Uni money to live on

[Kattya]

Just after a few options/advice. DD off to Uni. She's in halls and her maintenance loan doesn't cover all of her rent so we will have to top that up. I'm just wondering how much she will need to live on. She will get a job she's not work shy but I dont want her to be working all the time as she needs to study so was thinking of giving her so much a week for food etc ??

Much as it pains me to say I'm not convinced Lucy's weekly amount is, at least for term time, excessive. We top DS1 up to the equivalent of the maximum loan, which once his accommodation costs are taken into consideration leaves him only marginally shy of £150 a week.

He is probably very fortunate insofar as whilst catered, he is only charged for those meals he actually puts on his plate. I do wonder how many who are fully catered and charged for 19 meals a week, actually eat all 19.

Ignoreme, based on my calcs above, if her halls are 40wks, that is about 4.5k, leaving her (over 8.5mths, maybe longer at a different uni), with about 450/month.

As I said above, we gave DS £300/mth and he said that was more than enough. He has a good social life, and occasionally buys new clothes/trainers, but doesnt go mad. He enjoys cooking and batch cooks/freezes at weekends, so he doesnt have to cook every evening. He used Aldi and Tesco for shopping, or Asda if we were visiting to take him in car (and pay Oh I've left my money in the car/room!!)

She will be fine!!!

@stonecircle DD did mention about bursaries and I just checked they say this

Once students have completed enrolment with ......, the academic year has begun, and we receive confirmation of household incomefrom Student Finance we will then begin assessing students for eligibility

But surely if they have already granted full maintaince loan she won't be eligible or even assessed again. (DD done the paperwork when just conditional offer). I bewildered by all this Uni stuff as I skipped straight from school to work at 15.

@belevino incase of being able to identify DD could you have a word with her father and say look mate it worked out great ur nutter ex left so how's about paying something towards his DD uni, even funding it all he still wouldn't feel the pinch.

DD did say about taking her printer she can then use uni printing costs for something else.

Hope her room is like the Tardis, I'm already mentioned if I should get her bed rail as she not use to sleeping in single bed

Thanks @kath, I did ask her earlier but DD having tired face ache day and said she would let me know she has to check her forms (girl has spreadsheets, lists etc). I know she has budget £100 & something for laundry. I got look of horror when said wear clothes twice.

I have some jewellery that no long sentimental that is like for rainy day to sell if she got stuck but am thinking if she got enough maintaince to survive on I could sell it anyway to reduce maintenance loan (only by hundreds not thousands)

@boys they have option of caters? Uni is starting to appeal to me more and more, wonder if anyone would mind sharing accomdation with my feral DS too

Ignore, if you have Facebook there's a really good support group for parents/students off to uni.

m.facebook.com/groups/488235648182391

Lots of really helpful posters.

Ignoreme Maybe also suggest that your DD holds off getting work (unless maybe zero hours contract) until she has settled in.

DS was keen to get another job, (actually applied to J lewis but couldnt make the one and only interview day/time offered) but I pointed out that he needed to give himself time to settle in, and be free to socialise and get used to a new place, new study regime etc in the first term.

He took my advise and it was the right thing to do. He made friends from flats above/below on first evening, but cemented those friendships by being able to regularly eat his meal in their flat, watching bake off/apprentice etc, go out shopping with them, go running with some of them, as well as clubbing. The end of the first term was also busy viewing 2nd year houses.

He did get a job (back with his 6th form employer but different city) at Easter, but just given notice in. It is full days Sat/Sun, he just about survived the summer term, as most of it was study leave, but knows he wont cope with those hours when he has a full timetable (he is doing a science so lots of labs).

ignoreme ds doesn't have loans, and would only get the minimum based on dh's income, so we cover everything. Even on £500 per month, once you are the lead name on the utility bills in a shared house, and end up being the one feeding the electricity meter, and your housemates are dilatory in paying it back, then you need it.

It also meant he could buy a Eurostar ticket to get home if he needed to.

@kath thank you very much for that message about job, I have just read it out to DD as literally just had another conversation as she stressing about urgency of getting job.

Did suggest she makes her fabulous chocolate cakes for when her flat mates arrive as she there day before them but ones a vegan nothing with eggs.

Will look now @ida

En-suite undergrad halls, self catering, are just under 7k at DS's uni!

