The Student Room Group

Girlfriend really struggling with money at uni.

Right my girlfriend is currently studying at a university in London, she's having a really great time and enjoying her course immensely. The problem is she's in a right pickle money-wise, due to the fact that as well as paying for accommodation and living costs she's had to pay for a car parking permit at halls and all the general car related running costs as she needs her car to get to placement.

Before anyone says she shouldn't have bothered with a car in London, her placements start and finish at stupidly early/late times (she's studying paramedic science and ambulance stations aren't exactly easily co-located with public transport links) so she'd be really stuffed without it.

She had been intending to make it through university without getting a student overdraft (fair play to her for that mindset really) but that wasn't really ever going to be realistic knowing what students are like when they first move away from home - I was exactly the same in my first year at uni! However, in the past few weeks she has started running really low on money. She has applied for a part-time job that are taking ages to get back to her and she probably won't be able to start until after Christmas anyway.

She's finally accepted that she is going to have to get an overdraft so she booked an appointment with her bank last week to sort out converting her current account to a student account and getting access to a student overdraft. That appointment was supposed to be today, but she turned up at the bank to find that the woman she was going to be meeting with had called in sick and so they had to reschedule for a week's time.

Understandably she's not happy about this and point blank refuses to take any money off me, she'd doesn't care about starving but it's the petrol money to get to her placement that she needs. Her relationship with her family is, strained probably being the best word to describe it, and so she is very reluctant to turn round and ask for financial help for fear of what repercussions it would cause.

She was supposed to be coming down this coming weekend for a winter ball we were both going to and which I've already paid the tickets for, but with her financial situation as it is this is looking increasingly unlikely and would mean I end up losing out both seeing her and money that I've put into that evening.

I'm really stuck for what to do now and what advise to give so if anyone could throw in some ideas that'd be great!
(edited 9 years ago)
Is on street parking possible, instead of having to pay for a permit to park?

And in London, public transport starts really early and all (or the majority, at least) are within walking distance of a lot of places; so really no need for a car. A moped might be cheaper.
Has she applied to her university's crisis/hardship loan fund? As it is just a cashflow problem (overdraft to be opened next week) I can't see why they wouldn't lend her money until then.

Otherwise, go visit her and literally press bank notes into her hand.
Original post by OU Student
Is on street parking possible, instead of having to pay for a permit to park?

And in London, public transport starts really early and all (or the majority, at least) are within walking distance of a lot of places; so really no need for a car. A moped might be cheaper.

She pays a permit to park in the halls car park, but on-street parking needs a permit as well so not much chance of cutting costs there. The problem is the part of London she lives in has a few black areas when it comes to public transport, so there's either no link at all or she needs to take about four or five buses/trains to get anywhere, which in the early hours of the morning can't really be relied upon. Plus she'd also be really stubborn about losing her car as well!

Original post by scrotgrot
Has she applied to her university's crisis/hardship loan fund? As it is just a cashflow problem (overdraft to be opened next week) I can't see why they wouldn't lend her money until then.

Otherwise, go visit her and literally press bank notes into her hand.

I'll suggest it to her, I know they have one for international students but not sure about UK residents.
Tell her to at least stop being so stubborn and at least accept some money off you so you haven't wasted money on the winter ball.

After that all she can really do is use her overdraft and look for a job.

Quick Reply

Related discussions

Latest

Trending

Trending

Articles for you