DD going to uni - we don't qualify for anything but the minimum loan - what does everyone else do in this situation?

[UTR]

This is a question specifically about/ for people who do not qualify for the maximum living cost loan and/or any means-tested grants/bursaries/ benefits etc.

Our first DC is (grades permitting) going to uni this autumn.

She will take the same, non-means-tested, £9k tuition fee loan that everyone is entitled to, to pay her £9k tuition fees every year.

In addition, she will be able to borrow the minimum living cost loan (65% of £5500 which is:) £3500.

Her accommodation alone - non-catered - is £5800.

On top of this, she will need money for food and toiletries, stationery, travel, going out etc.

She is doing a very heavy-weight course with lectures pretty much 9.00 to 5.00 and lots of work, so a part-time job during term-time is not advised.

She can and will work when she comes back home during her holidays and whilst this will help a bit, I think that it is unlikely to make a hugely significant contribution.

I have heard that people in our situation (who don't qualify for the full living cost loan or any means-tested bursaries/ grants etc) let their kids take the £3500 living cost loan for food toiletries etc (ie living costs) and that they pay the accommodation costs of hall in the first year (£5800 pa) and rent in a shared student house (hopefully quite a bit cheaper) in the second and subsequent years.

Has anyone got any thoughts or advice?

And when she's at home, we pay all the bills including fuel in my car which she uses. She buys very few new clothes, but doesn't seem to mind ..her friends are all in the same boat and she's having a whale of a time both at uni and when she comes home and socialises with old schoolmates.

She's working hard and getting good grades too, so don't worry, it is all do-able!

Thirdhil - the house is tidied when she's in uni, and I think our food costs are a bit less, but we have another dd at home too. I don't think utility bills are much lower though.

The thing is, she's home a lot more than I'd anticipated - a month at Christmas, 3 weeks at Easter, and some weekends (lots of her friends go home), so, no, it hasn't made a big dent on how much else we spend.

Gah, phone... Last answer was to utr.

House is tidier when she is away!

OP, could you get a lodger during term time. There is a "rent a room" scheme where you can earn a certain amount tax free from a lodger, might be worth a look. Perhaps you could get a student for a local University who only wants term time.

Alovelycuppa Thank you - I guessed your post was for me! I know from friends' children that they are back home a lot. I think that most unis officially have 30 weeks a year of "term time" - which means that they are home for 22 weeks out of 52.

inmysparetime Thanks - I have had thoughts about this.

Ultimately, we can "afford" to pay these accommodation fees (not without effort and sacrifice, but I guess that's the case for most) I just wondered what other people do and how they organise themselves.

It's a bit intrusive to ask friends about their money situation - I have a sense that some grandparents are helping in a couple of situations and people are understandably sensitive about discussing the specifics of their personal financial situation.

ds is in his third year he does get some grant on top of his loan but it's not enough to cover costs. He's working to help cover his food/social and we're topping up. Thankfully his accommodation costs are a lot less that £5k.

We are in the same position with two at uni atm. We pay accommodation and then they pay for everything else out of the maintenance loan. They seem to budget very well and my DS knows the normal price of everything he buys in the supermarket. He has had quite a lot of money left over at the end of term so far.

I think if people struggle to afford the accommodation fees, then the student needs to work to pay for it...during the holidays if term-time work isn't possible.

The catering industry seems to be booming and there doesn't seem to be a shortage of waiting and bar work if young people are persistent enough.

Of course, if the bank of mum and dad keep shelling out, they don't have much incentive (this is my dc I'm talking about, but they seem to be typical!).

We will find it tougher next year because dd2 is likely to go to a private sixth form..our choice of course, but the state sector locally won't meet her needs.

I'll need that student cookbook myself!

I don't think it makes much sense to talk about the savings we make when a dc is at university. The main cost for the child at university is their accomodation (we are looking at about £145 a week, self catering), and there is going to be no reduction in the parents' accomodation costs when the child is not at home - we will still be paying a big mortgage regardless of whether ds1 is using his room or not. There may be some small savings on the utility bills and food bills, and those savings will be put into the bank towards the following years maintenance costs.

As someone else said, the only way to recoup money is to rent out their room.

If you live in a university town, there is a website where you can swap your student for someone else's.

Lovely as she is, I was glad when our eldest dd left and didn't want to replace her with another who stays in bed all morning then bangs around at night when I need to get up for work the next day!

goingmad, room is about £2500 - 4000 for term time, choice of en suite/not and non catered, but yes for all of the course. £6200 less £3200 [top end without en suite] makes £3000 or £100 a week for food and en suite, would you really be hungrier and grubbier sharing a bathroom and feeding yourself? Are Bristol costs typical?

We see room and tuition as our only additional cost, which the loan scheme makes available for everyone.

UTR, I know your DD's is non catered too. Unless a cheaper room is possible, you're immediately down the gap between loan and room costs.

