How to survive university when you’re running out of money.

It’s that unfortunate time of year when finance is running dry and it seems as if you’ll have to starve in order to make it to the 13th of December. However, with these tips, you might just last long enough until you get home and take full advantage of being with your family.

1. Implement a strict weekly budget- open your student bank account and check how much money you have left. Divide this amount by however many weeks you have left of the term. This number will be your new weekly budget. For example, you have £200 to last you 4 weeks, this means your weekly budget is £50.

2. Keep accounts- Note down everything you buy, as soon as you buy it, throughout the week. This will help you stick to the budget as you can see how much of your weekly budget you have spent and have left for the rest of the week.

e.g. 11/11/19- 18/11/19 (Budget- £50)

· Grocery shopping- £15

· Rock City ticket- £6

· McDonalds- £5

· Bus ticket- £1.70

· Alcohol- £10

· Coffee- £4

3. Take advantage of cheaper and free entertainment- Download ‘Fatsoma’, an app that allows you to buy club tickets. Rock City allows free entry before 11 pm on Thursday, Friday and Saturday night if you pre-book tickets on Fatsoma. Stealth vs Rescues allows free entry before 11 pm on Saturday night also. For those who don’t enjoy clubbing, Savoy Cinema on Derby Road sells tickets for £6.95, for students that hold NUS cards, it’s only £5.00.

4. Use student discounts- Apps such as Unidays and Student Beans have offers on items ranging from food to technology. Currently, Unidays offer a Burger King Whopper Jr& Fries for £1.99 and a subway meal deals for £2.99. Student Beans is offering a free Cheeseburger or Mayo Chicken when you order an extra value or wrap meal. To redeem these offers and more, just download these apps, set up your account and present the offer and your ID photo on the app to the cashier.

5. Finally, use public transport- On average, an Uber charges £3-5 per mile, whereas a single student ticket is only £1.70, and a day pass is £3.60. If you are still under 19, you can ask for a single under 19 ticket for only £1.20 and a day pass for £2.50. Not only is this a cheaper alternative, but it is also environmentally friendly. The tram offers a £1 short hop between the train station and the city university, which is a great alternative.

These tips may not be lifechanging but hopefully, they help make these last few weeks a little easier. Again, it’s managing your money carefully and implementing strategies so that when you are in a position to buy products you can do so at ease knowing you have the best possible deal. The first term is even more difficult knowing that we have Christmas presents to buy along with settling either for the first time or back into university.

By Akchaya Prabhaharan

Image courtesy of Studential

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