Daughter Starting Uni?

Ivenofinmoney

Hope I'm not repeating too much of the other great posts on here, but from my memory the things that saved me....

A trip round the local car boot sales, got me kitted out with all the Kitchen utensils I could possibly need (I still have some bits and pieces lurking in my cupboards 10 years on !! The memories they bring back when the dishwasher is full and the chipped tea stained mug comes out is amazing !!!)

Food parcels... lotts of stuff they can add too to make a half decent meal - when the cash was all gone a 19p loaf of bread & a tin of beans & sausages from one of mums food parcels was just the trick to keep me going !! - Even managed to stumble in from the pub one night and create a makeshift 'Sunday roast' entirely from food parcels (tinned potatoes roasted, tinned peas & sweetcorn, tin of beef burgers in Gravy, yorkshire pudding packet mix) OK not exactly like mum used to make but we had had a lot to drink !!

A Bike - depending on localitly to Uni this can be a real money saver.

As already suggested, possibly the best thing you can do is spend some time teaching them the fine art of budgeting, and the clever bit of not going without, just learning to compromise - This is the real life lesson from Uni !!!!

The worst thing you could do is create a slush fund to cover all the essentials, or readily bail them out - All the people I know who had this luxury at Uni are those which have Credit Card debts of £20+k and climbing and dont seem to have any understanding that they are nearing a debt of a full years sallary ??

Former_MSE_Andrea

Someone's post about insurance reminded me of some advice that might be useful.

If she is sharing a kitchen and it needs a security key or password to get in tell her not to make the mistake some people in my halls made.

Someone propped the door to one of the kitchens open to make it easier moving things in on the first day. So, one of the first decisions we had to make as new students was how the cost of the microwave that had gone walkies would be split - between the people who shared that kitchen or between everyone in the building.

Savvy_Sue

Bumped for those who've just shared the joys of good 'A' level results - now, does anyone know where the post about "if I give my friend a box with 10, 12, 20 basic ingredients in it and he always re-stocks it he'll be able to eat for a week" went?

squeaky

I think that's a post by Galtizz and I "think" it's listed in the gifts bit of the "Our Collections" sticky...

Phew! Took ages to track down!

Emergency food tin:-

http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.html?t=8955


Student shopping thread:-

http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.html?t=60050

Savvy_Sue

squeaky wrote:

I think that's a post by Galtizz and I "think" it's listed in the gifts bit of the "Our Collections" sticky...

Phew! Took ages to track down!

Emergency food tin:-

http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.html?t=8955

That's the one! :j And it's perfect, because Galtizz's friend doesn't like curry or hot stuff, and nor does my son!

Thank you so much for hunting for it, I really didn't know where to start, and wasn't sure if it was an Old Style or somewhere else! :A

lady_lucan

I replied to this thread on the Student Board, but reading through this realised that the girl is going to Sussex - that's where I studied. I stayed in Park Village Halls, and to be honest couldn't wait to get out of there. A lot of the residential students at Sussex are international, and keep themselves to themselves a great deal. There is a sizeable Christian Union presence on the SU, and they throw their weight around with regards to campus bar opening hours and the like, which cuts down social opportunities for mere mortals. Most of the UK students are London/Home Counties, and nip off back to mummy in their 4x4s whenever possible. The campus is fairly desolate at weekends.

Also, the staff at local rail stations seem to have been briefed to wring as much money out of students as possible. There aren't enough carriages on local trains at peak times and the customer desk isn't always properly staffed, also there tends to be only one manual ticket machine which often doesn't work, or there are loads of people waiting for it and you don't get your ticket on time. Be very careful - train staff are ruthless with on the spot fines, and one morning I actually saw a commuter leap from a rail bridge onto the roof of a moving train, the station was so crowded.

Brighton has a BIG cocaine problem - about a quarter of the students in my classes were addicted - and the campus is a magnet for some very aggressive Big Issue sellers, one of whom, I found when I moved into private accomodation, lived in a 5 bed house over the road!!!

