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Higher education

Talk to other parents whose children are preparing for university on our Higher Education forum.

Original poster

DD starting uni, what to do about money/accommodation?

150 replies

whatIforgottoday · 08/04/2017 21:50

DD1 holds a conditional place to Durham for October and has had her maintenance loan confirmed at £5000.

Her accommodation is £7000 a year so DH and I assumed that the £5000 would cover her accommodation and then pay the extra £2000 needed, she would then live off a monthly allowance of £250 from her grandparents.

However DD feels the £250 a month is too little (accommodation is catered too) and wants to keep the maintenance loan for living (i.e. Clothes, going out) DD will probably get a job in the second year but would like to have a break from working in her first year (has worked every Saturday since the age of 14)

Would any of you mind telling us what you do regarding finance/are planning on doing so we can get a better idea?

Thanks

OP posts:
RJnomore1 · 08/04/2017 22:59

Her too

I think she expects too much from people. I'm really really worried TBH (sorry for the myjack)

Flowerydems · 08/04/2017 23:00

My folks didn't help, I worked full time all summer to save then got a job at a bloody awful sandwich bar then temping at events.

RufusTheRenegadeReindeer · 08/04/2017 23:02

Sorry OP

I wouldnt mind RJ but mine is a beautiful boy, funny, clever...just cant see it...do you want to be 'worried about our children at university' buddies?

Pm if you like

bojorojo · 08/04/2017 23:06

All food in a catered hall is unlikely. Check what meals are actually available. Durham is not a canteen meal Card university. There may be no Saturday evening meal for example and lunches usually need to be bought. There is no travel but there will be books, going out, clothes, phone etc. We topped up DDs loans to cover accommodation and gave the one that had catered £400 a month for her spending. Lots of her friends had about the same and no-one worked in her friendship group. It is hard to get used to university and work as well but it is not impossible. There are always frugal people on here but if you can afford not to be, that's up to you.

Crumbs1 · 08/04/2017 23:29

Our youngest is a first year. It's a catered hall but that doesn't include lunches, if you want a weekend lie in you miss food and supper is too early for weekend meals. There is more expenses than one imagines. Transport home or for visiting friends. Toiletries etc Our daughter is studying languages and has to pay for conversation tutorials on top of fees. There's club memberships etc. Certainly seems to add up. After accommodation and tuition, we give £400 per month but she's still broke by the holidays.

zizza · 09/04/2017 00:35

My dd is a vet student - no time for paid work so we've paid accommodation (started out at nearly £6k a year but now more like £4k total) and she lives off the basic loan £3.6k (I think). Youngest ds does the same. He's graduating soon and she's got one more year - can finally see the light at the end of the financial tunnel!

crazycatgal · 09/04/2017 00:49

£250 is more than enough, especially when her meals are catered. Atm i'm living off £35 a week for food and everything else.

blackcatlover · 09/04/2017 08:30

DD gets the minimum loan only, which doesn't cover rent and bills so we make up the shortfall and also give her £400 per month - to cover food, clothing, transport and everything else. She is a vet student and needs to pay for equipment, special clothing and travel and accommodation expenses on work placements.

She picks up casual shifts at her old workplace when she is at home and is signed up with her Uni job agency. Some of her graduate student colleagues work each weekend. Personally I worked when I was a student and where possible I think students should work to at least bring some money in.

JanetBrown2015 · 09/04/2017 09:28

It's very hard to generalise. Some children have more money than others at university so just give what you can afford and there will always be someone much worse off.

SkeletonSkins · 09/04/2017 09:33

The thing about working at university is that it can tie you to the university city when everyone else has headed home for the holiday, like at Christimas or Easter when they have 3/4 weeks off. That can be a bit lonely. If possible, and a job is necessary, try and encourage them to get one within the uni, such as in the library or uni shop, which might be a bit more sympathetic towards going home for the hols. Easier said than done though as these jobs are in demand!

Decorhate · 09/04/2017 09:52

I think £5k plus £250 per month is far too much for spending money personally. And as she qualifies for more than the minimum loan, I would assume you are not necessarily able to afford to enable this sort of lifestyle.

When dd was in catered halls, she reckoned she spent around £70 per week on top of that and had plenty.

I would suggest you just pay the shortfall for her halls and give her £100 a month or so on top of what her grandparents are giving.

If she won't go along with that, then I would ask the grandparents to give you the £250 per month for this year instead! The first year is the most expensive. A shared house in 2nd Year will be cheaper.

BizzyFizzy · 09/04/2017 10:08

We will pay for DD's accommodation at Edinburgh as her £3500 loan won't cover it.

We will also pay for her to fly/train home in the main holidays, and continue to pay her phone.

