Self funding a year of uni

If anyone has self-funded a year of uni (outside of parental help), how did you go about it? Any suggestions? All tips / suggestions are appreciated~

Reply 1

MindMax2000

Universities Forum Helper

21

Original post by _katie1234

If anyone has self-funded a year of uni (outside of parental help), how did you go about it? Any suggestions? All tips / suggestions are appreciated~

I am planning on self funding my degrees. Don't know how relevant my contibutions would be. Most of my approaches will be controversial and definitely for everyone. It's definitely not easy.

If you think my contribution would be relevant, let me know.

Do also specify if you're going to university for the first time and what level of study you intend to do. These factors would determine how much you need to budget (and how tough it would be) and how much time you need to dedicate to sorting things out outside of your studies.

Reply 2

_katie1234

OP

7

Original post by MindMax2000

I am planning on self funding my degrees. Don't know how relevant my contibutions would be. Most of my approaches will be controversial and definitely for everyone. It's definitely not easy.

If you think my contribution would be relevant, let me know.

Do also specify if you're going to university for the first time and what level of study you intend to do. These factors would determine how much you need to budget (and how tough it would be) and how much time you need to dedicate to sorting things out outside of your studies.

So sorry for the late reply!! I haven't been on here for a while. Undergraduate level. Your contribution would most definitely be relevant. I've gotten myself into a but of a situation because I was being indecisive so I want to make sure I've explored every possiblity, one of them being having to self-fund a year.

Reply 3

MindMax2000

Universities Forum Helper

21

Original post by _katie1234

So sorry for the late reply!! I haven't been on here for a while. Undergraduate level. Your contribution would most definitely be relevant. I've gotten myself into a but of a situation because I was being indecisive so I want to make sure I've explored every possiblity, one of them being having to self-fund a year.

Should I presume you're based in the UK and you're a UK National attending a UK university and doing your first bachelor's? If so, you can get the full funding via student finance. You want student finance to pay for your tuition fees, and you want the maintenance loans for your living expenses. I would primarily use maintenance loans for rent, which should be ample if you are going to a uni outside London (rent in London can be as high as £12k pa, but outside London it will depend on the specific location - this should be less than £5k pa). For anything on top, you should be able to get a part time job.
Other than tuition fees, your living expenses should primarily include:
Rent - assuming £300 per month = £3000 (for 10 month year) (try to get a room that includes all bills)
Food @ £30 per week = £1200
Netflix @ £6.99 per month (because it's cheaper than TV, ha!) = £69.90
Bus pass for 1 year @ £120 per year = £120 (unless you live so close that you can walk there) - in London, this can be roughly £1 per trip if you live one zone away from the university (roughly £200 for the 10 months)
Total = £4389.90 for the first year (or 10 months)

If you're not based in the UK and you're not attending a UK university, the above can be inaccurate. I would need the precise figures, but you should be able to get student loans and grants still for your specific country (I only know of a handful of countries that don't offer any assistance for the nationals of their own countries).

The methods that I would empliy if I were to self fund everything would normally involve setting up my own business. This is primarily because it's very difficult to save up £30k for tuition fees with £5k budget for 3 years on top (£45k total for a 3 year degree - I look for integrated masters' so the sum is even higher). The alternative would be to look into property investment that would generate the £15k net income per year (I say net, so you would need at least £20k before tax if this is ongoing, or a little under £65k in 1 year as a lump sum).
Assuming you have zero working capital to start with, you would primarily be looking at methods that will bring in high cash flow with minimal cash investment. As a student, I wouldn't go crazy with the working hours since you will have study on top so the working conditions needs to be within 20 hours or so a week (if you're in full time study, this should total 60 hours a week, and that's a lot for a student).
Ideas would include:

•

Freelancer in a high income skill (or something that would pay at least £20 per hour - you would need to account for business expenses on top)

•

Serviced Accommodation/Rent to Rent

•

Coaching in specific topics

•

E-commerce, if you know what you're doing

•

Create courses

•

Sales oriented jobs where you can earn high commissions (assuming you're very good)

I'm personally very skeptical of securing a job that will bring in £65k in 1 year at entry level, so I will rule out that option. If you are thinking of saving up money over 3 years then you're looking at an entry level job that would pay you £25k pa, and those are not easy to get even if you're not at enty level (I know it seems ridiculous that you can't get a job with national average pay at enty level, but that's how it is).
If you're based in any other country, the above ideas (but definitely the figures) can be off. I would need more precise figures to give you a better idea.

For net income calculations, I recommend searching for a website with an income tax calculator to give you an estimate (e.g. https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/tax-calculator/ for UK). Actual tax paid can only be confirmed through accountants or payroll personnel (unless you're a qualified accountant or payroll personnel) for your country.

If the above seems stressful, check to see if the degree you want to do is a degree you need for the job you want. If the job you want doesn't require a degree, then reconsider doing the degree. If you want to do the degree because you're passionate about the subject, then you need to want it enough to go through the above.
If you're based in the UK or intend to work in the UK, use the following to check the requirements of the jobs that you want:
https://nationalcareers.service.gov.uk/explore-careers
https://www.careerpilot.org.uk/job-sectors/sectors

As a standard disclaimer: do not consider the above to constitute financial, business, or investment advice. It's purely for education and illustration purposes only. If you want advice on finance, business, or investments, I strongly recommend you speak to a suitable and qualified professional.

Reply 4

_katie1234

OP

7

Wow thank you, this is so in depth! Yes I am based in the UK and it wouldn't be my firsst time studying, thanks for all the info, I'll look into it more :biggrin:

Self funding a year of uni

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