How much money for an undergraduate student?

[Caroline1852]

After housing and tuition fees have been met, what would you consider to be a reasonable weekly spending allowance for a first year student in Bath? She will be living in a house share with 4 others (the rent and bills will be paid for) and she has her own car (the tax and insurance is already paid for). Any guidance much appreciated.

I give DS £70 per week to cover food and utility bills, books, transport etc. I pay his fees and he pays the rent out of his student loan. I think this is generous but a friend of mine gave her DDs £100 per week several years ago. If your DD has earned a reasonable amount of money in the holidays you may wish to adjust. DS prefers to be paid weekly - less likely to blow all his money for a month in one go. Your DD might spend a lot of money in the first few weeks of the first term - freshers week is very expensive and booze ridden.

Lilymaid - thanks that is useful. It is not my daughter but my neice. I told my sister I would ask. Do you think £100 pw might be normal - it sounds a lot to me?

TBH Bath is quite expensive, my friends at Uni there all stryuggle to make ends meet so £100 is probably realistic BUT well, most students get a job- the only people who don't work at my Uni are the aprents and the drop out hippies who dont bother with eating (quite a few on my course LOL)

I'd probably be prepared to make earnings up to a value of about £100, but unless she's studying something that requires particular application (teachinga dn social work are notorious at out uni) then i wudl expect her to pay her way somewhat

£100 if she runs a car might be reasonable - but Bath is not a good place to have a car! I know that lots of DS's friends (not at Bath) who have cars don't keep them at university during term time as they are so expensive to run (and all your friends take advantage).

I know for a fact that many Unis don't allow students to keep cars on site anyhow- mine doesn't, and friends at bath Spa aren't allowed either

So this money is to cover books, food and household supplies, clothes and pocket money? £100 a week seems reasonable.

There'll be other stuff too- trips, exctra curricular stuff- all adds up quickly!

I can't imagine why she'd need a car, tbh. from Bath Uni website:

Your living expenses will vary according to your life-style and type of accommodation, but as a general guide the cost of living for students in Bath has been estimated at £6,700 per academic year (nine months) for a single undergraduate student, and £8,850 per year per calendar year (12 months) for a single postgraduate student.
To view a brief summary of living expenses, please visit:

www.bath.ac.uk/students/money-service/budgets/ospg.html

Personally I wouldn't pay rent, bills and car tax and then give a living allowance. I'd agree a total annual figure - perhaps paid in termly chunks and let her do her own budgeting. It's an important window of opportunity to learn it before she's really out in teh big wide world

I think The Times gives a schedule soemwhere of relative costs at differing Uni's- iirc bath scored quite highky interms of expenditure (ie it costs a lot to live there- no surprise!).

A bus pass may be a sensible investment, as many student digs are away from Uni if she is not in halls (not guaranteed these days)- and that is fixed then, can't be blown on vodka or whatever in freshers week. Also allow a smallreserve to be retianed for the inevitable 'Mum, i've nothing to eat....' cry at term end; we found one student on our course hadn't eaten for 3 weeks poor lad beyond odds and sods he'd beeen grabbing off people- hsi aprents were abroad and nott contactable in emergencies.

Erm. Sorry. I do think an adult ought to be able to figure out an alternative strategy for obtaining food for a three-week period other than ringing his parents.

Is a car really essential? If it were me I'd rather have the cash equivalent!

Again I wouldn't recommend having a car at uni unless you go home every weekend or are doing a course where you spend a large amount of time on placement (eg. nursing).

A student can live on £50 a week for food, and maybe £20-25 for going out, although Freshers week she's probably going to get through £100 in terms of going out.

Is she getting a student loan? Because if she is then I wouldn't give her pocket money at all. My parents pay my rent and my student loan covers food, books, bills and going out - I supplement that with a part time nannying job too.

I agree choosy floosy - if eitehr of mine run out of money and come begging at the end of term they're going to be in for a very rude shock. I will tell them, whilst eating chocolate, to go and get a job. If i was feeling soft I might lend them something but they'll have to pay it back with interest. I might even give them a chunk of chocolate but they'd have to smile very sweetly

Hello all. Thanks for all your comments. I will pass them on.

DD1 is starting her third and final year next Monday. Aparyt from tuition fees and acomadation fees we don't give her anything else. She uses her studebt laon and earnibngs fron her saturday job for all other stuff.Most unie aadvise against first year dtudents brining a car to uni.

Sorry my typing is terrible today!

I'd say give her nothing. If her fees and rent are being paid, student loan works out as quite a lot. Over £100 per week in term time, even on the minimum. If every cost is met without having to do anything, adult life is going to be quite a shock.

I'm managing on just a student loan and holiday work. It's tight, but it's doable. Whoever said £50 a week for food is being extremely generous. That must be takeaways every night. At one point last year, I was spending £9 a week on food. No meat, admittedly, but very wholesome and healthy. Students have plenty of time to cook, at least.

If she's not getting a loan (lucky girl), she obviously needs something, so I'd give her just enough to eat, get around, occasional drink, but not enough to be comfortable, then she'd have to get a job and take some responsibility, but you'd know she was at least fed and watered.

Ds is at Warwick - we paid accomodation fees last year, and £120 a month on top, as he could only get 75% of the student loan.
This year he's sharing a house in Leamington with 4 others and we're paying the rent which is a bit less than hall fees - the extra will go towards bills & extra travel.
But they will be paying for the cable TV/phone/broadband themselves.

I also gave DS some extra money because instead of getting a job this summer he redecorated several rooms in our house and gave us a lot of help in getting my MIL ready for her move - he used it for driving lessons and a trip to Europe.