Going to university (2019/20 academic year) - finance, flat shares, friends old and new and freshers' week to come...

[NewModelArmyMayhem18]

Following on from thread 8 which filled up in just 72 hours.

Simbobs phew! I remember being concerned when youd said he said 'no rush!'

Dd is stressing whenever I try and suggest she tackles her pile of admin.
Shes working 3 x 13.5 hour days next week so won't want to do it then!

@simbobs Phew!

DD has never had anything stolen AFAIK.

What clothing should they take. Reading one student forum their clothes are stolen from the laundry room. Is this common or just bad luck with these students.

Just whatever they normall wear. I've never heard of anyone having thiings stolen, although I imagine their clothes will be thrown out if they aren't around when they've finished and could get lost. The laundries seem to be very expensive. DD lived very close to a Primark as found it (sadly) cheaper to buy new underwear & socks. She now has more sets than you could count, so they should last a while! Towels & sheets are the thing that are a pain to wash & it horrified me how infrequently this happens

Actually, the uni have said that they can't take deposits until 2 weeks before. There seems to be a bit of a disconnect between the uni and the company managing the accommodation.

I actually did have "small" items of clothing stolen from a laundry room overseas on my yr abroad. Not heard of it happening here, though.

Dh daughter didn't have clothes or any belongings taken when she was a Brighton university, but all her food was constantly flung missing. She got quite upset about it. In the end she bought a tiny fridge for her room and kept all food in her room. I noticed they aren't allowed mini fridges anymore.

Crikey simbobs it was lucky you checked!

DD has managed to open her student bank account today. She took every bit of paperwork she thought she might need just in case, it probably helped that she already had an account with them.

Unfortunately they (Santander) wouldn't let her apply for a credit card because to apply you need £7.5k income and her loan is £4k ish. Even though we are giving her money to top up to the equivalent of the full maintenance loan which is £8k+ they won't count the money we are giving her as income. Grrrrr.

Does anyone know of a CC which only requires income of approx £4k?

BTW any York people - I did an online chat with accommodation services yesterday and confirmed that all hobs are electric, so no need to worry about the new saucepans not working on induction hobs. They also confirmed date of 12 Sept for specific block/room allocations.

Going missing that should say 😳

I have narrowed dds York accommodation down due to knowing what her type of room is. And the people organising the drop offs had confirmed 12th Sept. The next bit is trying to guess what time to book for the dropping off slot as we obv dont know yet how long it will take on a Saturday or how long it will.take to get finally packed and leave.

We have a room booked at the travelodge on hull road as it was v convenient on the open day. But if we dont feel we need to stay over after dropping her off and seeing her settles then we wont. But we need to cancel by the day before I think....(something else to check...)

@LIZS there was quite a lot of moving in and out of dd's flat so she didn't make bosom pals with he flatmates. She did however make really good friends with the students in the flat upstairs and shared with 3 of them in second year.
As others have said your dd will find friends in a variety of places - encourage her to join a couple of societies or do some volunteering.

DrMadelineMaxwell I think our DDs have the same accommodation type in same college so wondering what you narrowed it down to - mind if I PM you - or you me?

My eldest DS last night said that there was a lot of flat mixing and socialising, he ended up moving to a flat that suited him better because of the friends he made there when someone else dropped out.

It is noisy at times he said. I was debating about some ear plugs for DS because he is not used to noise. The trouble is he would not then hear his alarm.

I wear earplugs (dh snoring) and I still hear my alarm. Worth having a practice beforehand

Good idea Ligresa. I will get some for him.

The way to put them in is to pull your right ear with your left hand to open the ear canal, then use your right hand to push them in.

@fernpotts Hi! first hand info would be great. Thank you. We looked round St Johns on the open day and I remember the new block but the rest of it merges into a fuzzy memory of different rooms. I am assuming DD needs to bring a duvet and pillows as well as covers? Fortunately she has no ensuite and a small room at home, so no expectations of anything different at Uni.

@NewModelArmyMayhem18 you deserve it for doing this thread 💕

Hmm, DS took his own bedding anyway as he’s asthmatic so I can’t remember if they supplied any, but I suspect not.

Right ..i am back on this thread now !
I have been jumping from hete to GCSE one as we had that today !
I have been gettigvwry confused!
12th of September soumds very near .

@JennyWreny .. re cc. You can get cards for low income (not sure if student loan counts thouhh) but the intrest is ridiculous!
Plus they only start at £500.
Good for a major food emergency and to build up crexit score.

Regarding credit cards - if you have one yourself you can usually get one for your dc attached to your account. Obviously you then pay for any spending on it! However I find it useful for them to have one for emergencies or pre-agreed expenditure. Or when I want them to go grocery shopping for me when I am at work.

Yes I second @Decorate suggestion. We got one for DD this summer when she was abroad without us. It is the 3rd card on the account - DH and I have one each. I think we will let her keep it until a point comes when she can get her own.

Thanks for the credit card info bizzey decorhate and mum2eim .

I'll do some searching for cards for low income and see if they will include the student loan. Will keep an eye out for the ridiculous interest rates though!

I don't think having an additional card on our account will work for her because she wants to get one to start building her credit rating so will need to be a separate account in her name - although it's a great idea for the scenarios you have described.

Now my turn !
I have a silly thought regarding the student bank account.
They all seem to work on a 3 year basis.
Ds will be doung a 4 year course.

Shall i still stick with HSBC ?

Oh a d i have headghog eating cat food and coming right up to me.
I am in my garden .

Sorry dont know why i posted that .
Just A level 's and GCSE"S in the same week ....i cant settle !