University life for our soon to be Year 2 undergrads (2019 intake): social bubbles (bursting?), the new normal and hopefully no second wave

[NewModelArmyMayhem18]

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I think I’ll have to get DD to check with his flatmates. They signed up for this house pre Christmas and it has always said 15 August but move in date 15 Sept.
I didn’t really think about what that meant till recently, their landlord has a lot of houses in Norwich so I expect it’s not unusual.

I'm quite dubious about how students are generally treated by landlords, from what I've heard. Off to check DS's contract.

I’ve just checked again and I’d got it wrong his tenancy is only 11 months, 15 Sept 20 till 20 August 21, must have read it the wrong way round 🙄

Oh well that's positive @Itscoldouthere!

Count yourself lucky, DD’s is a 12 month rent starting 15/7, term starting 4/10
DD starts her job tomorrow. We didn’t push her to find a job btw. Always have encouraged work experience though as it’s valuable life experience and shows a good work ethic to future employers.

I have just paid DD's first quarter of rent - to start 1st July. Term starts 5th October this year, but DD and her house mates hope to move in to the house in August.

DS is off to Durham mid-August too. I wonder what the locals in university towns across the country will think when 50% of students return 6 weeks early!

If it benefits local businesses they will welcome them with open arms.

A new fish and chip shop opened next to DD's halls a week before lockdown. I felt so sorry for them when 95% of their customers went home that week.

@Benjispruce tbh I'd expect with shorter rentals the landlord would adjust the price to allow for the empty period (which they'll likely use to clean/get ready for next year). I can't see them just charitably charge 10-11 months if they have 12 months of mortgage or other costs to consider.

HELP!

Has anyone had student finance confirmation and found it significantly less than last year....like £7K less for tuition fees!! (maintenance loan was the full amount like last year)

Meant to say ....no change in mine or DP's income

That doesn't sound right Barstool. The tuition fees get paid directly to the university so it shouldn't change.

DD phoned Student Finance and they say it's because she'll be on placement for a chunk of the year. Yet she was supposed to have been on placement for part of her first year too (Covid put the stopper on that though!) but would have still got her full fees paid.

Anyway she's emailed the uni to see what they say .

@CompleteBarstool

It is correct, they pay a much reduced fee to uni when on placement.

Each uni seems to charge different fees for placement though.

My DS had a placement year last year. He and his placement housemates were from 3 different unis, all charging different fees. I think his were about 2.5k, for which he got a tuition fee loan.

He also got a small maintenance loan too, less than minimum, but something nevertheless.

@CompleteBarstool yep the poster above is right. Obviously when on placement the student isn’t using many of the uni resources so they normally only charge the student about £1000 so SFE only pays the uni £1000.

Thanks folks.

After various phone calls yesterday DD established that if you tick the box on Student Finance form to say that you'll be on placement it means for the whole term and that you won't be in uni at all.

DD's placements however are not for whole terms, there is still a lot of involvement with the uni during placements and they are still charged the full tuition fee (health sciences subject)

She was told she should have ticked the "uni" box not the "placement" box so has re-submitted her amended application. They said themselves that the form is quite misleading.

Phew! I was wondering where we'd magic up £7k from this year and again next year

PS ... her placements are non-paid hospital based

Bit off topic, but have any of your DCs had what we used to call a Saturday job? My Y11 DS would like one (a phone/tech shop would be perfect, he spends a ridiculous amount of time following tech you tubers) but we could not see anything. Now that there are so many students getting part time jobs maybe shops don't take on sixth formers so much.

My DD has had part time jobs since she was 14. Paper round then at 16 she was a coffee barista for a year, then worked in a supermarket.

Must of her friends got jobs at 16. Most larger corporations don’t take on anyone younger but private firms might.

Mine both wanted part time retail jobs but they proved hard to come by ... they ended up working waiting tables in hotels ...

My DS has found jobs since he was 13, started, like most , with the paper round & then most jobs were in hospitality ... that led to a part time job when he went to Uni which was very useful. Now doing 10 hours a day in a factory & exhausted!

He's managed to find all sorts of odd jobs though - builder's mate, pest control amongst other things. One year he earned a huge amount by working on Christmas Day serving lunches.

I think retail jobs are much harder to get for school children these days.

@Monkey2001, DD was a paid gymnastics coach from 15 (her club grow their own) which was great. She also did a lot of babysitting.
DS also did babysitting and helped run a fitness club for preschoolers
Babysitting is good money if there are young families nearby?

My friends son got a job in a sports shop by going in and asking. Would your DS go and ask in phone/tech shops?

My DD has worked a lot of interesting jobs. She is a trained dinghy sailing instructor so has spent the past 2 summers on a beach teaching kids to sail as well as some weekends locally. She’s also worked in the sailing club galley making and serving food. Her work experience in year 10 was In a cake shop so she learnt to ice cup cakes and make sugar paste decorations so she had a few weeks paid work there. And there has been the usual babysitting too.

Thanks all for tips - @mum2eim I am jealous of your DD's Wex, much better than what most Y10s get to do!