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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

AIBU to say that a student loan can be enough to survive on at uni without having to get a job?

186 replies

Mickeyx0x0 · 08/01/2022 23:10

My son is in second year of uni. Due to a drop in our income due to pandemic, he has received full student loan last year and this year. If he had not got full loan, we would otherwise have made it up to the same amount with our parental contribution.

He has found the amount he has been awarded more than enough to live on, without needing to get a part time job. Perhaps it is the area his uni is in (Loughborough where costs are cheaper than some places). Maybe my son is more frugal than the average student (quite possibly; not sure about this one). I am just curious as to whether other people find that their student DC is can manage on their student loan without needing to work as well?

OP posts:
WorraLiberty · 08/01/2022 23:12

As you said yourself, it's probably area dependant but my DS is in Central London and it's very expensive.

Having said that, he's been working since he was 14 anyway and enjoys it.

Frazzled50yrold · 08/01/2022 23:15

My son's loan doesn't even cover his halls rental so definitely not. He works every weekend to buy his food and some basic living costs.

elelel · 08/01/2022 23:16

I'm in Scotland and the full loan + bursary barely covers accommodation, mine live at home for that very reason. There is no way they could survive on the loan.

user1471504747 · 08/01/2022 23:17

A lot of students won’t get the full student loan though, and therefore will have to work part time if they’re parents are unable or unwilling to support them.

You’re right that in theory the full student loan should be enough to live off, but this is area dependent and also depends on if the student goes home out of term time and what their costs are there, if any.

DD works as she gets the minimum loan amount which doesn’t cover her rent, and unfortunately we’re unable to help more than a big grocery shop at the start of each term.

Savoretti · 08/01/2022 23:18

As PP have said I think it’s dependant on the accommodation. The costs vary significantly and you don’t always have a choice

Redlocks28 · 08/01/2022 23:19

It depends massively on whether they qualify for the full student loan or not. Mine gets just over £4200 in loans and halls of residence (no food) are £5500.

darkNlovely · 08/01/2022 23:19

Nope. I'm in London and get the max, about £12k, plus £2.5k grants

I can only afford to live because I saved up almost £20k living at home beforehand.

Even outside of London, I don't think you can

jocktamsonsbairn · 08/01/2022 23:21

@elelel

I'm in Scotland and the full loan + bursary barely covers accommodation, mine live at home for that very reason. There is no way they could survive on the loan.
Same here! Dds loan covers the bulk of her accommodation but I have to make up the rest.
user313213521 · 08/01/2022 23:21

Regardless of what he can afford to do, I would strongly advise your DS to take on some sort of paid work alongside his studies.

I've done graduate recruitment, and I always find myself feeling deeply unimpressed by people with a string of qualifications and no actual work experience. To be blunt, I would prefer they'd learned basic workplace expectations, like turning up on time - and how to graft - before I'm line managing them.

Comefromaway · 08/01/2022 23:23

I think it is in most areas, the main exceptions being Bristol & some universities in London.

Due to SEN it’s doubtful Ds will be able to work alongside studying so he will have to live off the loan. (We will top up to the maximum amount).

Ottercave · 08/01/2022 23:25

The 3 of mine that have been/are at university have all received the maximum loan amount and it’s been enough for their accommodation and to live off.
They have all come home for the holidays and worked to get a some extra money but they haven’t needed to work.

AvocadoPlant · 08/01/2022 23:25

Nope, the loan DD gets doesn’t even cover the cost of her self catered student halls.

The system would be much fairer if all students could apply for what they needed up to the maximum, rather than parents having to pick up the slack
DD would need to earn around £500 pcm to bring her up to the max loan that your son gets.

Snozzlemaid · 08/01/2022 23:25

My dd doesn't get the full loan and has enough without the need for working or for us having to give her any money.
She saved quite a bit last year as she was at home for so long and got a refund on her halls rent. So that's helped this year as living costs are more now she's not in halls.

elelel · 08/01/2022 23:26

@user313213521

Regardless of what he can afford to do, I would strongly advise your DS to take on some sort of paid work alongside his studies.

