Advice for a newbie? Am I going about this the right way?

bealski93

Bedsit_Bob wrote: »

I agree.

I won't have a Credit or Debit Card.

I find it too easy to spend money, when I have them.

With a Credit/Debit Card, I see something I fancy, decide to buy it, pay for it straight away, then I think "I shouldn't have bought this."

Without a Credit/Debit Card, I see something I fancy, so I go to the bank to draw out some money, by which time I'm thinking "Do I really want this? Can I really afford this?"

These look like a good way to manage what I spend. I'll try drawing out in cash what I want to spend on food each month and keeping that aside and not taking my purse to uni with me - I'll keep a £5 for emergencies in my uni bag instead.

brokeinlondon

bealski93 wrote: »

Thanks for the advice! I definitely don't have that at the end of the month - it has gone on (by looking back at bank statements and receipts):

- Food at university's cafeteria through sheer laziness/unorganisedness
- Hot drinks at Costa
- Magazines
- Meals out
- Clothing splurges

I'll aim to clear the credit card and reduce the overdraft, then in July I start a industrial placement earning £14k for the year before returning to university to complete my final year. So come July I'll be taking home just over £1000 and my outgoings will slightly increase (will go on petrol money for rides to work - we're carpooling, rent will increase slightly and will have to pay for internet) so I should clear my overdraft within a month or so from that

are you sure? is that £14k before or after tax?

Luckylucy

Hi Bealski, Well done you for sorting it out! I'm at uni too, in my first year, but assuming I am older than you if you are 93.

What are you studying? I am in Business and can't wait for my industrial year!

haycorns

For the drinks on campus buy a flask. You can then drink tea in your lectures for virtually no cost.

If you know you are going to crack and buy a chocolate bar or crisps, buy a multipack at the supermarket when on offer and take one with you. If you get used to haveing food snacks with you , you won't need to buy whilst on campus.
If you do end up in the cafe consider just buying the food and drinking water rather than buying drinks as well.

Maybe cutting back at first will be easier than cutting out.

in_need_of_direction

Maybe it would worth while checking out if you would be eligible for help with dental, optical, etc on grounds of low income as this would only take account of current income and not that previous earned that you use to support yourself. Well done you for seeing the dangers and tackling them head on. I wish my two had been as mature

bealski93

brokeinlondon wrote: »

are you sure? is that £14k before or after tax?

£14k before tax, so £12,337.76 after tax based on 2013/14 tax and NI info, which equates to £1,028.15 a month. I'm also still eligible shockingly to take out a student maintenance loan, so my thinking is if I square up my finances nicely before then, I could still take out the maintenance loan, and then put it in an ISA or something.

My circumstances won't change as much - rent is roughly the same on most places I've looked at, I'm assuming utility bills shouldn't change too dramatically as I'm looking at sharing with a friend who is going on the same placement as me. I'll just have to pay my share of broadband and money towards rides to work with said friend.

bealski93

Luckylucy wrote: »

Hi Bealski, Well done you for sorting it out! I'm at uni too, in my first year, but assuming I am older than you if you are 93.

What are you studying? I am in Business and can't wait for my industrial year!

Thank you I'm second year, and yeah I was born in '93 making me 20 years old. I study biomedical science. I'm so excited for my placement year too, it was tough getting interviews but I'm really pleased with where I'm going. Make sure you've got some internships/work exp on your CV - that was what landed me the placement

bealski93

haycorns wrote: »

For the drinks on campus buy a flask. You can then drink tea in your lectures for virtually no cost.

If you know you are going to crack and buy a chocolate bar or crisps, buy a multipack at the supermarket when on offer and take one with you. If you get used to haveing food snacks with you , you won't need to buy whilst on campus.
If you do end up in the cafe consider just buying the food and drinking water rather than buying drinks as well.

Maybe cutting back at first will be easier than cutting out.

Great advice thank you - will invest in a flask. Made a load of flapjack from ingredients I already had so will be taking that with me for snacks this week - saves a few pennies already

bealski93

in_need_of_direction wrote: »

Maybe it would worth while checking out if you would be eligible for help with dental, optical, etc on grounds of low income as this would only take account of current income and not that previous earned that you use to support yourself. Well done you for seeing the dangers and tackling them head on. I wish my two had been as mature

I'll check that out, great advice thank you and thank you, I'm trying to be super responsible this year and fixing my wasteful spending habits before they become too much of a problem!

LisaPink

Hi, I'm a newbie too. Please can someone tell me if they have ever heard of a dentist called Sensu dental clinic in London.

Thank you. Xx