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Original poster

University costs

33 replies

WJoa · 19/08/2019 07:47

My dd starts university in September and we’re trying to work out how much money we will need to give her to live on. Her loan doesn’t cover accommodation fees so we will have to add approx £1500 a year towards that ourselves. How much will we need to give her for weekly expenses, food, toiletries, stationary, going out but luckily she’s not a drinker (not yet anyway!) etc. Hoping somebody that has gone through this recently can help please. Her course will be full time so cannot see that she will have time to get a job. It’s all feeling rather daunting!

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SeroxatBlonde · 19/08/2019 07:50

We're paying ds's rent and then he will have his maintenance loan to live off (just over 4k) that's what most of my friends seem to do with their kids.

Original poster
WJoa · 19/08/2019 08:20

So that would mean they’d have approx £100 a week to spend on all that they will need.

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Original poster
WJoa · 19/08/2019 08:22

Her accommodation will be around £6,000 a year and I think we would have to pay that over three separate terms but not yet had all the information through about it yet.

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SeroxatBlonde · 19/08/2019 08:23

Yes, and it's been made clear that everything comes out of that and IF there's anything left then that is to be saved to go towards second year accommodation which will be even more rent (gulp)

If he manages to get a job then we will reassess things as he will be expected to contribute.

SeroxatBlonde · 19/08/2019 08:24

We haven't either, I think we hear about accommodation today, praying he gets the cheaper option!

UrsulaPandress · 19/08/2019 08:26

There is a long running thread on one of the education boards on here with people whose children start this year. There is also a fb group - What I Wish I Knew at University that has lots of useful advice.

My DD had £110 per week with her loan. We paid her accommodation.

She frequently overspent.

Elisheva · 19/08/2019 08:30

When you say her course is full time what does that mean? Some ‘full time’ courses only have 12-15 hours of lectures a week so perfectly manageable to have a job too.

Original poster
WJoa · 19/08/2019 08:37

It’s a full day every day so will need the weekend and evenings to study I would have thought? All new to us!

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Original poster
WJoa · 19/08/2019 08:38

Thank you, will have a look at those 😀

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Ligresa · 19/08/2019 08:38

Mine is getting 75 a week to live on. She's in Swansea which is fairly cheap. She has saved about 1.5 from working this summer.

Original poster
WJoa · 19/08/2019 08:38

Hope you get the accommodation you want! Thank you for your replies 😀

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Ligresa · 19/08/2019 08:40

I had to leave that Facebook group due to the overwhelming amount of mums wringing their hands about their poor sons having to fend for themselves. So annoying.

EleanorReally · 19/08/2019 08:42

I didnt notice that Ligresa, just scroll on.

cookingonwine · 19/08/2019 08:43

My parents didn't give me a penny for university so I am confused why I am expected to top up? Child benefit stops so I can only guess they are classed as adults and they need to work to fund the lifestyle they want? - I know I am harsh but seriously... I managed to get my degree and work.

Original poster
WJoa · 19/08/2019 08:44

Oh dear, it’s what it’s all about, becoming independent. We have tried to teach her to do things over the years to help prepare her for this but it is still a worry but a lot less worry if they’re are a little but prepared! She has sorted out spreadsheets for finances and everything, much more organised than we are 😂😂

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SeroxatBlonde · 19/08/2019 08:49

My parents didn't give me a penny for university so I am confused why I am expected to top up?

And you're perfectly within your rights to do that but maintenance loans don't cover the halls these days unless you are very lucky and it is dependent on household income.

LoopyLu2019 · 19/08/2019 08:50

Depends on the course, STEM courses make jobs difficult due to contact hours but a full time humanities course is very light in contact hours so can be flexible for a part time job. Otherwise she should look into internships over the summer. My parents gave me 1000 per term + i had minimum maintenance loan + internship money (worked my gap year). This was for 2015-2018. I was in the cheapest uni accommodation, didn't drink much, cooked my own food and I would say it still came out as £100 per week after rent including running a car (a total essential to things I did outside of uni). I could have budgeted much tighter and got it down as low as £50 and still had a good time at uni but the 100 meant I was never worrying about money and could cover new textbooks etc when I needed.

Soontobe60 · 19/08/2019 08:57

My DD got the minimum maintenance loan and she used this to pay her accommodation, topped up by us (about 1.5k a year). We then set up a standing order of £200 a month for her to live on. She had a bike to get to college, we paid her phone contract. She'd come home every few weeks and empty our cupboards of food! She knew if she needed any more money she would have to get a job, which she did.
I'd recommend doing it this way rather than you paying her accommodation and she having all her loan to live on as the tendency is then to blow it all in the first few weeks 🤣🤣

ShanghaiDiva · 19/08/2019 08:57

Ds started last year and we paid his accommodation and gave him initially 500 per month, but this later dropped to around 350/300 as he didn't need that much. He was in self catering accommodation and is a proficient cook so made all his own meals and he doesn't drink
You may want to give a higher amount for the first couple of months to cover one off payments like annual gym membership of other club subscriptions or any course books that are required.

BibbleBrain · 19/08/2019 09:14

My university banned us from having term time jobs. It did have generous hardship loans. Worth looking into those if things are tight.

I worked all my holidays and it was fine. I could do the expensive social stuff associated with that institution. I do know my slightly more well off friends with middle income parents were much more screwed than I was being dirt poor as I was so I have every sympathy.

Good luck and hope she loves it when she gets there!

Original poster
WJoa · 19/08/2019 09:15

Thank you everyone, it’s been helpful. Good luck to all those of you who have students going off to University this September. My DD will be off to Bristol so exciting times ahead for her if a little bit daunting!

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ErrolTheDragon · 19/08/2019 09:19

My DDs course is high contact hours and lots of independent work, no way could she take a job in term. But she's doing paid summer internships. However, there aren't always many wanting first years so it can be worth looking for those quite early - maybe starting in the second half of the autumn term.

Hercules12 · 19/08/2019 09:22

Ds had about 1500 saved up from a summer job which helped. We paid his rent, about 500 a month, gym membership, phone and books. He got the minimum loan.
He never got an overdraft, worked each summer and ended up with some money left over at the end.

BuggerOffAndGoodDayToYou · 19/08/2019 09:23

We paid the difference between the maintenance loan (she got minimum) and rent and then gave her a monthly allowance .. in her final year she got £300 a month. We stop the money during holidays when she was at home anyway and that is when she dies agency work. Remember that although they are studying full time they no longer get free prescriptions, dental or eye tests unless parents have a very low income.

She is off to do a masters next and we are basically paying her rent .. which is the highest it’s ever been as she can’t get post grad halls as priority is given to post grads from overseas with any left over not offered until the week before her course starts (🤯). She will get a loan which will cover fees and some living costs and hopefully pick up some work as well. If she struggles we will give her a bit more money.

Hercules12 · 19/08/2019 09:25

We also bought him a bike which helped cut down on travel costs- 2nd hand from a uni cycle shop.