Moving out from parents home to uni

Hi everyone,

I’m 17, and currently in my last year of college. I’ve been struggling with strict parents who are really affecting my mental health and controlling my life. I’ve had enough, and I want to start living on my own when I start uni. I’m looking for uni accommodation where I can stay and live alone, but I’m worried about how I’ll manage financially. My family won’t support me, and I’m not currently working. I want to move out and get uni accommodation, but I’m unsure how to handle all the costs of living alone, like rent and utilities.

I’d really appreciate any advice from those who have been in a similar situation. How did you manage financially while living in uni accommodation? Is there any support available for students like me who don’t have family support? I’m also trying to find a job to help cover the costs, but I’m unsure how to balance everything.

Reply 1

UCLan Student

Official Rep

Original post by ayaah_xo

Hi everyone,
I’m 17, and currently in my last year of college. I’ve been struggling with strict parents who are really affecting my mental health and controlling my life. I’ve had enough, and I want to start living on my own when I start uni. I’m looking for uni accommodation where I can stay and live alone, but I’m worried about how I’ll manage financially. My family won’t support me, and I’m not currently working. I want to move out and get uni accommodation, but I’m unsure how to handle all the costs of living alone, like rent and utilities.
I’d really appreciate any advice from those who have been in a similar situation. How did you manage financially while living in uni accommodation? Is there any support available for students like me who don’t have family support? I’m also trying to find a job to help cover the costs, but I’m unsure how to balance everything.

Hi there, sorry to hear this this. I understand what it's like having strict parents and how that can affect you. When I moved to university, I didn't have a job during first year as I wanted to focus on my studies with it being the first time experiencing uni and living alone. This was just after covid so there were many restrictions so I spent less. However, during second year I got a part time job in a restaurant to get me throughout the rest of my time at uni. I did a creative course, so there was some extra costs so it also depends on your course and if you will need to buy anything extra for it.

Having a part time job whilst studying is a great way to manage your time and develop managing skills. Most universities do part time roles too such as student ambassador or content creator, which are great and work around your university timetable. Universities also have student support teams with some offering bursaries for those in a low income households.

I wouldn't worry too much about the financial side of moving out or managing a part time job, as you will develop your time managing skills, learn how to budget and grow more independent. It might be worth contacting the uni you are interested in and asking if they offer any financial bursaries and do your research. Best of luck, you've got this!

Hope this helps 🙂
^Zac

(edited 2 months ago)

Reply 2

jonathanemptage

I haven’t been in that situation but utilities are usually covered in your rent at least in student accommodation. My halls included:

100MB internet in each study bedroom.

24 hour residents support team.

A common room with pool and table tennis and the like

All utilities included

Cleaning of communal areas (I mean do trash the place and you need to do your own dishes and put them away).

And finally personal contents insurance

You’re probably thinking “that’s great but how much is it?” It depends on the hall in question but it’s between £121.45 - £159.45 per week not bad when you consider everything included and how close to the university and town centre it was.

A job is very worth while if you cant get a part time one now don't panic too much you might be able to get one during the summer (lots of students do) make sure your job pays over minimum wage and never ever ever work when you have class you are there to get a degree not to work in some shop for the rest of your life.

(edited 2 months ago)

Reply 3

Chester Student

Official Rep

Original post by ayaah_xo

Hi everyone,
I’m 17, and currently in my last year of college. I’ve been struggling with strict parents who are really affecting my mental health and controlling my life. I’ve had enough, and I want to start living on my own when I start uni. I’m looking for uni accommodation where I can stay and live alone, but I’m worried about how I’ll manage financially. My family won’t support me, and I’m not currently working. I want to move out and get uni accommodation, but I’m unsure how to handle all the costs of living alone, like rent and utilities.
I’d really appreciate any advice from those who have been in a similar situation. How did you manage financially while living in uni accommodation? Is there any support available for students like me who don’t have family support? I’m also trying to find a job to help cover the costs, but I’m unsure how to balance everything.

Hi there,

I'm sorry to hear about your situation.