On a more personal note - I would argue that Sussex is the worst Uni in Britain to find a boyfriend, so many of the male bachelor population being gay! I dated a guy on and off for three years while there, and he conveniently decided he was gay once he had enough money to lease our flat outright! All that to get a cheap flat!

I suppose what I'm saying overall is the most important thing to pack for Sussex is a very strong personality and attitude - it's not all fun in the sun, the campus can be lonely and bigoted, and Brighton is a difficult place to enjoy yourself on the cheap.

On the plus side, all of this meant I worked extremely hard at my studies, got a First, and got well away from the place!!!

squeaky

Savvy_Sue wrote:

That's the one! :j And it's perfect, because Galtizz's friend doesn't like curry or hot stuff, and nor does my son!

Thank you so much for hunting for it, I really didn't know where to start, and wasn't sure if it was an Old Style or somewhere else! :A

It took me a while to find it - I was using all the wrong key words like "hamper" because I remembered it as being some sort of hamper. turns out it was an "emergency" food supply

NikzStudent

I'm finding this thread very useful at the moment, as I myself am about to head off to Uni in Sept/Oct time, and I'm trying to gather things to take with me. I found a list on another website which I hope they don't mind me re-posting, as it's been very useful for me....:

Documents
Passport photos
Passport or driving licence (usually a couple of photocopies will suffice of your passport if you want to use it to prove you can work in the UK)
NHS number (if applicable)
National Insurance number / card (if you intend to work)
TV Licence (if you have one, you can transfer it on the TV licensing website from another address. If you don't have one, buy it with your housemates / flatmates and only use it in the common room if you're in halls, or you might get fined anyway)
CV and references (if you intend to work – you can upload your CV at https://www.unitemps.co.uk)
Discount travel cards (i.e. your 1/3 off YP railcard)
Bank account details
Address book and email contacts list
Support notification form (DON'T FORGET THIS!!)
Diary or calander
Doctor and dentist details (At Warwick, you can transfer to the Health Centre on campus)
Other university documents
Room insurance (Endsleigh are the ones on campus)
Kitchen
A lot of the kitchen stuff will depend if you're going self catering or not.
Corkscrew
Bottle opener
Mugs
Glasses
Wine glasses
Shot glasses
Kettle
Knives, forks and spoons
Plates
Bowls – for breakfast, soup, icecream etc
One-person casserole dish
Small frying or omelette pan
1 small, 1 large saucepan with lids
Egg cup
Tin opener
Scissors
Chopping knife
Chopping board – An extra chopping board if you are cutting meat: this way you avoid food poisoning (or slaps from veggie housemates)
Vegetable peeler
Cheese grater – (Ikea do a very good one that has the grater as a lid so all the cheese goes into a box/compartment neatly and you can leave it in there to store aswell)
Breadknife
Wooden spoon
Spatula – good for a washing up implement.
Potato Masher (only if you are a fan of mash tho!)
Easy to follow recipe book / handy female friend to cook for you
Store cupboard ingredients – coffee, tea, milk, sugar, eggs, margarine, cooking oil, salt and pepper – and let's not forget pasta
Sandwich bags – good for lots of stuff you open and need to contain. e.g. sugar / teabags and things
Plastic bowl or box with lid
Microwaveable bowl
Cling film
Tin foil
Sieve
Tea towels
Oven gloves
Washing-up stuff – Washing-up liquid / Dishcloth / Scrubbing brush
Tray – For carrying food to your room and to stop you making a mess if you're not eating at a table

