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

Wiggynut

Nice info keep it coming! :T

I have a bike and thermos! (I'm using the thermos at work...saves walking to the kitchen and waiting for the kettle to boil! )

I love books so it will be hard not to rush and buy all the ones on the book list ;-P (I have to wait until the course starts before I get mine though).

any info for mature students who never had families/parents who run around and do/pay so much for their student??

monkeyshavingexpert

Here are my 2 tips.

They are both based around the idea that you are paying set fees at university, but the way you act can vastly alter what you get in return for that money (a good CV, a 'first class' degree instead of a third, a better chance at getting a good job, etc).

1. Take as much as you can. Universities have a lot to offer - gyms, clubs, extra courses... all of these cost a lot after university, but while you're there they're very cheap. If you went to an all-inclusive resort, you'd try & make use of all of the facilities.
2. At most universities you will not be 'given' a good education. If you want a good education you will have to actually 'take' it from them. Most lecturers aren't all that great, most courses aren't all that great - if you want to get the most out of university, you have to actively extract learning from them. Don't just rely on them to teach you. I quit university twice before I realised this. On my third try, I got a first class degree.

Wiggynut

My brother got a 1st but his tutor (sorry, don't know if Tutor is the right term) gave him the next grade down because he was a bit quiet and shy... thought he didn't make a good ambassador! (it didn't matter that my brother got 98% grade! better than the other students who got a 1st!)

so make sure you do join things and be active in Uni life - (mental note to myself as I'm a bit quiet too!)

BigMikeyG

FreheitOverture wrote: »

Aside from that I was reasonably well prepared and I really enjoyed my first year, which is always the most difficult to get used to. You are likely to get at least one awkward flatmate if in halls (mine was an actual schizophrenic, got drunk and tried to stab his best mate) but I'm sure they aren't all that bad

I had one flatmate who was a drug dealer and kept a gun in his air vent in his room. It was a big surprise when armed police decided to raid our flat at 5am one day. Never saw him since. O and I didn't choose to live with him :-)

qtanx

Don't buy the books on your reading list! Check them out from the library. If you feel you must buy them, get them on amazon. I'm graduating in December and I've managed to only buy one text book costing £40, which I just sold to someone on Amazon for £30, only costing me £10!!!

If you don't need a student loan, don't get one. I thought I'd try getting a loan and leaving it in a high interest savings account. When it came to the end of my first year I called the student loan company to see how much I owed and deducted this from the total in my savings account and I made £30! All that time and effort filling out the forms for £30, a total waste of time.

Join the university gym. The gym here is £40 a year which is a real bargain. I wish I had known this, I joined a private gym costing £40 a MONTH with an 18 month contract so I was tied in.

If you love coffee, don't waste £3-4 a day on starbucks just buy a coffee maker. I got mine from John Lewis costing £25 and just buy the ground coffee from starbucks itself. A £4 bag lasts about a month, so you still get to drink starbucks coffee but at a fraction of the price. It saves time too and means I'm always on time for lectures as I set it up the night before and have the timer come on when my alarm clock goes off - there's nothing like waking up to the smell of freshly brewed coffee

Whatever supermarket you shop at, get a rewards card. The reward points are really useful. Because of Tesco clubcard I was able to have my car fully serviced for £17 which is a great help when you're a student.

Always check the clearance aisles first. Even if the food is expiring that day you can usually just freeze it as soon as you get home. Just the other day I got organic bagels from Tesco for 59p, bargain! I cut them in half and froze them, that way I can toast them from frozen

Learn to cook! When I first came to uni I just had microwave meals every night, which are pretty unhealthy. Now I find making my own meals from scratch is much cheaper as the ingredients tend to go a long way and have a long shelf life.

Don't eat at the university cafeteria, again a total rip off! I got a lock and lock container from John Lewis for around £2 and I just make my sandwiches in the mornings. This way, if your friends want to grab lunch after class, you can be social and still save money.

I've read in previous posts not to bring kitchen utensils, this is very true!!! Go to your halls first and see what they have, THEN go out and buy the things you need. It'll save a small fortune

Laundry is VERY expensive. At my university they charge £1.40 per wash and then 20p for 8mins in the dryer. However, if your university has Maytag washing machines like mine does, they are very easy to hack. There are some very helpful videos on youtube which helped me to wash and dry my laundry for a total cost of 3p!!!

These are the big things I've learnt from being at university, I hope they help!


QtanX

quirky85

Car Sharing scheme

I began uni by communting from home a short distance. By taking a train then a bus, using a weekly pass and bus plus. Wherby the ticket is valid on trains and buses. A good scheme, however i managed to find a peer who also communted but by car and i asked if she wanted to car share. I cut my costs from £30 a week to £9 a week. We went halves on what it costs my peer each day in petrol.
Its so convinient and worth asking for if you know anyone. You can also search for a car sharing scheme with other students at your uni, off your website. Just search for location and you will be allocated to someone who lives nearby, with contact details if you want to get in touch. Other details such as there timetable and availabilty etc. Excellent scheme for year 2's plus

So a good tip for commuters

quirky85

Books reduced on notice board

Keep looking at notices on noticeboards. You'll find previous students selling books dead cheap around £10 or less. It will look like a list on an A4 paper with their contact details on!! I have seen popular books such in the psychology, or sciences field.

quirky85

Book shop sale

Try look out for sales at your campus bookshop. They tend to have clear outs on stationery, books, notepads etc.
Especially around xmas and in the new year. I have picked up some good bargains on books originally priced £26 to £4. All have come in handy for some wider reading, perhaps not on your reading list but still classed as wider reading.

quirky85

Access to learning fund- extra money for you

Go to student services, ask for a Access to learning fund form, fill it out and you will get non repyable funds to your account. Its extra funding your uni has and are willing to give out to students. Can get from £250. Will just need to present a few photocopy's of proof of being a student etc. but you will be used to that by start of uni.

quirky85

Bursary - free money

If you have applied for student loan, thats is ok, but look out for a bursary form usually attached seperatly. Fill it out and you will be assessed for 'free money' shall i say if you are elligble. Depends on your household income. They will use the same info used to apply for student loan. If not then just submitt required documents. Worth the effort. You get paid the full amount in installments through each semester.