Adult Learners?

kaffe

kaffe

kaffe

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Joined
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Kettering
I started college again (3rd time lucky) in September but I'm having reeeeal problems with finance. Basically I was told I was entitled to various bursaries and such but the amount I was awarded didn't even cover essential course equipment.
I'm very grateful for any free money, so please don't think I'm being all "nerrrr the government didn't give me enough money for nothing!"
I'm just wondering if any of you guys are in full time education, and if so how do you keep your finances?! It's further education, not higher (it's a dream being surrounded by 16 year old girls going "awwww look at the meerkat. Eeew it pooped") so I can't get a student loan.

I should probably note, I'm not being lazy and not getting a part time job, my course is 4 days a week plus 300 hours unpaid work experience (about one day a week) and I don't think I could do 6 days a week.
 
6 days a week? Oh, you poor darling.

Have you thought about burglary? A lot of people are buying expensive Christmas presents at this time of year, there are probably some rich pickings to be had.

edit: Oh, I just noticed you live in Northants. Forget that idea.
 
Backslick said:
6 days a week? Oh, you poor darling.

Have you thought about burglary? A lot of people are buying expensive Christmas presents at this time of year, there are probably some rich pickings to be had.

edit: Oh, I just noticed you live in Northants. Forget that idea.
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Bit harsh. I've done my working til there's no tomorrow thing and, a "spoiled" as it may be I want two days off a week.
 
I'm redoing my A-Levels studying at home (doing Physics, Maths and Further Maths) to hopefully progress to University (I bailed out of Theology a few years ago). I'm fortunate enough to be able to live at home and work part-time.

It doesn't sound quite that easy for you. Perhaps you could borrow some money from a close relative, who would be lax on the repayment terms (until you were in a position to get a part-time job?) or maybe there's a way you could do 3 days a week by speaking to your college about your situation?

Of course there is the last resort of perhaps finding an extra day's part-time work, and just kinda dealing with the drab existence of a 6-day 'working' week. If this is something that's really important to you, you're going to have to leave that as an open option unfortunately. :(

I hope you get these things sorted out, and good luck with your education.

Edit: Or you could sell your body. :eek:
 
Well I'm 2 years older than you and starting Uni next year, currently doing a foundation year and am on a full student loan.

Last year however I was doing an access course, I survived that by living at home and making use of some money I inherited.
 
I'm 30 and in second year of bsc social work , they literally throw money at me, not only do I get all the loans and grants from student finance, I get a social work bursary of £4.5k a year on top! :)

Also have a job, sitting in lectures is hardly like a day in work, although I do have placement from January until June
 
I'm afraid you're just going to have to give yourself a bit of a shake then! Get part time work, do this in the evening and a day at the weekend - you tend not to do more than 4 hours or so at a time anyway so you'll still have most of the weekend


Say 5 x 4 hour shifts a week @ I dunno what most part time unskilled roles are paying, say £6 an hour? £120 a week from which you'll have next to nothing deducted.


Full time you'd be working up to 60 hours a week in a lot of jobs anyway, a lot of people need to do more than that by taking on another job just to survive - your situation is not really any different
 
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60 hours is a bit of an exaggeration.

I'd just like say a lot of my course is practical hard work. It's 32 hours a week so say another 8 hour shift would make it 40. Then I need to do about another 8-9 hours for my work experience which is a course requirement. So that's 49 (above average, normal working hours usually work out around 40, based on a 9-6, 5 day week).

I also spend about 2.5 hours a day commuting, since I live in the middle of nowhere.

Don't say I don't know what work is. I've been to college before and yes, it was very easy. Falling asleep in lectures is a dream compared to work.

But this course is a physical challenge in itself.

Edit: Also, I've already said I've looked for work but can't find anything that fits my schedule.
 
You're kidding yourself - Need to face the reality that the only solution is hard work and struggling on by. You're 20, not 60 you'll handle it just fine. You'll need to make whatever is available fit your schedule if you want to be able to live, there's no real alternative.

Also i'm not sure why you think 60 hours is an exaggeration? I spent 3 or 4 years of my initial working career doing 60 hour weeks and still do an average working week that's a good bit higher than you think is average. I don't feel hard done to, i'm just busy!
 
rodenal said:
You're kidding yourself - Need to face the reality that the only solution is hard work and struggling on by. You're 20, not 60 you'll handle it just fine. You'll need to make whatever is available fit your schedule if you want to be able to live, there's no real alternative.

Also i'm not sure why you think 60 hours is an exaggeration? I spent 3 or 4 years of my initial working career doing 60 hour weeks and still do an average working week that's a good bit higher than you think is average. I don't feel hard done to, i'm just busy!
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Don't get me wrong, I'm all for the whole working for what you want thing. 60 hours may be normal to you, but it's not normal to me. It is actual law that no person can be made to do more than 48 hours a week, unless they choose to do so.

So please, none of this "pshhhhh, what you do is nothing" crap. We all have different physical capabilities. I didn't realise my right to two rest days was so much to ask!
 
I'm well aware of the working time directive - as you say nobody is forcing me to do it, I make a slight sacrifice now so that in future (if for example I have a family of my own) I won't have to........Just like nobody would be forcing you to get a job as well as studying if you want to be able to survive. I'm 28 btw, not all that much older than you.

It's about as simple as that really, you'll just need to accept the way things are and crack on with it - or don't and be more skint.

I'm not having a go, tbh it matters not to me what you chose to do but you're not in any different a situation to thousands of other young people, unless you have a very generous family to fall back on you'll need to make sacrifices if you want a decent education and life mixture.

What's the course out of interest?
 
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Seen, and understood. But right now my education is my future. I get that work means more money. It's not like I'm trying to deliberately not work, but I'm not prepared to completely exhaust myself either. Just trying to keep my head above the water bro!
 
Get a job part time. You say you don't want it to get in the way of your studies but not having any money is getting in the way of your studies.

I am currently studying, and working, and still getting xbox time in. It's tiring but nothing worth doing is easy.
 
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