Studying
Desk lamp – Halogen
Book chair – saves a lot of neck strain if you are making notes out of a big book
Notice board – for timetables, numbers, etc. If you're living in halls, you SHOULD already have one
Message board with erasable marker eg. a mini white board or one of those magnetic sand ones that you can wipe
Diary/planner – to keep track of assignments
Dictionary and thesaurus
A pad of lined paper – for making notes/doing drafts etc
Ream of printing paper
A4 folders
Pens, pencils, paper, files, highlighters
Scissors
Sticky tape
Stapler, hole punch
Sticky labels
Post-it notes
Paper clips
White Tac – so it doesn’t mark the walls
Stamps and envelopes
Outdoor
Sports gear
Bike (if you're not lazy)
Raincoat
Umbrella
Healthcare
Multivitamins
Painkillers
Basic first aid kit – plasters, antiseptic wipes, bandages
Paracetamol
Some cold/flu remedy incase you are struck down by freshers' flu
Pro-Plus
Anti-allergy pills – eg. Piriton anti-allergy tablets
A cold/hot pack
Bathroom
Bath and hand towels (+ possibly a flanel)
Basket for shower supplies
Wash bag
Toilet roll (EVEN IF YOU ARE IN HALLS, TRUST ME)
Box of tissues
Toothbrush and toothpaste
Soap – squeeze (bottle) soap is probably better. If you're sharing bathrooms then it's easier to transport and wont slip onto the floor etc.
Showergel
Shampoo / Conditioner
Nail clippers
Deodorant
Hair gel
Hair spray
Hairbrush
Comb
Razor
Shaving cream/gel
Lip balm
Housekeeping
Laundry bag – So your dirty clothes don't end up on the floor. And for dragging to the laundry or dumping on your parents to wash for you! If you go to most markets, you can get popup ones which are awesome
Clothes horse – Save money on dryers by drying your clothes in your room
Coat hangers – you may not get any in wardrobes
Dustpan and brush – for cleaning up the odd mess, though most unis should provide this
Duster
Kitchen towel
Cif cleaning products/Detox?
Washing powder/liquid/tablets – if the washing powder dispenser isn't working
Door wedge – an open door in freshers week is much more friendly – some halls already provide these
Electrical
Alarm clock (maybe 2 in two different locations in your room to make sure lectures are at least attempted, even if you carry on sleeping there!) – top tip: hide your alarm clock somewhere different every night
Calculator – for sorting out finances
Computer and/or laptop – saves on queues at deadline time
Computer mouse for laptop – easier to use than a trackpad
Floppy disks (diskettes) and CDR’s (CDRW's cheaper in long run) – for backing up work
USB "pen drive" – carrying projects etc between uni, internet cafe, friends comp, etc. quickly, easily and RELIABLY!
Printer – printing could take up to six hours on uni computers
Network cable – to access the internet from the socket in your room
Mini fridge – for beer and other items you don’t want in the communal fridge
Bedside lamp
Mobile and charger
CD player/Hi-fi system – though better (certainly space wise) just to bring speakers and use your computer
TV - but license fee will be costly. There will doubtless be a communal TV you can watch. Also worth considering a TV-DVD/-VCR combi or seperate VCR/DVD players (Don't bring your own TV if you're in halls)
Camera – to take pictures of room and friends (to send home/put on your blog … everything else people do with photos)
Headphones – so you don't disturb others when you play music loud. You can get 'infra-red' ones that aren't too expensive and allow you to walk around while still listening to the music.
Batteries – rechargeable (save money)
Multi plug adaptor/extension lead – to give you more than the normal 2/4 sockets
Clothing
Dressing gown
Slippers
T-shirts
Jumpers
Trousers
Underwear
Socks
Shoes
Trainers
Flip flops – for wearing in showers / communal wash areas
Swimwear
Ball gowns/eveningwear – for the Freshers’ Ball.
Shirt and tie for any smart-casual events
Leisure
Board games – a couple, will make a good fun free evening
Pack of cards
Ball – rugby ball/football for friendly matches/made up games
Frisbee – again for the occassional game
Style
Posters – though theses are often available during freshers week – (you might need things to cover bad decoration) – there are plenty of poster sales in the Students Union in week 1
Photos of family and friends
Wall hanging – more homely than posters
Cushions/beanbags – for friends to sit down in your room
Teddy bear/stuffed toys
Blankets – for when it gets cold and you want to snuggle up
Bedding
Sheets
Duvet and duvet is covers
Pillows & pillow cases
Mattress cover – goes between the mattress and the bottom sheet
Hot water bottle
Sleeping bag – for when friends come to stay/when you go to stay
Miscellaneous
Alcohol – to make new friends with
Sweets or biscuits – to distribute to/bribe flatmates
Extra storage – cardboard or plastic boxes for things which wont fit anywhere else
Large suitcase – to put things in when going home for the weekend
A spare lightbulb
Torch – for power cuts and looking under desks/chairs/beds
Pen knife
Loose change – for washing / vending machines
Earplugs – to cut out noise you don't want to hear
Safety pins
Small sewing kit – just incase you need to do a quik fix on a rip or tear (like the ones you get in hotels)
Small toolkit
Matches
Fan (debatable whether these are allowed in halls)
Clock
Female specific items
Hair Ties/clips
Make up
Lip Gloss
Jewellery Box
Jewellery
Moisturiser
Nail Varnish
Hair dryer / straightners
Don't bother with
Iron
Toaster
Nice kitchen stuff – it will get used then left on the side to rot/rust/be stolen