£600 a month is ample for a university student if they have already had their rent paid for them, obviously not if they have to pay their own rent though I think Lucy said she was paying the rent for her two.

Just to clarify, are these your dcs total allowances or a top up for a maintenance loan? We are giving our ds £500 a month to cover food, books, phone and transport. He isn't entitled to a loan so that is it, all he gets.

@scareyteacher Even thou uni halls more expensive am glad DD opted for that otherwise she be going around switchy everyone's lights & plugs off.

Am feeling so much reassured now from replies now. All Ive got to do now is not hang onto her leg and sob when she leaves. I need that grip back that I so easily gave others.

Mine will have the maintenance loan (max) plus a 2k bursary and his rent will have been paid for his first year. He will have to save as much as he can because in yrs 2 and 3 he will have to pay his rent.

ignoreme - dont worry about lights etc - DS is paying £80/wk including bills for his second year house, so I wouldnt worry too much. The inclusive bills are up to a certain amount each year, but that figure is well above what we pay for our gas/electric per year, so I can't see them exceeding it. Where is your DD going?

And tell her she may end up not getting on with her flatmates, but fabulously with those in flats around her. So maybe yes lots of cakes! Both DS and one of his school friends (different uni) didn't get on with flatmates, but made great friends in flats around them. One of DSs flatmates was decidedly odd. Doing same course, but never spoke to DS in whole year. DS did try!

Namechanger - why isn't your DS eligible for any loans? And is that £500 after paying for halls? If so it is a lot, as I said previously, my DS has managed fine on 300/mth, (for living, after accommodation paid from his loan), he even had some left over at end of year and has laughed when we said we want to give him more next year. He doesn't see the need!!!

£80 a week for second year is great. DS is paying £125 excluding bills.

DD will be going north

kath - we are forriners so not entitled any loans. It is after halls and bills but he has to buy all his books, food and transport...

User - wow, so first year he will have 8k+, as well as 2k bursary, with no accommodation to cover? He will have no problem saving.

But to be honest, my DS can almost cover his rent from his minimum maintenance loan this year, its much cheaper than halls.

So I don't think your DS will need to save, he should be ok paying rent himself next year. But I suppose it depends where he is going, rents differ widely across the country.

Will he also get bursary next year?

Blimey. Maybe I'm being really stingy.

DS will have his maintenance loan which doesn't fully cover his accommodation, so we'll be topping that up. He's going into catered halls though, so we were only thinking of giving him about £20 a week.

Is that really mean? We'll continue to pay his phone contract and I'll give him extra for commuting (if he actually comes back to see us - although we're only 1/2 hour's drive or about 1.5 hours on public transport) and up to now, at least, he doesn't drink at all. He's not a party animal (in fact up to now he barely leaves the house) so I can't imagine he's going to be out clubbing and partying all the time.

Am I being unrealistic?

125 plus bills - ouch!! Yes that is a lot more than DS, it does show disparity across the country doesn't it, maybe not even north/south, maybe just different cities.

Kath yes, the bursary is each year of his course. I'm not sure what the rents are like for the second year though. He will be saving, he's quite a saver - he saved over 2k from his part time job over a year.

£20 does seem low, he may not end up eating in catered all the time so may want to buy other food.

Also, I would be wanting mine to go out socialising, so whilst he may not have been going out up to now, it wont encourage him to change if he cant afford it!! Doesnt have to be clubbing, may be joining a uni club, but then going out for a drink/meal/coffee with people he meets there?

Our neighbours DS heads off this time, also in catered. I think she is of the opinion that he wont need any extra money. But they are very stingy (unless its her DH spending on his hobby!). Feel sorry for their DS,
Think he will miss out due to lack of money.

Shyposter's dc will get £20 pw; Lucy's will get £150 pw. Both in catered.

Quite a range!

I guess that's a valid point kath6144 - I do intend to front load his account with some money (I've not told him that yet though), and he has already arranged a student a/c complete with overdraft, but the whole idea of going into halls is so that he does get the full experience.

I guess we'll have to play it by ear - I have also encouraged him to get some kind of job at least in his first year which he's agreed to try (he's never had a job or needed one as he doesn't really spend anything!).

To be very honest, i think £20 will not be enough and will really limit his social life. It's important to me that DS gets out and about and while not necessarily expensive I don't think that's enough.

Some clubs cost too. DS paid over £200 for sports club membership.