Uni Costs

FrostedNipple

FrostedNipple

FrostedNipple

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How much should I be looking at spending per week?

I have about £54 a week left over from loans and grants etc, should I be looking at a job and other sources of money, or will that do me? I really have no idea how much a weeks supply of food will cost, so the first week should be fun :)

I've obviously got to get a job if i want to have beer, but should that money be enough for food?
 
If food is all you have to pay for then yes £54 p/w is easy, if you can cook on your own from fresh then so much the better* but with that level of income you could afford to eat out/buy lunch in town a few times a week.

If you want to try and shoehorn entertainment into that as well then you might well struggle without a job.

*If you haven't already I'd recommend you buy a student cookbook or similar, it'll come in handy and cooking isn't hard, you will just require practice.
 
I lived on £50 a week for one term (including around £10 PAYG phone, food, couple of cheap nights out with pre drinking and food). It wasn't too bad. I really would reconmmend getting a job - makes everything so much easier. Food can range from £10-£50 but I think a safe average would be around £20+
 
As above; I spent around £40-50 a week on food and ate really well at uni, so if that is all you ned to spend on then you will be fine. If, though, you are also after entertainment, nights out etc you will probably need a jo; I spent around £80 a week (plus gym membership) while I was at uni.
 
manic111 said:
As above; I spent around £40-50 a week on food and ate really well at uni, so if that is all you ned to spend on then you will be fine. If, though, you are also after entertainment, nights out etc you will probably need a jo; I spent around £80 a week (plus gym membership) while I was at uni.
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Same as. For the first year i think you will be alright, but will probaly need more. My second year should be cheaper, as you learn what not to buy, what you can live without etc etc. £80 a week saw me with fully stocked cupboards and 2-3 good nights out a week. £100 would be a luxury budget and you wouldnt need to worry.
 
I would definitely recommend a job. The extra cash will make life a lot easier.
 
I once spent £1,400 odd in 2 days at uni. Not good.

To be honest you'll find that you survive whatever. If you have £54 a week you'll eat and get by and still have drinks at the weekend. If you had £300 a week you'd do exactly the same except just buy more expensive food and drink (that's what I found anyway!)
 
get some food containers and lay claim to some freezer space so you can cook in bulk, that will save you a good bit of cash
 
Yeh, internet for recipes is fine, and I'm logical so can follow instructions, and therefore can cook, however I can't be a chef, as when ever I change recipes they tend to go wrong :p

Thanks for the advice, it seems if i managed to get 5 hours work at around £5ph i would get another 20 to 30 quid, so that would be fine.

Thats helped me understand what sort of hours i need, thanks ocuk, you never fail to avail
 
you could easily live on £20 a week on food... you need decide whether £34 is enough to live on for nights out and whatever else you wanna spend on, toiletries, clothes etc. its enough imo but i would still get a part time job, but nothing hardcore.
 
If I had the choice between scraping by and counting pennies or having a job and enough money not to worry - I know which one I'd choose.
 
msm722 said:
If I had the choice between scraping by and counting pennies or having a job and enough money not to worry - I know which one I'd choose.
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Definitely, one of my ex-flatmates always used to end the term living on his credit card with 7p noodles and tomato sauce being the staples of his diet because he wouldn't get a job during term time. I always thought it was a bit of an odd strategy as I doubt it actually aided his studies at all having to worry about budgeting so much.
 
Some courses (art etc) dont have many hours a week that you need to go to lectures or work, other courses like physics, maths, engineering etc require a lot of hours, you would have to be superman to be able to keep a job and do well in exams with one of those courses.
 
Peter Diffey said:
Some courses (art etc) dont have many hours a week that you need to go to lectures or work, other courses like physics, maths, engineering etc require a lot of hours, you would have to be superman to be able to keep a job and do well in exams with one of those courses.
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Only if he manages his time poorly. Besides, he isn't looking to take on a massive amount of hours.
 
£54 a week spare without a job? Lucky *******.
£20-£30 a week for food, £10 a week isn't healthy, thats like ready meals and supernoodles I would have thought (the thought disgusts me), you can't buy fresh for that.
Big bag of pasta, big bag of rice for starters.
You can do a simple tomato and basil sauce for pasta for a few pence.
Egg fried rice.
Curry and chilli go with the rice, if you can afford the meat (turkey is cheaper than chicken), which works out nicely, you can have the leftovers for lunch.

At uni, I didn't bother with a student loan. I basically lodged about places and slept in my car if I couldn't get a place to sleep. I spent £100+ a week, I smoked, drank and ate, and ran a car just about.
 
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