Money Matters!!
MONEY MATTERS!!
Keep on top of your finances
Going to university or college is probably one of the best investments you could ever make. It’s important to know how much it is going to cost you and to know how to budget. In this section we aim to give you lots of help and advice about how to do this, and what to expect.
If you're studying in England
At uni or college, you will have to pay for tuition fees and living costs (food, rent, books, transport etc). Look at our financial help section to see what financial help is available for you.
Fees
For 2009 entry, universities and colleges in England will charge new students up to £3,225 a year for their courses. This varies between courses as well as between different universities and colleges.
What’s great is that money doesn’t have to be paid whist you are studying - You can take out a student loan to cover all your expenses. And don’t forget you only start repaying this loan once you have finished studying and earning more than £15,000 a year. The loan will be increased in line with inflation.
The Aimhigher website contains more information on finances or look at our financial help page.
Manage your money!
'How will I afford going to University or College?'
'What will I do if I can't pay for the basics like food?'
'How can I afford a social life?'
The answer to all of these is by BUDGETING! It can be hard to do but if you try, you’ll find your money goes a lot further and so you end up with less debt.
Your loan is obviously there to use, but use it wisely. Tuition fees, rent and food come first of course and then things like socialising. It is important to go out and about, meet people and socialise, but just be careful with your money and don’t go out shopping, dinking or out for meals every day!
How do I manage my money?!
Now this really is an essential skill – not just for Uni or college but for life. It’s not just tutition and accommodation you need to pay for. Don’t forget important things like food, train tickets home, books, bills, leisure activities and socialising. You need to evaluate how much you need before you set off.
Step 1: work out your incomings
Wherever you will be getting money from, add it up and these are your incomings.
Student loan
Any grant / bursary / sponsorship/ scholarship (if you’re eligible)
Parental/guardian contributions
Any income from a job
Your savings
Step 2: work out your Outgoings
Tuition fees
Rent
Travel
Contents insurance
Car bills / phone bills / house or flat bills
Credit card payments
Utility bills, for example, water, gas, electricity, if applicable
TV licence
Food
Step 3: work out your other costs
By subtracting your costs from your income, you can see how much you have left over for other costs, like:
Course books/equipment
Toiletries
Household goods
Social activities
Clothes/shoes
Music/films
Now this isn’t an exhaustive list – there’ll be other things that come up and there’ll be other costs that will depend on your circumstances. All you need to remember about this last step is to prioritize. You may want that new top, CD or pair of jeans but course books are probably more important!
Keep your eyes open for…
…Internal jobs: if you are considering getting any job at all whilst at uni or college, just make sure that you won/t let it interfere with your studies too much. There are loads of opportunities for part-time work at all universities or colleges - every higher education institution has a students' union, which employs both under- and post-graduates, so you could earn money whilst becoming more involved in uni/college life.
…Student discounts: Some shops offer discounts to students - If you show your NUS card (National Union of Students), you may get a discount. You can apply for the card through your university or college.
Watch out for....
…Charging cash machines: some cash machines will charge you up to £2.00 for the privilege of withdrawing your own money from your bank account, so you could be losing valuable cash for no reason. There may be a no-charge cash machine just around the corner, so it is wise to find out which ones charge and which don't. and it’s not tight, it’s sensible!
How to manage your debts
A debt from an overdraft or credit card can take months or years to pay off. When you bring in a few store cards, loans and borrowings from family into the equation, this soon adds up. You need to budget carefully to avoid your debts getting out of hand.
If you do run into problems, try to economize - work out what you can live without or cut back on so that you make your money go further. Some people think taking out another loan to pay off their debts will help – but beware, you may end up paying more interest so that its not actually worth it! Just do your research.
For free confidential advice about how to deal with debt problems, you can use the National Debtline website, www.nationaldebtline.co.uk.
Keep on top of your finances
Going to university or college is probably one of the best investments you could ever make. It’s important to know how much it is going to cost you and to know how to budget. In this section we aim to give you lots of help and advice about how to do this, and what to expect.
If you're studying in England
At uni or college, you will have to pay for tuition fees and living costs (food, rent, books, transport etc). Look at our financial help section to see what financial help is available for you.
Fees
For 2009 entry, universities and colleges in England will charge new students up to £3,225 a year for their courses. This varies between courses as well as between different universities and colleges.
What’s great is that money doesn’t have to be paid whist you are studying - You can take out a student loan to cover all your expenses. And don’t forget you only start repaying this loan once you have finished studying and earning more than £15,000 a year. The loan will be increased in line with inflation.
The Aimhigher website contains more information on finances or look at our financial help page.
Manage your money!
'How will I afford going to University or College?'
'What will I do if I can't pay for the basics like food?'
'How can I afford a social life?'
The answer to all of these is by BUDGETING! It can be hard to do but if you try, you’ll find your money goes a lot further and so you end up with less debt.
Your loan is obviously there to use, but use it wisely. Tuition fees, rent and food come first of course and then things like socialising. It is important to go out and about, meet people and socialise, but just be careful with your money and don’t go out shopping, dinking or out for meals every day!
How do I manage my money?!
Now this really is an essential skill – not just for Uni or college but for life. It’s not just tutition and accommodation you need to pay for. Don’t forget important things like food, train tickets home, books, bills, leisure activities and socialising. You need to evaluate how much you need before you set off.
Step 1: work out your incomings
Wherever you will be getting money from, add it up and these are your incomings.
Student loan
Any grant / bursary / sponsorship/ scholarship (if you’re eligible)
Parental/guardian contributions
Any income from a job
Your savings
Step 2: work out your Outgoings
Tuition fees
Rent
Travel
Contents insurance
Car bills / phone bills / house or flat bills
Credit card payments
Utility bills, for example, water, gas, electricity, if applicable
TV licence
Food
Step 3: work out your other costs
By subtracting your costs from your income, you can see how much you have left over for other costs, like:
Course books/equipment
Toiletries
Household goods
Social activities
Clothes/shoes
Music/films
Now this isn’t an exhaustive list – there’ll be other things that come up and there’ll be other costs that will depend on your circumstances. All you need to remember about this last step is to prioritize. You may want that new top, CD or pair of jeans but course books are probably more important!
Keep your eyes open for…
…Internal jobs: if you are considering getting any job at all whilst at uni or college, just make sure that you won/t let it interfere with your studies too much. There are loads of opportunities for part-time work at all universities or colleges - every higher education institution has a students' union, which employs both under- and post-graduates, so you could earn money whilst becoming more involved in uni/college life.
…Student discounts: Some shops offer discounts to students - If you show your NUS card (National Union of Students), you may get a discount. You can apply for the card through your university or college.
Watch out for....
…Charging cash machines: some cash machines will charge you up to £2.00 for the privilege of withdrawing your own money from your bank account, so you could be losing valuable cash for no reason. There may be a no-charge cash machine just around the corner, so it is wise to find out which ones charge and which don't. and it’s not tight, it’s sensible!
How to manage your debts
A debt from an overdraft or credit card can take months or years to pay off. When you bring in a few store cards, loans and borrowings from family into the equation, this soon adds up. You need to budget carefully to avoid your debts getting out of hand.
If you do run into problems, try to economize - work out what you can live without or cut back on so that you make your money go further. Some people think taking out another loan to pay off their debts will help – but beware, you may end up paying more interest so that its not actually worth it! Just do your research.
For free confidential advice about how to deal with debt problems, you can use the National Debtline website, www.nationaldebtline.co.uk.
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