With the average student debt escalating to £3,523 per year, it may be of some comfort that Southampton students’ living costs appear to be amongst the lowest in the country. According to the recently published Student Living Index, Southampton ranked third as the most cost-effective city in which to study. Durham emerged as the most expensive and students there could find themselves more than £1,000 worse-off a year than those studying in Glasgow, which the Student Living Index declares is the cheapest place to study.

The survey, conducted by the Royal Bank of Scotland, calculated the average living costs of students at 21 universities in the UK by dividing their students’ weekly expenditure by their average weekly income. Living costs included cigarettes, DVDs and entertainment. Liverpool offers the cheapest accommodation at £52.10 per week, although Southampton is not far behind with an average weekly rent of £54.

Unsurprisingly, London has the most expensive housing costs which total £81.48 a week. Despite such high student rent London is only ranked in the middle of the index. London-based students also work the hardest; their part-time employment takes, on average, 15 hours out of their weekly leisure time. Although Liverpool’s students are fortunate enough to have the lowest rent, they appear to work the longest hours.

A quarter of the 30,000 students who undertake part-time work whilst studying, work more than 20 hours a week. As many as 6,000 students said that they supported themselves through university by doing modelling and acting, and over 1,000 students managed to find part-time work as party magicians! Most students opt for the more conventional routes, such as in the retail sector or the bar and catering industry. This coincides with the £940 million which students spend on alcohol each year. From such jobs students can expect to earn an average of £5.57 an hour (£1.57 more than the minimum wage for 18-21 year olds). The average student can expect to collect £102.80 a week in part-time earnings.

One-third of those who are not in part-time work support themselves by working during vacations, and nearly half of all students rely on their parents to help finance their living costs. The 40% of students who do work are expected to earn £1.5 billion in this year alone.

The average weekly student living cost is £121.40, over half of which is spent on rent. The Student Living Index highlights that the student population spend near to £1 billion a year on alcohol - three times the amount spent to purchase books and course materials.

Despite the publicity surrounding student debt and the introduction of top-up fees, fewer than two in five students consider the cost of living when choosing where to study. One-third say they are not prepared to manage their finances when they arrive at university. A separate survey conducted by the BMRB Research Group suggests that many students are ill-prepared for how much they are going to end up owing by the time they graduate. Almost 70% of the 15 to 19 year-olds questioned expect their parents to support them. Half estimate their debts will total £6,000 at the end of their degree. The average student debt after a three-year course is £10,569. Andrea Aitken-Paige, Head of Student Banking at the Royal Bank of Scotland, suggests that "the key to avoiding the potential financial pitfalls of student living is simple forward-planning."

The publication of the Student Living Index and its declaration that Durham is the most expensive place to study has left Durham University chiefs bemused and claiming that "the cost of living certainly is no greater" in Durham than elsewhere. They blame the lack of part-time jobs available for students and the relatively small size of the city as the cause for them falling to the bottom of the table. Professor John Lennon, at Glasgow Caledonian University, stated that "student debt is still a major issue among undergraduates in the city and that should not be ignored."

This sentiment is echoed by the Southampton University Students’ Union, which were ranked significantly higher. Vice President Communications, Laura Fewell says, "we do not regard Southampton as any more "cost-effective" a city than any other. The Student Living Index overlooks the biggest issue of all – that students have to work to cover the costs of studying at university because student loans simply do not stretch far enough. The scale of the problem will only grow with the introduction of top-up fees. Without students, where are the doctors and IT consultants of tomorrow? Some people with great potential may choose to opt out of university because of the costs".

The Most Cost Effective Cities

1

Glasgow

2

Aberdeen

3

Southampton

4

Liverpool

5

Cardiff

debt,students,part-time,cost,index