Home
>
Personal Finance
>
Students Investing in Their Future Need to Manage Their Finances Today

Students Investing in Their Future Need to Manage Their Finances Today

With the A-level results coming out, the long wait for UK school leavers hoping to go to university will soon be over. All the hard work that has been put into achieving the grades required will now pay off and the fun and freedom that is student life can begin. This may have been the case in the past, but the notion that university life is socially and financially responsibility free is now lamentably outdated. These days, if you want to study beyond the age of 18, learning becomes very expensive.

According to the National Union of Students (NUS) the typical cost of living expenses at a university outside London are around ?8,600 a year for the essentials of food, rent, fuel, books and tuition. For students' studying in London they can expect to pay over ?10,000 a year.

Barclays bank has calculated that currently the average graduate leaves university owing ?13,501. Jeremy Law, the head of student and graduate banking at Barclays said, "students starting a three-year course this September could be graduating with debts of almost ?20,000?graduates will find themselves with debts for years to come which may affect their ability to buy homes and invest in pensions?prince or pauper, these levels of debt may act as a deterrent to some people considering going to university."

With student debt growing every year - financial comparison sites like Moneynet are seeing an increased need for students to take control early and carefully plan for their future. Richard Brown, Chief Executive of Moneynet said "We all understand the importance of budgeting, but for students this can be especially difficult."

HSBC has estimated that there will be a difference of around ?6,400 between the average student's income through loans and their total expenditure this year, making the skill of how to budget effectively a vitally important one to develop early on in a student's life.

A spokesperson for the NUS said, "When you get your student loan it can seem like a lot of money. And for those who have never had to juggle lots of money before it can be difficult not to go out and blow it."

There is help available from the NUS and other sources to students who get into financial difficulty. The NUS has set up advice centres which can provide support on money management as well as advice on how to access any other funds such as Higher Education Grants, Childcare Grants, Disabled Students' Allowance, Parents' Learning Allowance, as well as possible reduced rate loans, which may be available dependent on course subjects and individual circumstances.

An important issue for freshers to learn is that making careful financial choices early on, such as the right bank account, can help keep graduation debt to a minimum. By focusing on the interest rates, authorised and unauthorised overdraft borrowing rates, bank charges and ease of access to the money in their account, rather than the host of freebie sign-up gimmicks can make all the difference.

The NUS advises, "Students not to get a credit card as you will pay exactly the same high interest rates as everyone else". In general, credit cards rarely carry genuinely privileged terms solely for students, however students can still utilise cheap forms of credit specifically devised for their circumstances, such as graduated interest-free overdrafts and low interest student loans, before resorting to a credit card if necessary.

Living at home will help to keep costs down, but for most students, this is frequently either not possible, or not desirable. The best way to make finances go further whilst at college is obviously to get some form of job that will fit in around studying. Although many employers do not like employees having irregular working hours due to external commitments, there are some employers who will veritably embrace students as they can fill in on a part-time basis to cover unsociable hours and holiday periods. Supermarkets, restaurants and bars are ideal for student work, as is working late shifts in large financial firms, or being a mystery shopper for research companies, or even becoming a film extra for ?50 to ?200 a day.

The real problem that needs to be in the minds of all students though is that any money that they borrow, whether it is through a loan or a credit card, must still be paid back at some point, even if that time may seem a long way off, and they expect to be earning a high salary. The truth is that there are more graduates leaving university every year, and there is increasing competition for what seems to be a dwindling graduate job market with diminishing pay rates. Students need to take control of their finances as early as possible in order to stop their finances taking control of them for a long time to come.

References:
national union of students
national union of students financial comparisons

Authors Bio:
Richard lives in Edinburgh, occasionally writing for the personal finance blog Cashzilla and hates Brassica oleracea var gemmifera (aka brussel sprouts).

personalized cleaning services Des Plaines ..

In The News:

Petco disclosed a data breach exposing customer Social Security numbers, financial account details, and driver's license information due to a software error.

Baseball teams can now analyze complete swing mechanics in normal training environments using Theia's markerless AI system that processes standard high-speed footage.

Smart home hacking fears overblown? Expert reveals real cybersecurity risks and simple protection tips to keep your connected devices safe from hackers.

MIT develops needle-free glucose monitor using light technology. Revolutionary device could replace painful finger pricks for diabetes management.

The ClickFix campaign disguises malware as legitimate Windows updates, using steganography to hide shellcode in PNG files and bypass security detection systems.

Researchers from Osaka Metropolitan University designed a 21-foot dome that combines aquaculture and hydroponics to create a self-sustaining urban food system.

The Fox News AI Newsletter gives readers the latest AI technology advancements, covering the challenges and opportunities AI presents.

ChatGPT data breach exposes personal info of users through partner Mixpanel. OpenAI confirms names, emails compromised in security incident.

Android rolls out Emergency Live Video for 911 calls, letting dispatchers see real-time scenes during emergencies. Great for holiday travel safety.

Malicious Chrome and Edge extensions collected browsing history, keystrokes and personal data from millions of users before Google and Microsoft removed them.

Google's new Call Reason feature lets Android users mark calls as urgent before dialing, displaying an urgent label to recipients using Phone by Google app.

Medical history made as surgeons successfully restore sight to legally blind patient using world's first 3D printed corneal implant grown from human cells.

Data brokers aggressively collect your holiday shopping data to fuel scams and targeted ads. Learn how to delete your digital profile before 2025 starts.

Scammers are sending fake MetaMask wallet verification emails using official branding to steal crypto information through phishing links and fraudulent domains.

Learn what background permissions, push notifications, security updates, auto-join networks and app refresh mean to better manage your phone's privacy settings.

Criminals test stolen data by applying for deposit accounts in victims' names to prepare bigger attacks. Learn why banks won't share fraud details.

New study of 10,500+ kids reveals early smartphone ownership linked to depression, obesity, and poor sleep by age 12. Earlier phones mean higher risks.

A phone phishing attack compromised Harvard's alumni and donor database, marking the second security incident at the university in recent months.

AutoFlight's zero-carbon floating vertiport uses solar power to charge eVTOL aircraft while supporting emergency response, tourism, and marine energy maintenance.

A new phone return scam targets recent buyers with fake carrier calls. Learn how criminals steal devices and steps to protect yourself from this fraud.

New Anthropic research reveals how AI reward hacking leads to dangerous behaviors, including models giving harmful advice like drinking bleach to users seeking help.

The Fox News AI Newsletter gives readers the latest AI technology advancements, covering the challenges and opportunities AI presents.

Holiday email scams, including non-delivery fraud and gift card schemes, spike in November and December, costing victims hundreds of millions, the FBI says.

Holiday visits offer the perfect opportunity to help older parents with technology updates, scam protection and basic troubleshooting skills for safer digital experiences.

Swiss scientists create grain-sized robot that surgeons control with magnets to deliver medicine precisely through blood vessels in medical breakthrough.

Students Investing in Their Future Need to Manage Their Finances Today

Personal Finance