(The comments are not mine)

I hope this is of use.
Tips that I can personally give - Toastie bags. These are brilliant, and much cheaper than sandwich toasting machines - you simply make a sandwich (cheese and pickle - classic), slip it into one of these bags and whack it in the toaster. Very simple, and very little cleaning required. THey fit in most toasters aswell (provided you have medium/thin bread!)

Also, my mum (very kindly) is setting up a Green Tesco Clubcard for me as a sub to her clubcard amount - this way she can put money on the card each week/month for me to buy my groceries, and she gets all my clubcard points!

I also advise plastic crockery - all the BBQ stuff is really cheap at the moment, I got a set of 4 cups from tesco for 60p, fantastic as they will never break, and very cheap to replace!!

Finally, I invested in a student's cookbook, called "Cooking Up A Storm" by Sam Stern, also a student. I tried cooking the "lemon roast chicken" recipe for my family earlier - it's so easy to do and went down really well! There are some fantastic recipes, from bread/pancakes to cooking mussels! Maybe your student kids will turn up on the weekend to cook you a roast too?

Anyway, thanks for all the help you guys have given me from this forum, and I hope my post isn't too long!!!

-- Nikz

dolly_day_dream

Nikstudent,
My eldest son went to uni 7 years ago and youngest daughter started last year. The very best thing that each of them took to uni was the ability to cook. Look through OS and learn some of the very cheap recipes. At least learn the basics. My son was very amused to discover that the rest of the students on his landing didn't even know how to boil veg! :rotfl: He turned this to his advantage by letting them buy the ingredients and he did the cooking. As he has a huge appetite this was very good for him. My daughter has arrived back with her (interest free) overdraft intact! :A She has spent her money not on expensive take aways but on other things begining with b (could be books but I think that it is more likely to be booze) :beer:

One trick that has not been mentioned yet is to get Mr Tesco to deliver, by getting groups of students to join together she is able to bump up the order to take advantage of the free delivery codes and all of the points go on her card! She actually hopes that something will be wrong with the order so that she can ring up and get the item refunded and get to keep it;)

NikzStudent

Something else I've remembered that I meant to mention...

To save money on buying loads of photo albums/photo frames, I invested in a photo holder. They're fantastic - can hold portrait or landscape pictures, and give a real homey feeling to wherever you are - you can double side the pictures, so one side could be family and friends from home, the other friends from Uni, or whatever you want!
I found out about them because a friend from Uni bought them for that exact purpose, and they can be simply stuck on a pinboard, or you can even get magnetic ones! Plus the enjoyment of watching the empty gaps fill up is always fun - I haven't managed to complete mine yet!!
Follow the links below to see where to get these fabulous inventions from - I'd recommend them!!
http://www.hawkin.com/rkmain.asp?PAGEID=20670&STK_PROD_CODE=08708
http://www.hawkin.com/rkmain.asp?PAGEID=20670&STK_PROD_CODE=08709
http://www.hawkin.com/rkmain.asp?PAGEID=20670&STK_PROD_CODE=07785


-- Nikz