Food and personal expenses can always cost more when the household budget gets split between DC/s living away and home, but we take the view that the budget is the budget. "Sacrifices" are about being aware that there are several smaller pots and not the previous single larger one. Yes it is cheaper because we can't eat as much, use as much fuel, etc. Ours don't pay for anything themselves before leaving home, and are not [yet] prone to retail therapy, so anything earned or gifted is their buffer, and their responsibility. They learn what is sensible and pointless to economise on pretty quickly. Not easy but possible is how we feel about it. So far.

My DS's hall is £90 per week self catering. That's in Exeter, my daughters was slightly cheaper at Surrey University.

I am in a similar situation and am planning to pay accommodation and ds can use the loan for expenses as that seems to be what works. It will actually be a small saving for me as I currently pay school fees for him (albeit with substantial discount) which have always been a stretch but doable, so I do know I can cope. He also works and has saved a fair bit of his earnings too which should give him a bit of an emergency fund. He should also be able to continue one of his jobs in the holidays but he's not allowed to work in term time without permission from his college.

Never sacrifice your education in light of money: If your DD wants to go to uni, then she ought to go no matter the costs. If you really do have no money to spare, then there is the option of...a Bank Loan!

Does anyone else worry about how their dc will cope with a 27k min debt before they start work? I must admit I don't know the repayment details. I assume it's on a low interest rate, have to be earning so much before you start repayments, etc.

But I had 3k in student loans on a 0% interest, inflation only student loan.......funnily enough it's going up at 5.2% interest inflation this year and the total debt is now over 5k. Mmmmmm.

If you/she has to pay for a whole year of accommodation might she be able to stay at uni more during holidays and get better paid work either at the uni or office temping etc than coming home?

viva, it is a worry, especially as the debt will be considerably more than £27k. Ds will borrow £9k + £3.5k for each of the 3 or 4 years of his course and interest alone will add circa £3k to the debt by the time he finishes, so he'll end up with a £40 - £53k debt when he graduates (if only it were only £27k!).

But, if he earns very little he'll pay back very little before it's written off and if he earns shed loads he can pay the whole lot off with one of his oversized bonuses . It's the highish-middle range earners that will be worst stung and pay back many times what they borrow, but even then the repayments will never be more than can be afforded and arguably if you are in this position then the degree will have been worthwhile, so whichever camp you are in the situation isn't too bad.

Thirdhill, I see the catered room as part of being sociable. I'm fully aware from experience at 2 universities that she will miss meals there and pay for them elsewhere. She's getting round to the idea of a shared shower! The difference between en suite/basin in room is about £30pw!!

Viva, it worries me hugely. Dh and I went to university before there were any fees. That's partly why I don't want to get the maintenence loan - if she does 4 years with the new interest rates that's quite a big extra lump of debt. She'll still have the 27k. Personally, apart from a mortgage and one small car loan many years ago I've never had debt. It really scares me.

Pythian, I couldn't agree more. Easy for me to say though - at the end of the day I can afford it (ish) and because I have been to 2 universities know how much my dcs will get from it.

It's just so unfair at the moment for so many families.

Aargh, just re-read my post. I sound really vile talking about going to 2 universities. Can promise you it wasn't intended.

Spiffspoff, 78 quid ppw is high-end for student accommodation in Newcastle. Jesmond, I presume, but it's pricey even for there. If they looked for somewhere a bit cheaper for next year, they could afford to put the heating on... (and it will, I can assure you, be another cold winter in Newcastle!).

I'm not worried about the debt, it's not one that will affect their credit It's only a percentage on the amount abouve 21k and will get written off if they can't pay it off in 30 years.
Also it's not one of those loans where you have to panic if they lose their job so all in all I think it's a good way of funding higher education.
I didn't go to uni but my sister did when grants were available and even though she got the full grant she had a tiny amount left to live on after rent was paid so I can't see it as being that different.

Campergirls, yes it is Jesmond, and yes it is high-end. They were lucky enough to get a 10-month contract for the first year, so the cost per annum worked out no more than most places. Obviously we didn't know they would keep it for a second year and have to pay for the summer, but it means she is now able to look for a summer job in Newcastle if it is easier than home and one of her 2 housemates is also staying for the whole summer.

Quite frankly, we were more than happy to commit to the cost for the sake of us all. We had the year from hell in her first year, caused by anti-social and aggressive flatmates who knocked all the joy and spirit out of our previously cheerful, optimistic and resilient daughter. The resilience saw her through but it was not an experience any of us would wish to repeat and it has been worth every penny to see her slowly regain confidence. She still doesn't love university but she is happy and settled.

DH and I having both had the time of our lives at university and both come out with no debt, it has been a steep learning curve for us in many ways.

Piece on Martin's Money today saying 2012 entrants will be paying 6.6% interest on their debt.

Fair enough spiffspoff, and I could totally see it makes sense for the 10mth contract. If it was my daughter, though, I'd be suggesting staying with the same people but looking for another flat that doesn't cost about a third more than the norm for Newcastle student accommodation. It's surely the flatmates rather than the property that have helped her turn things round? (as well as her own resilience of course - an incredibly valuable quality in a young person). But I see why you think it's money well spent, if she had such a hard first year.

Like you, I came out of university debt-free, having had a fantastic time and learned so much. I really feel for the current and future generations of students.