere else. Don't feel like you have to buy all your books new, though - many departments run book exchanges, where older students sell on their used books to newer students (ask if there's anything like this when you arrive). It is also worth looking for used copies online, as they are often much cheaper, or in the second hand book shops around the city. Also, do not feel like you have to buy all the books on your course list! Email your tutor and ask what the core texts are, and get copies of those for yourself. Anything additional you should be able to get out of the library, (and if they don't have a copy, you can always request that they buy it in for you).

There are plenty of opportunities to find part-time work in Sheffield. Our Student Job Shop in the Union can help you find part-time work, and once you're registered as a student you will be able to use our "myVacancies" service to look for work too.

As for life in Sheffield, it's a really great city to be a student in (we have one of the highest student-retention rates after graduation for a reason!). There is a brilliant range of activities to get involved in both within the University/ Students' Union and outside of it, as well as a great local music scene, plenty of local arts/ culture and the Peak District National Park right on the doorstop. It's also a very green city, with over 300 parks and green spaces and four trees to every person! (We have a Pinterest board which lists a handful of the things to do in Sheffield if you're interest in having a look: http://www.pinterest.com/ssidsheff/our-city).

I hope that helps you out a bit, let me know if there's anything else you'd like to know.

Best wishes,

Georgie, Student Communications Team at the University of Sheffield
Reply 3
I've visited quite a lot of unis around the country and it is by far one of the cheapest. First year student halls are quite expensive but all bills and internet is included. In 2nd year, most people tend to spend £60-£75 on a house and no-one is every really more than a half hour walk away.
It's easy to find a job, the university themselves always have jobs for students available and there is the shopping centre, Meadowhall, which is 5 mins away on the train or 20 mins away on the tram.
Sheffield is a really cheap city to live in.

Accommodation is considerably cheaper than most other places. I currently pay £80 per week (bills not included) for a very nice student house in a prime location. This is actually rather expensive for Sheffield, where the typical student house is around £70 - £75. However people I have spoken to from other universities consider £80 to be very cheap.

For food you need to know where to shop. The smaller supermarkets in the main student locations (Broomhill, Crookes, Crookesmoor) tend to be more expensive but they’re handy for picking up the odd bit on the way back from lectures. For big shops I would recommend doing it online or getting the bus to one of the bigger supermarkets which tend to be cheaper.

Lots of my friends have jobs and I don’t know anyone who has struggled to find one.

Harriet
University of Sheffield Law School Student Ambassador


(edited 9 years ago)
Reply 5
Original post by crc290
Food: £20 per week on average
Accommodation: Depends where you live, I think I pay about £120 per week (first year) which is more than a lot of other unis but the accommodation is very good and I think its reasonable. Houses for second year onward are usually around £70-100 per week, not including bills etc.
Books: Depends on your course, most of the books I needed were provided for free (well, £9000 per year but...) by the uni but I have bought some others. A lot of people I know on other courses did have to buy all their books and they go for £40+ each so it can get quite expensive but that's the same at any uni
Jobs: I haven't got a job in Sheffield but I know a couple of people who do and I think they got them pretty easily

Hope this helps, feel free to ask me any other questions :smile:

What do you mean by “you haven’t got a job in Sheffield”? You voluntarily didn’t chose to get it or you couldn’t get?

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