how do average students afford uni ?
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this boggles my small brain greatly, mostly because moving out to go study is not super common ( I live in the capital with amazing uni's that are usually only a bus or two away). so for me and most of my social circle, accomadation costs are never a worry , we just live with our families throughout, our costs just extend to tuition, which is covered by gov a lot of the time, school stuff, going out, and transport etc (the basics).
how do people have the money and stability to study in a university, live in the halls and like survive ? I get people receive tuition loans, I understand that and sometimes even maintenance loans but I just cant grasp how people have a steady flow of income to support phone bills, groceries and household items, rent, school supplies etc. Of course, all this without the support of families, grants, because that makes it easier.
sorry if what im trying to say is all over the place. I just think the 2/3 months in between going to uni and finishing my exams is not enough to get myself off my feet and survive in such an independant environment.
how do people have the money and stability to study in a university, live in the halls and like survive ? I get people receive tuition loans, I understand that and sometimes even maintenance loans but I just cant grasp how people have a steady flow of income to support phone bills, groceries and household items, rent, school supplies etc. Of course, all this without the support of families, grants, because that makes it easier.
sorry if what im trying to say is all over the place. I just think the 2/3 months in between going to uni and finishing my exams is not enough to get myself off my feet and survive in such an independant environment.
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#2
(Original post by Anonymous)
this boggles my small brain greatly, mostly because moving out to go study is not super common ( I live in the capital with amazing uni's that are usually only a bus or two away). so for me and most of my social circle, accomadation costs are never a worry , we just live with our families throughout, our costs just extend to tuition, which is covered by gov a lot of the time, school stuff, going out, and transport etc (the basics).
how do people have the money and stability to study in a university, live in the halls and like survive ? I get people receive tuition loans, I understand that and sometimes even maintenance loans but I just cant grasp how people have a steady flow of income to support phone bills, groceries and household items, rent, school supplies etc. Of course, all this without the support of families, grants, because that makes it easier.
sorry if what im trying to say is all over the place. I just think the 2/3 months in between going to uni and finishing my exams is not enough to get myself off my feet and survive in such an independant environment.
this boggles my small brain greatly, mostly because moving out to go study is not super common ( I live in the capital with amazing uni's that are usually only a bus or two away). so for me and most of my social circle, accomadation costs are never a worry , we just live with our families throughout, our costs just extend to tuition, which is covered by gov a lot of the time, school stuff, going out, and transport etc (the basics).
how do people have the money and stability to study in a university, live in the halls and like survive ? I get people receive tuition loans, I understand that and sometimes even maintenance loans but I just cant grasp how people have a steady flow of income to support phone bills, groceries and household items, rent, school supplies etc. Of course, all this without the support of families, grants, because that makes it easier.
sorry if what im trying to say is all over the place. I just think the 2/3 months in between going to uni and finishing my exams is not enough to get myself off my feet and survive in such an independant environment.
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#3
(Original post by kates4745)
Well some people are able to get side jobs but I don't think anyone is able to cover all of the expenses of studying just with that. It's probably a mixture of loans, family support and their own job. At least I haven't heard of anyone doing it all themselves.
Well some people are able to get side jobs but I don't think anyone is able to cover all of the expenses of studying just with that. It's probably a mixture of loans, family support and their own job. At least I haven't heard of anyone doing it all themselves.
It's not fun, it's not easy and lots do drop out but those that stick to it know that they are doing it to get out of low income (often shop jobs) that they could have had just left school ( speaking as someone who comes from a benefits household on a council estate - single mum disabled who never went to college).
Last edited by edakanari; 1 month ago
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#4
The maintenance loan is much larger if you don't like at home about £9000 per year for outside London and about £11000 per year for London, that's enough. The cheapest uni accommodation is about £5000 per year outside London with shared bathroom that leaves you with plenty of money. I don't see what's so boggling about this. A lot of students are entitled to bursaries also.
