So skint, and feeling a bit hopeless!

weez.

Hi there,

I'm really struggling with money at the moment, and are just after some advice or maybe even reassurance!

I'm in my final year at Uni, living at home (due to being diagnosed with severe anxiety in my first year) and therefore commuting to my Uni three days a week - a one & a half hour drive.
I'm no longer working part time, which I did in my first & second years, mostly because of the huge amount of workload I have, but partially due to my anxiety - something which I am working on overcoming with counselling, hypnotherapy etc.

My Dad has recently been made redundant, and therefore my parents really aren't able to support me as much as they'd hoped to in my final year. They were in full support and understanding of me not being able to work part time in my final year, as I wanted to give my studies my all - but since this unexpected turn in events, they aren't able to do so anymore.

I was instructed to contact student loans to tell them about my change in circumstances, which I have done, but they sent me a letter confirming that they would not give me anymore money. This seems outrageous considering my Dad used to earn near the £30,000 region, and is now completely unemployed, and my Mum is self-employed & a very low earner.

I've only got 5 months left at University, which I know isn't very long, but after just receiving my student loan I'm scared about how i'm going to get through the next five months. Petrol is increasingly expensive, as is running my car, I have to pay out for equipment and odds & ends for my course, as well as the fees that graduation will entail. I have £1,000 to get me through those months. Which might not sound awful, but after working out some basic budgeting, it seems impossible. Last time I ended up going £500 into my overdraft, which I know isn't horrendous, but I wanted to avoid doing this at all. I'm scared that by the end of May, even my overdraft won't be enough, and I don't want to have to extend it, as I don't want to have any excess money to pay off when I graduate.

Any help/advice would be extremely appreciated!
Thanks in advance.

karlie88

weez. wrote: »

Hi there,

I'm really struggling with money at the moment, and are just after some advice or maybe even reassurance!

I'm in my final year at Uni, living at home (due to being diagnosed with severe anxiety in my first year) and therefore commuting to my Uni three days a week - a one & a half hour drive.
I'm no longer working part time, which I did in my first & second years, mostly because of the huge amount of workload I have, but partially due to my anxiety - something which I am working on overcoming with counselling, hypnotherapy etc.

My Dad has recently been made redundant, and therefore my parents really aren't able to support me as much as they'd hoped to in my final year. They were in full support and understanding of me not being able to work part time in my final year, as I wanted to give my studies my all - but since this unexpected turn in events, they aren't able to do so anymore.

I was instructed to contact student loans to tell them about my change in circumstances, which I have done, but they sent me a letter confirming that they would not give me anymore money. This seems outrageous considering my Dad used to earn near the £30,000 region, and is now completely unemployed, and my Mum is self-employed & a very low earner.

I've only got 5 months left at University, which I know isn't very long, but after just receiving my student loan I'm scared about how i'm going to get through the next five months. Petrol is increasingly expensive, as is running my car, I have to pay out for equipment and odds & ends for my course, as well as the fees that graduation will entail. I have £1,000 to get me through those months. Which might not sound awful, but after working out some basic budgeting, it seems impossible. Last time I ended up going £500 into my overdraft, which I know isn't horrendous, but I wanted to avoid doing this at all. I'm scared that by the end of May, even my overdraft won't be enough, and I don't want to have to extend it, as I don't want to have any excess money to pay off when I graduate.

Any help/advice would be extremely appreciated!
Thanks in advance.

Hi weez,

Having recently gone through 6 years at university; I can understand the difficult situation that you're in.

My advice would be:

- approach your university. Some may have access to a hardship fund. You never know, you may be entitled to a grant/scholarship from the university now that your family's income has changed. Talk to your personal tutor, they may give you extra advice too.

- have a look at this: https://www.gov.uk/access-to-learning-fund/overview Lots of good information and you may be able to get financial help.

- http://www.learndirect.co.uk/help/funding-checker/ A great website which shows funds that you may be eligible for.

- final bit of advice would be day-to-day things. Make sure you drive your car economically; you'll be surprised at how much you can save over a 6 month period with a bit of careful driving. Go and do your food shopping in the evening when items have been reduced significantly; my weekly food shop was £5. The majority of my meals were Tesco's Finest or Sainsbury's Taste the Difference range. Fine dining for a student. :rotfl:

Hope the above helps.

weez.

karlie88 wrote: »

Hi weez,

Having recently gone through 6 years at university; I can understand the difficult situation that you're in.

My advice would be:

- approach your university. Some may have access to a hardship fund. You never know, you may be entitled to a grant/scholarship from the university now that your family's income has changed. Talk to your personal tutor, they may give you extra advice too.

- have a look at this: https://www.gov.uk/access-to-learning-fund/overview Lots of good information and you may be able to get financial help.

- http://www.learndirect.co.uk/help/funding-checker/ A great website which shows funds that you may be eligible for.

- final bit of advice would be day-to-day things. Make sure you drive your car economically; you'll be surprised at how much you can save over a 6 month period with a bit of careful driving. Go and do your food shopping in the evening when items have been reduced significantly; my weekly food shop was £5. The majority of my meals were Tesco's Finest or Sainsbury's Taste the Difference range. Fine dining for a student. :rotfl:

Hope the above helps.

Thank you for your advice. I've just emailed my student services about applying to other funding that may be available, so fingers crossed something good might come from that!

It's just very stressful having to think about all of this on top of a looming dissertation deadline - something which I'm sure you all too fully understand! So I appreciate your advice

Racheldevon

I was in a similiar financial situation when at uni, I applied for a hardship loan through the student welfare/union people, and be sure to mention your anxiety (mental health/disability and third year students are all factors that are often prioritised - write a good statement as to why you are in the situation you are in - my parents were going through a very expensive court divorce, and my mum wrote a letter stating the reasons why she couldn't provide any financial support as part of the various bits of evidence (bank statements etc) that had to be provided - so perhaps you could provide something similiar to support your case. Also speak to your personal tutor to make them aware

weez.

Racheldevon wrote: »

I was in a similiar financial situation when at uni, I applied for a hardship loan through the student welfare/union people, and be sure to mention your anxiety (mental health/disability and third year students are all factors that are often prioritised - write a good statement as to why you are in the situation you are in - my parents were going through a very expensive court divorce, and my mum wrote a letter stating the reasons why she couldn't provide any financial support as part of the various bits of evidence (bank statements etc) that had to be provided - so perhaps you could provide something similiar to support your case. Also speak to your personal tutor to make them aware

Thanks for your advice! I've just printed off the hardship form and am about to fill it out, I'm definitely going to explain my anxiety and how it prevents me from working, and the fact my parents are no longer able to contribute.
Thankyou

Alisha2008

Not sure where in the UK you are based but I can recommend meditation for anxiety problems (which I've also suffered). I do practise it and it's great. I learnt here : http://acem.co.uk/

Best of it is that it's free (except the course but I see it as an investment in your health!).

Dunroamin

How much of that £1,000 do you have to pay out for rent/board?