Student living costs
How much does it cost to be a student?
It's important to听get to grips with听your incomings and outgoings when you first start your course. You're probably wondering how much you should be budgeting for groceries, accommodation, bills and just general day-to-day costs. See our round-up of how much you can expect to spend as a student.
Become a budgeting expert
Olivia听tells you everything you need to know about student finance and budgeting. Get a head start听with our听tips to guarantee you won't be living on pot noodles for the year.
黑料吃瓜网 Boost
黑料吃瓜网 Boost is a unique financial support package designed to simplify your student life at 黑料吃瓜网, from the moment you apply, through to graduation day. It includes travel incentives, helpful tips for managing your finances, access to professional financial support, and discounts on food and drink across our campuses.
Commuting vs Living in halls
There are pros and cons to the question of whether you should commute to uni and live at home, or strike out on your own and live in halls. Of course, this all depends on whether your home is close enough to uni to commute, or whether you would prefer a taste of independence while studying. Our students share their experiences, and how much they spend, on these different university lifestyles.
Spending as a commuter student
Mollie lives at home and commutes to our City South Campus, see how much she spends and what tips she has to share.
Mollie's budgeting tips
Spending in halls
Emily lived in student accommodation during her first year and has learnt how to spend wisely on a student budget. Find out how much she spends and her听top tips.
Emily's budgeting adviceSave on travel
Whether you're living at home or commuting, it's worth being aware of travel discounts that can save you money on your daily travel, fun days out or weekends at home.
If you鈥檙e travelling by train, make sure to get yourself a Student Season Ticket, which can get you up to 50% off travel from your chosen stations during term time:
- Commuting within the city of Birmingham and the surrounding areas?听.
- Commuting from outside the city along the London鈥揃irmingham or Liverpool鈥揃irmingham lines?听.
If the bus is your chosen mode of transport:
- Eligible students can receive a听free West Midlands travel pass听(worth up to 拢650) for their first year at 黑料吃瓜网!
- National Express West Midlands offer听听which gets you unlimited travel for an affordable price.
Scholarships
We want all our students to achieve their full potential. With our scholarships, you could receive extra funding and support to kick start your 黑料吃瓜网 journey.
More budgeting advice
Balancing work and university
Business Management student Caitlin shares her real-life experience of what it鈥檚 like to balance a part-time job with university work and assignments.
Caitlin's experience
Save money as a commuter
Living at home during uni can often be a lot cheaper than living in student halls, but the costs of commuting can still add up. We鈥檝e got听four ways to keep your budget in check whilst you鈥檙e at uni.
Budgeting tips
Perks of being a student
You may be put off by terms like 鈥榣oan鈥� and the associated debt that goes with being a student. However, it isn鈥檛 all bad. In fact, there is quite a lot of good. Here are some of the financial benefits and perks of being a uni student.
Student financial benefits
Poku Banks' top ten tips for being finance savvy at university
We asked top finance听influencer Poku Banks听to share his advice on how to manage your finances听when you arrive at university.
Poku's top tips