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#5
Under the current system, parents are expected to contribute financially, because yes for people above a certain income threshold their maintenance loan won't actually cover both accommodation and general living costs. They might have a part-time job, like cycling for Deliveroo or something. When I applied for halls at my uni, all but one of them cost more than my entire maintenance loan.
That's for household income below a certain level - normally it's something like £4600 outside of London and £5800 in.
(Original post by Anonymous)
The maintenance loan is much larger if you don't like at home about £9000 per year for outside London and about £11000 per year for London, that's enough. The cheapest uni accommodation is about £5000 per year outside London with shared bathroom that leaves you with plenty of money. I don't see what's so boggling about this. A lot of students are entitled to bursaries also.
The maintenance loan is much larger if you don't like at home about £9000 per year for outside London and about £11000 per year for London, that's enough. The cheapest uni accommodation is about £5000 per year outside London with shared bathroom that leaves you with plenty of money. I don't see what's so boggling about this. A lot of students are entitled to bursaries also.
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#6
(Original post by Anonymous)
The maintenance loan is much larger if you don't like at home about £9000 per year for outside London and about £11000 per year for London, that's enough. The cheapest uni accommodation is about £5000 per year outside London with shared bathroom that leaves you with plenty of money. I don't see what's so boggling about this. A lot of students are entitled to bursaries also.
The maintenance loan is much larger if you don't like at home about £9000 per year for outside London and about £11000 per year for London, that's enough. The cheapest uni accommodation is about £5000 per year outside London with shared bathroom that leaves you with plenty of money. I don't see what's so boggling about this. A lot of students are entitled to bursaries also.
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#7
(Original post by Anonymous)
The maintenance loan is much larger if you don't like at home about £9000 per year for outside London and about £11000 per year for London, that's enough. The cheapest uni accommodation is about £5000 per year outside London with shared bathroom that leaves you with plenty of money. I don't see what's so boggling about this. A lot of students are entitled to bursaries also.
The maintenance loan is much larger if you don't like at home about £9000 per year for outside London and about £11000 per year for London, that's enough. The cheapest uni accommodation is about £5000 per year outside London with shared bathroom that leaves you with plenty of money. I don't see what's so boggling about this. A lot of students are entitled to bursaries also.
This is basing it on the poorest students who get the full 9,000 but a lot get less based on the parent's income and yes parents who earn a lot should contribute (some get screwed if they are just over the threshold)
Last edited by edakanari; 1 month ago
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#9
(Original post by edakanari)
That's seriously not a lot, for either when you work out if they did not work, add to that travel, possible bills in a shared house plus food and so many other things that people need to live if you can live on £76 a week then good on you (based on you numbers of accommodation of £5000 outside London which = 4000 leftovers divided by 52 = 76 which would barley cover travel costs plus a healthy diet plus no luxuries which yes it technically can be done but it's not a nice existence.
That's seriously not a lot, for either when you work out if they did not work, add to that travel, possible bills in a shared house plus food and so many other things that people need to live if you can live on £76 a week then good on you (based on you numbers of accommodation of £5000 outside London which = 4000 leftovers divided by 52 = 76 which would barley cover travel costs plus a healthy diet plus no luxuries which yes it technically can be done but it's not a nice existence.
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#10
(Original post by Sinnoh)
well... don't go to uni for all 52 weeks of the year. Realistically you're probably there for about 40 weeks at most, if you stay there over the christmas and easter holidays.
well... don't go to uni for all 52 weeks of the year. Realistically you're probably there for about 40 weeks at most, if you stay there over the christmas and easter holidays.
Source - https://www.theguardian.com/money/20...20respectively.
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#11
Debt, loads and loads of debt.
Oh and working a side job. You should see my SLC debt total!

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#12
(Original post by Wick3d)
Debt, loads and loads of debt.
Oh and working a side job. You should see my SLC debt total!
Debt, loads and loads of debt.



