Managing your own money can stressful, but we’re here to support you. Here we've outlined some top tips and shared some resources for managing your money and ways to earn money whilst studying.
For more information or to talk to someone about any worries you have about money, our firstpoint team can put you in touch with our Money Advice Service for
What can you do to improve your finances?
Budgeting
It’s important to work out how much money you’ve got coming in each month. This income might be from your maintenance loans, a part time job, your parents, your savings, or from bursaries and scholarships.
Once you know how much money you have each month, you can work out your essential outgoings.
Essential outgoings are things like rent, groceries, bills, a TV licence, transport, and books. Once you’ve subtracted your essential outgoings from your monthly income, you can divide this into a monthly budget for non-essential activities and expenses.
Budget calculators such as WhatUni?'s help you work out how much money you need.
Information on accommodation costs is available on our accommodation webpages.
Resources to help plan your spending
The Money Advice Service have put together a collection of advice and resources to support you with budgeting, finding a bank account, tax exception and housing costs.
Earn as you learn
Taking on a part-time job while at university is a great way to earn extra income and build valuable skills for your future career. Many students successfully balance work with their studies, and our dedicated Earn as You Learn webpages offer practical advice on how to manage both effectively.
Our Careers Team is here to support you every step of the way. They post weekly listings of part-time job vacancies and provide a wide range of resources to help you prepare, whether you're building your CV, writing job applications, or practising for interviews.
Working as an Event Ambassador
You can work for the University as an Event Ambassador to earn money during your studies.
Ambassador roles include:
- Working Open Days, helping to set up and take down, leading campus tours, helping guests or representing your course
- Supporting other events, such as school taster days, with set up/take down and assiting guests
- Creating videos and taking photos for social media
- Writing blog posts
- Taking part in photoshoots
- Speaking to prospective students at schools or Higher Education fairs
You can find out more information about becoming an ambassador on our Student Ambassador webpages.
Funds, allowances and grants
There are many different types of funds, allowances and grants you can apply for to support yourself at university depending on your circumstances and the course you have chosen to study.
Some of these include:
Our experienced Money Advice Service provides one-to-one support on a wide range of topics, including tuition fees, student loans and grants, NHS funding, scholarships, welfare benefits, budgeting, and debt management. We also offer advice for students with children and guidance on Universal Credit.
Whether you have a general financial query or are facing a specific challenge, Money Advice Service is here to help.