Students expect to shell out over £400 a month more to survive at university this year

As the cost-of-living crisis continues to bite, students are bracing themselves for soaring expenses, a new survey has found.

Research from eBay revealed the average students expects to spend an extra £411.58 a month this academic year compared to last year. And 85% are worried about how they’ll manage.

Other findings

• 62% of current students say they probably wouldn’t have gone to university if they’d realised how much it would cost
• 54% rely on average family handouts of £383.01 a month to help them survive
• 63% would consider going to a university closer to home to save money
• 75% think they’ll need to dip into their savings to survive
• 67% plan to use credit cards
• 39% don’t think they’ll be able to afford things like desks, kitchenware and bedding

What about maintenance loans?

Although 57% of students get a maintenance loan, 42% said it doesn’t cover all their costs.

The hardest things about being a student

• 18% said they struggled with budgeting
• 16% said managing their workload was difficult
• 12% said being far away from family was a concern

Worrying

Mark Monte-Colombo from eBay commented:

“Students are already know for being ‘skint’, but it’s worrying to think about how the rising cost of living is impacting their lives and education.”