Budgeting

For many people entering university, money can be a major consideration.

Student finance can be confusing for parents and supporters of undergraduate students, as well as for students themselves. Advance preparation can help set good budgeting habits for the duration of a degree.

Arrange student finance early

As a parent and supporter, you can help your son or daughter by ensuring that they apply for finance once they’ve applied to university, to make sure it’s in place for the start of term. 

Sit down with your son or daughter and go through the student finance application together, ensuring that you provide all the information with regard to parental income etc so that they can complete the application and avoid any delays.

For further information on support available from the UK government, visit the GOV.UK website.

For information on scholarships and bursary packages at Manchester, take a look at our support from The University of Manchester webpage.

At Manchester, we are proud to offer one of the most generous scholarship and bursary packages in the UK. We recommend that you research the help available to your son or daughter at each of the five universities they are applying to, as scholarship and bursary packages vary greatly between institutions.

Banking and managing money

Encourage your son or daughter to open a bank account before they leave for university, which will be suitable for the deposit of any grant, loan or scholarship.

Most students arrive at university with little or no experience in managing money. It is important that you work out a budget plan with them so that they are aware of how much money will be available to them from the beginning of their first semester.

Tips for managing money at university

  • We strongly discourage the use of credit and store cards.
  • Encourage students to budget, save money for later in the year and use their support income to avoid excessive term-time job hours.
  • Remind students that they may spend more money at certain times of the year, such as Welcome (new books and resources) and after exams (celebrating), so they should factor this into their budgeting.

Part-time work

Many students now take a part-time job during their studies to supplement their income and we are ideally placed to help students find local opportunities.

Our Careers Service advertises vacancies at hundreds of organisations in the Greater Manchester area, from retail, customer service and hospitality jobs to web design and translation work. It offers students advice on writing CVs, applying for part-time jobs and going to interviews, and also advises them not to undertake too many hours so that they can balance work with their studies.

The University itself also recruits students for some roles, including student ambassadors and hospitality staff in the Students’ Union.