This week is Student Money Week and this year’s theme is all about building financial resilience.
Our aim is to improve the financial wellbeing of our students and encourage you to build skills to thrive during your degree and into your future.
Throughout the week we’ll be launching our brand-new Talk Money Drop ins, running some sessions with NatWest, and sharing some top tips from other students.
Talk Money Drop-ins
We’re pleased to announce the launch of our new Talk Money Monday Drop-ins.
Held every Monday, 1pm-2pm, in the Community Hub at Exton Park, these sessions give you the opportunity to drop in to have a chat with one of our Student Money Advisers about any money/finance queries which might be on your mind. The first session will take place on Monday 3 March.
We’ve created these new sessions in response to the feedback you gave us in some of last term’s surveys regarding wanting easier/quicker access to financial information and support.
Whether you’re stumped with budgeting, want some top tips on how to save money, or just need some help navigating your finances at university, these sessions can help. Just let the team know what’s going on and they’ll be able to work out how to support you best.
Our drop-in appointments are around 10 minutes, however if your situation is a little more complicated, that’s no problem – our Money Advisers can book you a longer appointment on another day to go through it in more detail.
NatWest sessions
We’ve worked with NatWest to bring you two exciting free online workshops which will help you gain a deeper understanding of your money, and ensure you have all the tools to manage your money effectively.
You can find all the information on both sessions below, including the Teams link to join.
We look forward to seeing you there!
- Building Blocks
- Monday 3 March
- 10am-11am
- Online
- Meeting link
This session will give you an introduction to banking and what your bank can do for you; it’ll help you gain an in-depth understanding your money and give you some tried and tested strategies to help you budget effectively. We’ll also look at borrowing, and how credit scores work.
- Cost of Living
- Wednesday 5 March
- 2pm-3pm
- Online
- Meeting link
Understand how to tackle the rising cost of day-to-day expenses by exploring budgeting tips, savings strategies, and what to do if you’re dealing with debt.
Student Money Saving Tips
As part of CSU’s Speak Week last year, we asked you for your best money-saving tips and how you keep your budgets in check.
Five categories really stood out as opportunities for you to save money, so read on to get some top tips on how to master that student budget.
Budgeting
- “If you can, budget for emergencies as well as essentials. You never know when an unexpected expense might come up”
- “Divide your money into different pots to make sure you’ve got enough for all your bills.”
- “Have at least one ‘no-spend’ day each week! If possible, put the money you would have spent on that day into your savings.”
- “Budget yourself weekly. I usually set myself a limit, so I don’t overspend.”
- “Track your expenses and review them at the end of the month to see where you can cut down and make adjustments.”
- “Create a budget for each month so you can see what lies ahead. You might need to take on some extra shifts or reduce your spending to balance things. Budgeting lets you find a balance between spending, working, and studying.”
Meal Planning & Food Shopping
- “When food shopping, make a list and don’t shop when you’re hungry!”
- “Look at the price per kg on the price labels in the supermarkets. The cheapest overall price isn’t always best in the long run!”
- “Everything in moderation. Don’t completely cut things out to save money. Be mindful of your spending and figure out what you’d rather compromise on to still have the best time on a budget.”
- “Learning to cook so you get delicious, nutritious, and cheap meals has saved me so much money!”
- “Take your breakfast and lunch so you don’t buy things on campus. Don’t forget your water bottle!”
- “Shopping later at night means you can get things which have been reduced. They usually have short dates on them so make sure you’ll use it in time.”
- “Try the Too Good to Go app. You get huge discounts and stop food going to waste.”
- “Shop at supermarkets which have loyalty cards.”
- “Try own brand products instead of branded. There’s not much difference and they’re much cheaper.”
Shopping
- “Charity shops often have clothes that are donated from high street stores, which you can buy for a discounted price.”
- “Shop around before you buy anything.”
- “Don’t save your card details to websites. It makes spending money way too easy!”
- “Don’t use Buy Now Pay Later websites. Save up and buy it when you can afford it.”
- “Ask if shops accept student discount, even if they don’t advertise it.”
- “Keep your phone at the end of your contract and get a sim-only deal.”
- “Download Unidays, Totum and Studentbeans to make the most of student discounts.”
- “With small spends like coffee and bottles of water, think about the bigger picture and how much your spending comes to over a month or a year. It all adds up!”
Banking
- “Look to switch bank accounts if you’re eligible. There’s lots of switching incentives!”
- “Use a bank account and a savings account to split your money up so you’re not tempted to spend it.”
- “Most bank accounts will break down your spending for you so make sure you’re checking what your account can do for you and using all the features!”
Travel
- “If you travel on buses regularly, you’ll save money by buying weekly or monthly tickets.”
- “Get a rail card if you do a lot of travelling on the train. It pays for itself in no time!”
- “Some banks offer free railcards when you sign up to their student account.”
- “Splitting your train tickets can save you money. Some ticket companies do this automatically when you book a trip. You can use your rail card too!”