The great 'what I wish I'd known before I was a student' hunt

hongkong

- Most supermarkets discount their sandwiches at the end of the day - that's tomorrow's lunch sorted!

- Student Union shops sell discounted newspapers and magazines, e.g. half price Times, Indy, Guardian, Time Out - for those few occasions when you can't borrrow from the Library or access online. Actually this is a tip for everyone, at many universities you don't need to be a student to use the SU shop.

- Share stuff. Work out who in your flat/class uses the same teabags, shampoo etc and share the cost of BOGOFs

- You're away from home, develop your own tastes/budget. Just because Mum always buys Anchor butter and Daz washing powder, doesn't mean you have to. Try the supermarket own brands, you'll probably like them!

Treats - It can feel grim always buying the cheapest of everything, always getting the supermarket own brands, so pick one item, maybe your favourite breakfast cereal and buy the top brand of that. It will feel like a treat and you'll be more likely to stick to the rest of your budget if you don't feel that you're constantly denying yourself.

- Try freecycle http://uk.freecycle.org/ for loads of free furniture, kitchen stuff, computer bits etc.

And lastly, be genuinely nice to all the people you meet, that way they are much more likely to help you out, give you advice, donate stuff!

silvercar

Independence doesn't arrive the minute you leave school; you don't wake up one morning and move from a school kid to being completely independent.

As a parent I am committed to supporting my children's education. I do not suddenly feel that they are on their own, once they hit a magic age. Independence is a gradual process. At uni I expect my son to become more independent but not be totally independent. I am sure he will need support in a lot of areas and I will be there for him. In the same way that we set boundaries for our children as they grow up, it will be the same at uni. Moving to advising them how to do things rather than doing things for them.

Personally, I would rather send food parcels then think of him surviving on Tesco value bread all week. If he runs out of money, I would rather he ask me for a loan than resort to begging on the streets.

ryandj

I found that i would have enough money to live on just from my student loan - but that is it, just to survive cooking all my own meals, maybe one night a week out. Its the beer that takes the money!! You need a job to fund that.

Wiggynut

silvercar wrote: »

Independence doesn't arrive the minute you leave school; you don't wake up one morning and move from a school kid to being completely independent.

As a parent I am committed to supporting my children's education. I do not suddenly feel that they are on their own, once they hit a magic age. Independence is a gradual process. At uni I expect my son to become more independent but not be totally independent. I am sure he will need support in a lot of areas and I will be there for him. In the same way that we set boundaries for our children as they grow up, it will be the same at uni. Moving from advising them how to do things rather than doing things for them.

Personally, I would rather send food parcels then think of him surviving on Tesco value bread all week. If he runs out of money, I would rather he ask me for a loan than resort to begging on the streets.

I have heard of students and non students (myself included) who left school and had no family from 15/16 so independence is something that can happen suddenly and through no choice of their own!

I think the poster meant independence from them financially rather than emotionally (obviously, if you have a family around you then they can still be supportive and helpful whilst not being able to give money) - independence doesn't necessarily mean cut off completely.. they are still your parents and if you have good ones then they will be there to support them for the rest of their lives!)
hope that makes sense

flyingcod14

One of the biggest helps whilst at uni (5 years!) was the uni;s own Access/Hardship fund that basically is free money, however when filling out the forms it payed not to make your situation sound really bad and that your living on the bread line as I only got £30. I did it the following year and was honest about my situation and I got £288! Also check out if you can get any sponsorships/grants, remember no one will tell you about these, it is money sitting there in solicitors accounts earning them interest so you have to go and dig around, sometimes it is a grant for females only or for people studying a certain subject. It isn't easy (I'd start with your local CAB) but can be rewarding - I got £100, just because I was going into further edcation.

Also don't drink until you throw-up - remember that food cost money!

And the here's my biggest tip to all stoodants and one that served me very well - LEARN TO COOK!!! It isn't hard and it saves you a fortune. Lads: it's the best way to impress the ladies, cooking for a women never fails if you get my drift.

Regards

fc

Studentspender

I am a returning student going into my 3rd year and have to say this post is a must for all those freshers out there...I have a maxed out halifax overdraft(2750!) and a credit card with them and I always seem to be in alot more debt as my other friends as I have to pay my own way (eg Rent) and am always poor! Going to take the Hardship fund next year!!

My suggestions are:

DONT always eat out. My last year consisted of pub meals and takeaways and trust me, not only the bank account suffered, my waistline did aswell!!

I had a job in my second year although it was 20 hours a week and i found that ok until all the work came along and found myself not being able to cope even though my course is only 6 hours a week....One day a week should suffice.

Although I have the biggest Overdraft out of my friends, i feel i couldnt be without it....and most of all budget (im rubbish with money but that helped me alot!!) HAVE FUN!!!

Sneezy

That listening to siblings/parents/grandparents is a good idea because we do know whats best! (soon to be 2nd year uni student sister recently said this!)

heatherbelle_3

The one thing I wish I had realised before I went to uni was that I didnt need to go to uni.
I don't regret it but I left without a degree (my choice I did really well academically but I just didnt enjoy my courses) and walked in to a graduate job. The reason I managed that was because of the extra stuff I did at uni - I helped run the student union and organised large events, booked major name bands when they were on the up and was successful in that. Employers look beyond your degree so make sure you get involved in a team, club, student union etc.
I did it cos I enjoyed it so it never seemed like work

never buy brand new books - check out second hand bookshops or amazon. And don't buy everything on the list cos some of it you'll not need more than 10 pages of. I never bought a brand new book -always secondhand.

I was a terrible cook but spent so much on pre made food I had to learn. Take it one meal at a time - don't run before you can walk! Try a new meal or 2 every week and you'll soon be able to ditch the ready meals.

Drink before you go out. We had 50p vodka nights at our uni which you can't beat but having a few drinks before we went out saved about a fiver a head - you wont want to be going out before 10pm anyway

Skyhigh

It depends on your course/university for when you get a reading list.

For freshers, you may have to wait till your first week or second week - although some Uni's send them out over summer.
Some departments are on their game and publish them online also (as mine did) so they were available to download as PDF's ASAP from the course website.

Alternatively, call the Uni and ask, they may say it's not confirmed yet. So find out which lecturer's you're going to have - then contact them directly to ask about books they recommend.
For the majority of courses, the reading list usually doesn't change drastically, so you can get away with a draft reading list of a copy of last years for that module/course.

If you're already a student, just ask your lecturers for the draft copy, or last years modules/course reading lists.
If they won't give them out for any reason, ask friends who did/do your course (possibly the year above) that did the same modules, and what books they used - usually they will be willing to sell you their for cut price too.

Even if you get a draft list, or last years list and some books have been changed - nothing is lost, you've just learnt more.
You may have spent more time, but you haven't wasted it as those books will usually be relevant in some way, hence you're actively "reading around the subject", which can help you get better marks/grades.

System

The one thing I've learnt is to be careful with your possessions & the people you move in with.

In second year you have to move out into a rented home with friends you've only known for 1 year. Just because you might seem like best buds, it doesn't mean they aren't going to try and get out of paying the next electricity bill, or eat your food while you are out at lectures. It's happened to me & it's happened to many people I know.

Label your food, and don't be afraid to ask around if something goes missing. Never put any bills under your name or they become your responsibility. Never foot any bills for anyone, chances are, they will not pay you back. You've all been given roughly the same student loan, it's not your problem if your housemate spent all of theirs on booze & nights out.