She can use her loan for living expenses. £100 a week should be plenty, even with self-catering.

We will obviously review after a few weeks, and she always has the option of getting a job.

LuckyEevee · 09/04/2017 10:17

I've 4 DC at uni and we give them £350 a month. We pay their rent but they pay bills, travel, food, cloths, holidays with friends etc. They ALL easily save money. Eldest also runs a car (although we pay his insurance).

One DC doesn't work, one does tuition and gets an extra £100'ish a month and the other two make hundreds of pound during their holidays doing normal student jobs. Shop work etc.

£250 a month is plenty for catered halls. If she is worried then she had almost 4 months this summer to earn some extra cash.

FurryElephant · 09/04/2017 10:22

My friends and I all lived on between £200-250 a month in UNcatered accommodation! So it really is plenty.

Brighteyes27 · 09/04/2017 10:38

I work in HE the Maintenance Loan is for living costs accommodation if it stretches that far plus everything else. The loan is calculated and based on parental or household income if their is a shortfall their is an assumption that parents will make this up. Students can use savings, earnings etc. Most students do work these days we recommend no more than 15 hours per week term time. Your daughter will need to budget carefully or you will be forever bailing her out.

NapQueen · 09/04/2017 10:42

Id go 50/50 with her on accomodation, with her half coming out of the loan. Whatevers left she keeps and uses that and the 250pm from grandparents (v generous of them!!). She needs more? She works.

Students dont go out fri and sat nights anyways so she can work them.

Original poster
whatIforgottoday · 09/04/2017 11:13

Thanks everyone, I think we will suggest that DD starts with £250 a month and maybe keep aside £1000 of her loan for her as well. Like I said, DD will (and currently has!) get a job if needs be. Idealistically, I think she likes the idea of having a year off work but equally she won't go without.

DH and I won't be bailing her out, she's 18 and currently pays for everything (including her car) bar her phone bill so she knows that asking us for money isn't going to work.

Thanks again,

OP posts:
LuckyEevee · 09/04/2017 11:19

I think she likes the idea of having a year off work but equally she won't go without

Bless Wink

theclick · 09/04/2017 11:42

She thinks £250 is too little?!

Can she get a weekend job. Some of my friends did that.

FlyingSquid · 09/04/2017 11:50

We currently give DS £250 a term on top of his catered accommodation, though we did shell out for a lot of textbooks.

He worked for a year before he went, so he does have that money as backup, but he is taking it as a matter of pride not to dip into his savings.

I think this term I might see if we can offer a bit more but ask him to budget his travel home into it.

SparklesandBangs · 09/04/2017 11:52

DC1 went to Durham - 1st year was all meals included (I believe) if you went back to get it. It is expensive but year 2 onwards living out was very reasonable.

She only got the bottom rate of maintenance loan so the deal was that was what she lived on and we would pay the rent. She didn't needed to work during term time, but did work during the summer. However she is quite low maintenance for clothes as doesn't drive, plus she was able to live at home all expenses paid during the holidays.

PinkDaffodil2 · 09/04/2017 11:52

I graduated a couple of years ago. My parents gave me £60/wk on top of my maintenance loan (£3,000 when I was out of London, £5000 in London). Loan covered accomodation and £60/wk covered other expenses. I was in London for 3 years and needed to work in the first two years to make up the difference in rent, final year I couldn't really work due to the course (medicine, moving around on placement) and parents gave me an extra £1000 to help. I don't know if that counts as 'bailing out' or not but there wasn't an option for cheaper accomodation, and we weren't really supposed to have jobs at all. Weekly direct debit really helped keep track of spending.

dementedma · 09/04/2017 11:55

If the £250 a month is just for treats and socialising its plenty! I work full time and don't have that left over to spend on just little old me. She needs a wake up call quite frankly.

Fluffy24 · 09/04/2017 12:01

I think that I'd be uncomfortable with her effectively borrowing £20k over the course of her studies for her to spend on what are non-essentials given that these days the student loan is a fairly hefty interest rate.

I think that even if you agreed that £250/month wasn't enough and that you'd top that up a bit in her first term or two so that she'd have a break from working, that would be better than setting the precedent of her keeping the whole £5k to spend on what she likes...

FlyAwayPeter · 09/04/2017 12:09

However DD feels the £250 a month is too little (accommodation is catered too) and wants to keep the maintenance loan for living (i.e. Clothes, going out)

Goodness me, she sounds a bit - er spoilt. £250 pm spending, with no obligations for food, bills, or rent - it's probably as much or more than a lot of working people. It's around £60 a week - that's quite a lot of money to spend.

I think your DD needs to be more realistic - she sounds a bit ungrateful for you & your parents' support of her ...

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