Student loans not rising to manage rents increasing

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What are families supposed to do?

£400 rent shortfall this term when we’re already having to pay £300 a month so he can eat. It’s a grotty tiny terraced shit heap with mold up the walls. The loans don’t cover living expenses, now they’re not covering rent.

We have 2 other children. What do they expect families to do?

I will never understand why MN seems to be so obsessed with Russell Group. In the real world, no one cares. It’s the degree subject (for some things) / classification (for some things) that matters.

(And I went to a Russell Group university, before anyone accuses me of sour grapes)

While there are some very good universities that aren't Russell Group, most if the good ones are in it and it makes a difference to some employers.

Only employers I am aware still care are some of the more up-themselves law firms and consultancies. I don’t even think the Big 4 care particularly these days.

The reality is that despite the whole ‘everyone’ can go to University now theory, they really cannot. It’s a luxury for most, you need to be earning a decent wage and have ‘spare’ every month to be able to support youngsters through Uni.

Salary differential averages over £100k once loan repayments taken into account. Obvs some non-grads will earn more, and some grads less, but for the majority it's a sound financial investment.

https://ifs.org.uk/publications/impact-undergraduate-degrees-lifetime-earnings

Very subject dependent, though

I had to work 12 hours a day on Saturdays and Sundays as a mature student, with uni and placement In the week. More in the Christmas and summer holidays. It sucks but it’s not forever and you just have to save yourself because the government won’t.

By a lot. Also no free student NHS dentists.
Its SO expensive.

Very subject dependent, though

Well yeah obvs. If you do a nursing or teaching degree your salary will be lower than the average grad salary (which is outrageous), but if as a non-grad you choose shelfstacking over long distance lorry driving again you'll earn less.

I don't think that detracts from the point though - on average it's financially worthwhile getting a degree.

Then give or take 3 to 4 yrs they don't care anyway cos kts all about your years of experience and well past 20yrs does anyone really get to the bottom of cv and read the education section lol

DD in student hall. Her rent is £13k/year. Her loan is £9k/year. Ridiculous!

The system is frightening. I'm gearing up to speak to DC about them thinking about commuting from home for Uni as there's a pretty decent choice around our way for higher ed. Living away from home feels completely unsustainable now for students, both students and parents are struggling so hard. How are the students supposed to cope with studies when money worries are hanging over them like this?

Following to come back to this later.

Mature students with families have been properly shafted. Universal Credit treats student loans as income and reduces payments where tax credits didn't. They are loads worse off for trying to improve their situation and just this week I have seen examples of sofa surfing and needing a food bank referral. It's awful and urgently needs reviewing.

Neither would it be fair for mature students to not have to take a loan and just live off their Uc when younger students are saddled with a lifetime of debt. My 18 year old dd has Uni friends whose parents can't afford to top up their student loans at all and they are living in poverty and unable to afford rent. they can't claim UC.

Tell them welcome to life. This is what life is. Whether is professional qualifications to study for later down the line or other things they need to learn how to cope.

And what I don’t understand is why PIP and UC are calculated with no recognition of parental income but student loans are. So he’d be old enough to be allocated PIP and UC independently but not his student loans. He could even be living at home to get PIP and UC and not have parental
lmcome involved. However apparently he can move 4 hours away at the same age with an intensive course hugely impacting his ability to work and have his living income wholly calculated on parental income.

Also the same people on PIP and UC quite rightly have had cost of living payments( even if they’re not paying rent) but students have had no recognition of the of cost of living crisis at all.

Another huge unfairness is how people can be property very rich and their kids get higher loans. Then there are the kids with divorced parents basing their loans on the lower income parent even though the other parent is very wealthy…

It’s ludicrous and another example of incredibly bad management by the current government. Like everything they know all this but do nothing.

There is a reason why the loan can’t be more and that’s because so many are never in a position to repay all of it, so it becomes the tax payers burden then. That’s why student loans are means tested on parents income now, because a lot of loans are never repaid. Not saying it’s right by the way. Also parents need to know they are expected to contribute, as many have no idea until the year they go.

My son doesn’t work in term time as he plays a lot of sports and runs the teams etc but he earned 5k in the summer last year by working full time

61% will be paid back. So cost of living crisis is taken into account for benefits that won’t be paid back at all when many won’t even be paying rent but not students who will pay back the majority of their loans.

Above everything it’s recognising the intolerable pressures and living circumstances we’re loading on students and their families which they do recognise in other sectors( elderly too) . It’s like they’re sticking their fingers in their ears and going la la la.

OP dc is the same, intensive course often 9-6 lectures, so have really struggled for money as he can’t find a job that fits around lectures. Then the amount of work to do on top is huge. Wish I had an answer. Worst comes to the worst and he’ll have to commute next year.

My son’s uni is 5 hours away. Students only being able to attend local unis will increase the north/south divide and inequality as the better unis which get the better jobs will only be open to those that can afford to live near them.

But I guess that suits this government.

There are plenty of good universities in the North, so not sure you’re right about the North / South divide.

I know youngsters who have had to take a Gap year before starting Uni in order to save for their uni costs. Maybe this is going to become more common.

My DS that will be going to uni is going to try and get in at the local one and commute in. It's the only way for us.

If he can get a job in McDonald's he can transfer between his uni store and one closer to home 😊