A student has spoken of how she has been affected by the cost-of-living crisis, saying rising bills mean she can no longer turn to her parents for support.
Engineering student Francine Mulaya was employed and over worked by her job, until February, where she was made redundant and experienced the crisis front and centre.
This has had a major impact on the UK, where housing costs and inflation have made it increasingly difficult to get by. The cost-of-living crisis has affected everyone, including University Students. Students are expected to live self-sufficiently on maintenance loans and what little money that come from their parents, and if they need to, they are expected to get a part-time job if their maintenance loan and/or the support from their parents is not enough, which normally isn’t.
The impact of the cost-of-living crisis on is not just financial, either. Many find it difficult to balance their studies with the need to work to support themselves, leading to an increase in stress and mental health issues.
Francine said: “I receive financial support from my family only when I need it and if I am severely struggling, I wish for more support but feel some sense of guilt, …asking my parents to help me, …”.
This, combined with rising food and travel costs, means that many students like Francine are struggling to make ends meet. The government has promised to do more to address these issues, it remains to be seen whether these efforts will be enough to ease the burden on those affected.
“My parents are the ones who help during these hard times even when the crisis is affecting them, they don’t want to see me suffering, they want me to come home, but I want to get another job here near university, so I don’t have to rely on them during such a hard time”.
According to the results of the 2022 student money survey the national average of what students spend a month, excluding rent, is £506. Across the country four in five students worry about making ends meet, to the point where it affects their social health significantly.