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#13
At my uni you can get accom on campus for about 4k p/a or less, which goes down when you move off campus into local houses. Using the first figure I found for median household income, £29600, gives you a maintenance loan of 8.6k. So you have 4.6k to play with which is a fair amount. Personally never had issue with money. Probably varies where accom is more expensive or where parental input doesn't match the expectation.
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#14
(Original post by Anonymous)
this boggles my small brain greatly, mostly because moving out to go study is not super common ( I live in the capital with amazing uni's that are usually only a bus or two away). so for me and most of my social circle, accomadation costs are never a worry , we just live with our families throughout, our costs just extend to tuition, which is covered by gov a lot of the time, school stuff, going out, and transport etc (the basics).
how do people have the money and stability to study in a university, live in the halls and like survive ? I get people receive tuition loans, I understand that and sometimes even maintenance loans but I just cant grasp how people have a steady flow of income to support phone bills, groceries and household items, rent, school supplies etc. Of course, all this without the support of families, grants, because that makes it easier.
sorry if what im trying to say is all over the place. I just think the 2/3 months in between going to uni and finishing my exams is not enough to get myself off my feet and survive in such an independant environment.
this boggles my small brain greatly, mostly because moving out to go study is not super common ( I live in the capital with amazing uni's that are usually only a bus or two away). so for me and most of my social circle, accomadation costs are never a worry , we just live with our families throughout, our costs just extend to tuition, which is covered by gov a lot of the time, school stuff, going out, and transport etc (the basics).
how do people have the money and stability to study in a university, live in the halls and like survive ? I get people receive tuition loans, I understand that and sometimes even maintenance loans but I just cant grasp how people have a steady flow of income to support phone bills, groceries and household items, rent, school supplies etc. Of course, all this without the support of families, grants, because that makes it easier.
sorry if what im trying to say is all over the place. I just think the 2/3 months in between going to uni and finishing my exams is not enough to get myself off my feet and survive in such an independant environment.
Unless they are very rich, everyone will take out the maintenance loan.
Most people do get parental money. The average amount varies depending on which study you look at, but its normally >£1000 per year. The government does epxect parents to do this - that is obviously implied by the maintenance loan amount being linked to parental income. That's not everyone, but it is the majority.
You might, if you re sensible, go into uni with your own savings too.
Then you've got interest-free student overdrafts, which help.
And finally, people do get jobs. Sometimes you can get paid for clinical trials too, if you life in the right city (Oxford and London mainly).
Last edited by medds; 1 month ago
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#15
(Original post by Anonymous)
This depends - the min maintenance loan is like 4.2k outside of London living at home, far from 9k
This depends - the min maintenance loan is like 4.2k outside of London living at home, far from 9k
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#16
(Original post by edakanari)
That's seriously not a lot, for either when you work out if they did not work, add to that travel, possible bills in a shared house plus food and so many other things that people need to live if you can live on £76 a week then good on you (based on you numbers of accommodation of £5000 outside London which = 4000 leftovers divided by 52 = 76 which would barley cover travel costs plus a healthy diet plus no luxuries which yes it technically can be done but it's not a nice existence.
This is basing it on the poorest students who get the full 9,000 but a lot get less based on the parent's income and yes parents who earn a lot should contribute (some get screwed if they are just over the threshold)
That's seriously not a lot, for either when you work out if they did not work, add to that travel, possible bills in a shared house plus food and so many other things that people need to live if you can live on £76 a week then good on you (based on you numbers of accommodation of £5000 outside London which = 4000 leftovers divided by 52 = 76 which would barley cover travel costs plus a healthy diet plus no luxuries which yes it technically can be done but it's not a nice existence.