I think a good place to start would be to get rough estimates of how much student finance you would be eligible for. You can do this by looking at GOV.UK, which provide estimates. From this, you can work out accommodation costs for the places you are interested in living, and find out how much you would need to have. Make sure to consider living costs, such as a rough weekly shop (typically around £25-30, and other essential things), course costs, and anything else you'd be paying for.

I'd definitely recommend searching and applying for bursaries, scholarships, and any additional funding you can find. Even if you don't think you are eligible for it, make sure to check. Contacting the universities you are interested in to find out if they provide any funding is a great idea too.

While working part-time at university is doable, it can be tough. Working during the summer is an alternative idea, which can help to save you money to last you for that academic year. Is this doable for you? If not, I'd recommend looking into jobs that the university may offer, like becoming a student ambassador. They are great roles that usually pay well and allow for flexibility around your studies, which is important.

Planning is essential, and it is so great that you're already thinking ahead for these things!

Best of luck,

Isabella
Fourth-Year Geography (With a Year Abroad)

Reply 4

Kingston Eve

Official Rep

Original post by ayaah_xo

Hi everyone,
I’m 17, and currently in my last year of college. I’ve been struggling with strict parents who are really affecting my mental health and controlling my life. I’ve had enough, and I want to start living on my own when I start uni. I’m looking for uni accommodation where I can stay and live alone, but I’m worried about how I’ll manage financially. My family won’t support me, and I’m not currently working. I want to move out and get uni accommodation, but I’m unsure how to handle all the costs of living alone, like rent and utilities.
I’d really appreciate any advice from those who have been in a similar situation. How did you manage financially while living in uni accommodation? Is there any support available for students like me who don’t have family support? I’m also trying to find a job to help cover the costs, but I’m unsure how to balance everything.

Hey @ayaah_xo,

First off, I'm incredibly sorry to hear about your situation. Although moving out without financial support from your family can seem daunting, there is support available - if possible, I'd recommend getting into contact with Student Finance to explain your predicament and see what maintenance loan options are available for you. Your maintenance loan will likely be your primary source of funding, so it's important to have a rough idea of how much you might be granted before deciding on accommodation options.

Your university may also offer some form of financial assistance. Reach out to the bursary/scholarship team to get an idea of how to/when you can apply to any available awards.

Getting a part-time job at university is a great idea as well. Although balancing the two might appear challenging at first, the flexible scheduling of university timetables usually means it's possible for students to work 10-16 hours a week without significant impact on their studies or social life (especially if students choose to work on the weekend). As mentioned above, on-campus or student ambassador work is also ideal if you're looking for flexible part-time work. 🙂

Hope this was helpful and best of luck,
Eve (Kingston Rep).

Reply 5

hallamstudents

Official Rep

Original post by ayaah_xo

Hi everyone,
I’m 17, and currently in my last year of college. I’ve been struggling with strict parents who are really affecting my mental health and controlling my life. I’ve had enough, and I want to start living on my own when I start uni. I’m looking for uni accommodation where I can stay and live alone, but I’m worried about how I’ll manage financially. My family won’t support me, and I’m not currently working. I want to move out and get uni accommodation, but I’m unsure how to handle all the costs of living alone, like rent and utilities.
I’d really appreciate any advice from those who have been in a similar situation. How did you manage financially while living in uni accommodation? Is there any support available for students like me who don’t have family support? I’m also trying to find a job to help cover the costs, but I’m unsure how to balance everything.

Hi there,

I'm sorry to hear about your situation, it must be tough. I can understand why you are thinking about moving out for uni and will still be possible, even without help from family.

Have a look what loan you think you would get. This would still go off household income, even if they don't help you out at all, so have a look here and you should be able to work it out: https://www.gov.uk/student-finance-calculator

I would then also start thinking about universities and where you will get good accommodation. I know the main priority is the uni that you like and the course, but some places have a cheaper cost of living than others so you may want to bare this in mind too.

You could also get a part time job while at uni and lots of people do this. You could look into campus jobs and see if there are any that you like the sound of, and these are usually quite flexible too which is helpful around your studies.

I hope some of this helps,

Lucy -SHU student ambassador.