By now many university students will be well into the second or even third week away from home. This is probably about the time that they realise just how expensive life can be.
Here are our five top tips to try to make finances last a bit longer.
1. Get an NUS card
From haircuts and cinema to travel and clothes an NUS card can get you a discount on all sorts of things.
For full details of the best offers see their website but also keep in mind that many local businesses offer Student discounts so it’s always worth asking.
2. Get a student railcard and / or student Oyster card
A student railcard costs £30 but saves you 1/3 off your rail fares for a year. If you think you’re going to be travelling a lot this is a fantastic investment. At the moment there is a £20 discount for a three year card so your whole university career could be covered for just £70.
A student Oyster card saves you 30% off an adult fare travelcard and bus and tram pass. If you are travelling regularly this is a great saving but if you are only using public transport occasionally you might be better to stick to a pay as you go Oyster.
Click here to see how to purchase your student railcard.
3. Save money on books
For many students books are a big expense. Most universities have second hand bookshops but if there are a lot of students taking your course you might find them out of stock for what you need. Why not try the Oxfam online bookshop? This is a great place to find discounted books but keep in mind there is a delivery charge.
If you are studying literature you should be able to find a lot of free of charge eBooks. You don’t even need an eReader; simply download the Kindle app to your smartphone, tablet or PC and download the books to that. It’s worth noting, however, that often you will need to study a particular edition of a novel and these tend to be more recent publications.
4. Don’t cook alone
Cooking for one is difficult and uneconomical. If you are living in shared accommodation you are much better to club together with one or two others and take it in turns to cook.
Not only will this save you some money but it also means that if you time things right you will have a meal waiting for you on a day when perhaps you have a later finish that the others.
Check out the following article ‘20 of the best cook once, eat all week recipes: make-ahead meals and batch dish ideas to shave hours off your working week‘ for some great ideas!
5. There’s no need to be a social hermit
Socialising is a sure way to spend more than you can afford but that doesn’t mean you can’t go out at all. Be creative with your choices; try to go to pubs and bars with happy hours and be disciplined about when to leave. Don’t feel obliged to keep up with others; drink at your pace and within your budget.
For more advice about student finance see the Money Advice Service’s in depth information.
Why we have written this post?
It will not have escaped your attention that we are a loan broker specialising in guarantor loans; so why write a blog post on student saving tips?
We believe that cutting expenses is the very best strategy for any situation where money is short, and this applies to anyone whether they are a student of not. Though there are times when money is needed to cover unexpected expenses, and that is often where loans come in.
A guarantor loan is one for people who have a damaged credit file, often form missed payments. They are much more expensing that a typical ‘personal loan’, but much cheaper than other bad credit loans such as payday, doorstep or instalment loans.
A guarantor loans will not be relevant to most students, though we wrote this post to just raise awareness. For more information see out FAQ page.
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