This is basing it on the poorest students who get the full 9,000 but a lot get less based on the parent's income and yes parents who earn a lot should contribute (some get screwed if they are just over the threshold)
Last edited by _gcx; 1 month ago
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#17
(Original post by edakanari)
That's seriously not a lot, for either when you work out if they did not work, add to that travel, possible bills in a shared house plus food and so many other things that people need to live if you can live on £76 a week then good on you (based on you numbers of accommodation of £5000 outside London which = 4000 leftovers divided by 52 = 76 which would barley cover travel costs plus a healthy diet plus no luxuries which yes it technically can be done but it's not a nice existence.
This is basing it on the poorest students who get the full 9,000 but a lot get less based on the parent's income and yes parents who earn a lot should contribute (some get screwed if they are just over the threshold)
That's seriously not a lot, for either when you work out if they did not work, add to that travel, possible bills in a shared house plus food and so many other things that people need to live if you can live on £76 a week then good on you (based on you numbers of accommodation of £5000 outside London which = 4000 leftovers divided by 52 = 76 which would barley cover travel costs plus a healthy diet plus no luxuries which yes it technically can be done but it's not a nice existence.
This is basing it on the poorest students who get the full 9,000 but a lot get less based on the parent's income and yes parents who earn a lot should contribute (some get screwed if they are just over the threshold)
Even in London that should be absolutely fine.
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#18
(Original post by _gcx)
At my uni you can get accom on campus for about 4k p/a or less, which goes down when you move off campus into local houses. Using the first figure I found for median household income, £29600, gives you a maintenance loan of 8.6k. So you have 4.6k to play with which is a fair amount. Personally never had issue with money. Probably varies where accom is more expensive or where parental input doesn't match the expectation.
At my uni you can get accom on campus for about 4k p/a or less, which goes down when you move off campus into local houses. Using the first figure I found for median household income, £29600, gives you a maintenance loan of 8.6k. So you have 4.6k to play with which is a fair amount. Personally never had issue with money. Probably varies where accom is more expensive or where parental input doesn't match the expectation.
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#19
(Original post by Anonymous)
If you are living at home 4.2k is plenty food is like £120-150 per month and transport is not too expensive, you can cycle in. I don't see the problem I really don't, rent by far is the greatest expense. If you want an ensuite bathroom it will cost you easily £7000 per academic year.
If you are living at home 4.2k is plenty food is like £120-150 per month and transport is not too expensive, you can cycle in. I don't see the problem I really don't, rent by far is the greatest expense. If you want an ensuite bathroom it will cost you easily £7000 per academic year.
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#20
(Original post by Anonymous)
this boggles my small brain greatly, mostly because moving out to go study is not super common ( I live in the capital with amazing uni's that are usually only a bus or two away). so for me and most of my social circle, accomadation costs are never a worry , we just live with our families throughout, our costs just extend to tuition, which is covered by gov a lot of the time, school stuff, going out, and transport etc (the basics).
how do people have the money and stability to study in a university, live in the halls and like survive ? I get people receive tuition loans, I understand that and sometimes even maintenance loans but I just cant grasp how people have a steady flow of income to support phone bills, groceries and household items, rent, school supplies etc. Of course, all this without the support of families, grants, because that makes it easier.
sorry if what im trying to say is all over the place. I just think the 2/3 months in between going to uni and finishing my exams is not enough to get myself off my feet and survive in such an independant environment.
this boggles my small brain greatly, mostly because moving out to go study is not super common ( I live in the capital with amazing uni's that are usually only a bus or two away). so for me and most of my social circle, accomadation costs are never a worry , we just live with our families throughout, our costs just extend to tuition, which is covered by gov a lot of the time, school stuff, going out, and transport etc (the basics).
how do people have the money and stability to study in a university, live in the halls and like survive ? I get people receive tuition loans, I understand that and sometimes even maintenance loans but I just cant grasp how people have a steady flow of income to support phone bills, groceries and household items, rent, school supplies etc. Of course, all this without the support of families, grants, because that makes it easier.
sorry if what im trying to say is all over the place. I just think the 2/3 months in between going to uni and finishing my exams is not enough to get myself off my feet and survive in such an independant environment.
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