The Unexpected Ways the Cost of Living Crisis Impacts Students

More students than ever are struggling to make ends meet as they juggle their studies with an income that feels increasingly stretched by the ongoing cost of living crisis.

Coventry University students found themselves surprised that it was more than just grocery prices rising (Photo: Mark4harrison/flickr)

Victoria Tolmie-Loverseed, an advocate for students facing difficulties during the crisis, says that: “students are being left behind.”

“The student finance system is just not keeping pace with the real cost of living.”

Increasing numbers of students are getting part-time work or needing more support from their parents than they expected when entering university. Students are finding themselves unprepared for how increased costs are impacting every aspect of life as a student.

“Universities need to provide students with much more accurate information about the cost of living in the city they are located in.”

I spoke to local students about where the cost of living crisis is impacting them, that they didn’t expect when coming to university.

Nights out

Kiera, a 2nd-year Fine Art student, says that she was surprised at how much money she was spending on nights out when she got to uni.

Wetherspoons prices were increased by 13% in August (Photo: Kelvin Skee/flickr)

“I think obviously you know drinks at a bar aren’t going to be cheap, but even the cheap options now are more expensive than they used to be.”

“It feels like there's not really an affordable option for a night out anymore, even [Wether]spoons prices have increased quite a lot from where they were like a year ago.”

Wetherspoons is a chain of pubs known for their cheap prices for food and drinks, but there have been a string of price increases in the past few years, with many popular items being over a pound more expensive than they were not long ago.

Lunch

Vince, a 2nd-year Psychology student, says he’s found one of his main unexpected expenses to be buying lunches while at university. 

“Just buying cheap lunches during the day has really added up more than I expected it to.”

Many students buy lunch from local shops in breaks between lectures, while others forgo this cost by packing a lunch for themselves.

Vince said: “I don’t make my own lunch because it’s just another thing to worry about really, and buying lunch doesn’t really feel expensive until you look back on your week and it’s 20 pounds gone from your bank account”

Accommodation

Third-year psychology student Trent says that while he knew grocery prices were increasing, he was surprised by the fact that his housing expenses have increased as well.

“I’ve lived in the same accommodation since my first year, and it has gotten more expensive to pay for the same room, which seems sort of ridiculous to me.”

“I think I see a lot about how food is getting more expensive, but not a lot about how paying for accommodation is, it has definitely surprised me to see how much the cost is rising to be honest.”

Reports have shown that most maintenance loans barely cover rent payments for student accommodation, and many struggle to make their loans stretch to cover all their essential payments, which students say was a reality they weren’t adequately prepared for when entering university.