It feels great when you know you are financially stable. It reduces the level of potential stress, helps with long-term money management skills, and you have funds to fall on if you’re ever in need. For those who struggle to make their student loan last until the next semester, here are some helpful tips on how to make your student loan last until April (and beyond).

Have a monthly budget

how to make student loan last

It’s easy to lose track of what you’ve spent your money on and leaves you wondering – ‘Where the hell did it all go?’ Budgeting is a useful tool that can be used to help acknowledge spending habits, and you can make sure your loan money is being spent on things you actually need. By making yourself a monthly budget plan, you can plan how much money you are going to spend each week and what you’re going to spend it on.

Smart shopping

how to make student loan last
Source: Thrifty

Other than the accommodation itself, shopping for food is probably the next biggest expense. An easy way to save your student loan is to smart shop. Offers, deals and discounts will become your best friend. Why not try buying your groceries at stores that sell produce cheaper such as Aldi and Lidl. In fact, studies show that if you were to shop at Aldi instead of Tesco’s you could save more than £1,500 a year if you shopped there weekly. How great is that?

Discounts, discounts and discounts!

how to make student loan last
Source: Partner in Excellence

A privilege we have as students is being able to use student discount (up to 50% off) on virtually everything. Just ask anywhere you can if you can use your student discount card and you can save money and make that student discount last. Have a look at getting a discount when travelling too and check if your eligible for a bus pass and a 16-25 Railcard. Both can help save so much when travelling to and from places.

Create a savings account

The most obvious (yet overlooked) way to make your student loan last until April is to open a savings account. You can transfer money into that account and can be used as ‘Emergency Funds’. Better yet, if you know you’ll spend a large sum of your student loan on things you don’t need, place it into the savings account where you won’t be tempted. 

Eat out less

make your student loan last

I know for us students, eating out with friends is a MUST at least once a week. However, to help ensure your student loan lasts until April, why not swap eating out and buying takeaways to cooking meals at home. Even if you’re not at the standard of Gordon Ramsey, you can Google so many simple recipes to try out. Not only will it save you money but cooking is super fun to try out with your friends!

Get a part-time student job

Finally, another great way to make your student loan last until April (and beyond) is simply getting a part-time student job. Getting a part-time job will mean that you are unlikely to spend your student loan as much. Websites such as Indeed and StudentJobs are a perfect place to start.

If you are looking for more handy tips on how to make your student loan last until April, why not have a read of ‘25 ways to save money as a uni student’ which can be found here. We know semester two can feel a bit stressful – you’re right back from Christmas and all the fun beginning stuff, but not quite near to the end like semester three. That’s why we’ve compiled a list of the best ways to destress during this time.