A single student will need around £17,500 to cover living expenses for a full calendar year although you might be able to make savings in some areas, for example, if you go home to parents during summer, you may not have to pay for rent, utilities, etc. during this period.
Monthly Total (no children, living away from home) = £1,450~
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TV Licence* (if applicable) | |
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Monthly Subscriptions** (e.g. Gym/Netflix/Spotify/etc.) | |
Childcare** (if applicable) | |
*Only 30% of students pay for a TV license, an alternative may be to subscribe to a cheaper subscription service e.g. NOW TV, Netflix, Prime Video, Disney+, etc.
**These prices can vary widely and may be significantly higher
Additionally, this doesn't include any non-student loan debts that students may have been paying off e.g. credit cards.
You may be able to reduce your accommodation costs by staying outside of Glasgow City Centre.
For those with children, childcare costs can vary widely but a rough estimate would be £920 per month per child (not including their living costs such as food, after school clubs, toys, clothes, etc.).
Public Transport
Often buying weekly/monthly tickets works out cheaper, take a look at the travel options below:
- Strathclyde Partnership for Transport (SPT) - Cheapest of all is the 10 week zone card for unlimited travel by rail, subway, most buses and some ferries in Strathclyde.
- Citylink - Best for students travelling from outside the Strathclyde area, for example Stirling, Falkirk and Perth. Check the Citylink website for current offers.
- ScotRail - A rail card will grant holders 1/3 off all rail travel nationwide (after 10am). To apply go to the rail card website.
- First Bus - They offer options for students. These change regularly so check the First Bus website for up to date pricing.
Driving your car
If you planning on driving to university, remember this can be expensive and you will need to take into account not only the parking, but also the fuel costs , road tax, insurance and if any unexpected repairs pop up! Parking in the city centre can be expensive (you'll have to either pay at the machine by the roadside or use the RingGo App, check out the car parks close and if you are driving, think about car sharing!
From 1st June 2023 the Low Emission Zone (LEZ) will come into force in Glasgow City Centre. All vehicles entering the city centre zone area will need to meet the less-polluting emission standards or face a penalty charge. Check the Glasgow City Council Website for more info.
SAAS funded students
There is a contribution element towards travel costs included in your Student Loan.
Nursing, Paramedic and Allied Health students can apply for help towards placement travel if eligible. See SAAS for more information.
If you are having difficulty meeting the costs of your travel to and from GCU, or you have exceptionally high travel costs, you can apply for extra help towards travel through the Discretionary Fund.
With nearly two-and-a-half million students planning to start or return to university in September, the Association of British Insurers (ABI) is urging students to make sure their valuables are insured and to protect their belongings against theft or damage as the new year kicks off.
- Check your parents’ and university’s policies – it may be possible for an existing home insurance policy to be extended to cover possessions at university, or, there may be an insurance cover already in place in student halls. Check to see if there are any limits on the value of your possessions and if so, consider taking out a separate policy. If you are staying in privately rented accommodation, make sure you keep your door locked (this goes for gym lockers as well), and remember to not leave anything valuable behind outside of term time.
- Shop around for the best deal – when it comes to buying any kind of insurance, it is always worth shopping around to find the best deal that works for you and ensure that the cover you are being offered is adequate - use comparison sites.
- Don’t leave valuables unattended –avoid leaving valuables like laptops unattended when you are out and about, as this increases the chance of theft.
- Consider marking and hiding your valuables – hide your valuables at home and when your room or property is unoccupied, keep your valuables away from view. Security mark your valuables with your details or register them on www.immobilise.co.uk, a police-supported national property register, to help police identify them if they do go missing.
- Lock your windows and doors – if you are moving into student halls, to minimise risk, remember to shut your windows and lock the door when you are out of your room. For those moving into private accommodation, make sure your front and back doors are strong and secure, with good quality locks.