I've done graduate recruitment, and I always find myself feeling deeply unimpressed by people with a string of qualifications and no actual work experience. To be blunt, I would prefer they'd learned basic workplace expectations, like turning up on time - and how to graft - before I'm line managing them.

I think this is individual. There is no way DS could manage a job on top of his university workload, actually he probably could but he wouldn't do so well at his course which is the most important factor right now.

titchy · 08/01/2022 23:27

The full loan should be enough - all unis have cheaper accommodation options (these have less demand than the expensive halls!) with the possible exception of Durham which can allocate to very expensive halls.

SickAndTiredAgain · 08/01/2022 23:29

I couldn’t have survived on just my student loan. I got the minimum amount and no additional help from my parents so needed to work.
Almost everyone I know had help from their parents so presumably would have needed to work like I did if they hadn’t had that help.

Original poster
Mickeyx0x0 · 08/01/2022 23:29

My son's self catering hall costs £4278 for this academic year (about £109 per week). His full student loan is £9706, so he seems to be fine to live on the amount he is getting.

OP posts:
MsAgnesDiPesto · 08/01/2022 23:29

@user313213521

Regardless of what he can afford to do, I would strongly advise your DS to take on some sort of paid work alongside his studies.

I've done graduate recruitment, and I always find myself feeling deeply unimpressed by people with a string of qualifications and no actual work experience. To be blunt, I would prefer they'd learned basic workplace expectations, like turning up on time - and how to graft - before I'm line managing them.

Agree strongly with this. Recent experience with graduate apprentices shows me that ideas of how to behave in a work environment, what the basic expectations are with regard to timekeeping, initiative and common sense are NOT innate and need to be learned.

I’d much rather take someone who has worked, even in retail or hospitality alongside their degree studies, so I know I don’t have to ‘finish’ them myself.

ElephantOfRisk · 08/01/2022 23:31

Also Scotland. My DC get £4750 per year regardless of whether they live at home or away. It's enough (and probably more than enough) for DS1 who lives at home, especially since he's had virtually no face to face for nearly two years so no travel costs. We feed and house him so he has no real costs. For DS2 who lives away, his loan would hardly cover his housing costs so he needs subsidised so he can feed himself and travel and have a life.

Neverforgetwhothisisfor · 08/01/2022 23:32

Cambridge Uni students aren’t allowed to work during term time, so they have to find a way to manage on their student loans.

Comefromaway · 08/01/2022 23:32

@titchy

The full loan should be enough - all unis have cheaper accommodation options (these have less demand than the expensive halls!) with the possible exception of Durham which can allocate to very expensive halls.
Yes Durham is the other one that can be a problem as well as Bristol.
JustLyra · 08/01/2022 23:37

It totally depends where you are and the accommodation costs.

Where DS is the full loan would cover the accommodation and leave a just manageable amount.

Where my two DD’s go it wouldn’t be enough, even though they’re not in London. They go to Uni in the same city and share a big-ish one bed flat and that allows them to work part time instead of trying to juggle full hours and full courses. That’s been a life saver when so many jobs traditionally done by students in/near their city (bars, restaurants, touristy things) have been virtually non existent since they went to uni because of covid.

Kite22 · 08/01/2022 23:40

Yes. Separately, all 3 of my dc have commented at different times (all at different Universities) that the people who get the full loan are quids in.

As already noted, of course it will depend where you go to University. It will then depend on the accommodation you apply for (and if you get your chosen accommodation). It will depend on the student's budgeting skills; mainly on their willingness / desire to stay within budget; on their expectations of life - if generally, they have grown up living within a budget.
However, yes, a full loan is easily enough for the overwhelming majority of students to live on even though this thread will attract a lot of the 'exceptions' to prove the rule.

Gmcg123 · 08/01/2022 23:42

In NI the max student loan is just over 6k so I think most would struggle living on that much in the Uk, unless they go to a very cheap city.

Wonderfulstuff · 08/01/2022 23:42

The whole system is ridiculous and I’m glad I protested against it when I was a student even though it sadly didn’t get anywhere.

Starting off £30k in debt is not a great start for anyone.