Students Tell Us How They Save Money At Uni

Just don't tell their parents how they spend money at uni.

1. Take cash out and leave the cards at home.

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"Simple. If you go out with a tenner, all you'll spend is a tenner. After a while, it actually becomes a bit of a competition to see how little you can get away spending.

"Night out for a pound? Easy!"

2. Finding out when the supermarkets start their reductions.

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"It's not at 11pm like you'd imagine either, because by then they've got everything out for tomorrow. Rather, it's around 8pm–9pm when there's bargains to be had. Especially the hot meat deli counter. Always the deli counter."

3. Or even better, nab a part-time job where you'll be able to take home unsold food.

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"It's rare, but you'll always hear students whispering about that friend of a friend who worked at a sandwich shop and fed his whole house regularly with free sandwiches.

"It's like the classic university urban legend."

4. And of course, there's always the "brand ambassador" option.

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"Some brands will pay you to be a 'student ambassador', which usually means helping out at events, handing out free samples, and generally telling everyone how much you love them.

"It's usually energy drinks and things, but sometimes the local chicken shop has use for a mascot too!"

5. Trying not to go food shopping when you're hungry (or hungover).

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"Planning meals in advance is more effort, but works out in the long run and can deter you from assaulting the slushie machine.

"Also, avoiding buying anything from the uni or SU cafes. You're better off getting a kebab at the end of the night. Although, you could just as easily go home and cook chips..."

6. Ransacking Freshers' Fairs.

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"Everyone knows about the free pens, pads, lighters, condoms you can grab for yourself. But it's not just your own Freshers' Fair either. If you live in a big city, you can go take advantage of the free stuff people are willing to give you at other local universities too."

7. Stocking up over the holidays.

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"When you're home, most parents are usually keen to help you out and make sure that you're not wasting away because you spent all your loan on a hoverboard.

"So things like bog roll, toiletries, possibly the microwave. Anything that's not nailed down really. Call it the Food Bank of Mum and Dad."

8. Student-friendly websites.

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"Student Beans is really good for listing all the places you can get student discounts. Likewise, The Student Room is also really handy."

9. Loitering around course open days for the free food.

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"Admittedly, this doesn't happen as often as it used to, but you can't turn down a free canapé. Or, a free anything."

10. Keep an eye on what gets left behind at the end of the year.

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"Students leave behind absolutely loads at the end of each year, just because they can't carry it or lack the space to take it back. I mean, you never knew even you needed an indoor paddling pool until you heard there was one going free."

11. Don't fall for the Uni textbook scam.

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"I had this massive reading list and we barely touched half of the books during the course. Speak to someone in the year above, and ask them what you actually need. Buy them second-hand if you absolutely have to."

12. Take part in market research.

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"There are worse things to fill your spare time with. You can earn as much as £50 an hour for answering questions about how much you use your smartphone, or what you buy at the supermarket.

"There are also online survey sites like e-rewards.co.uk that give you supermarket loyalty points, which can pay for your shopping."

13. Cosying up to your landlord.

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"This is an easy one. You're MUCH more likely to get your deposit back if you've spent the past year buttering them up and being an 'exemplary' tenant. I guess you could also just be an exemplary tenant..."

Here's another helpful tip. Barclays Student Contents Insurance lets you only pay the cover you need, rather than for the cover you don’t.

If you're going away to study, your things might not be covered by contents insurance at home.

Whether you're in halls or renting, student contents insurance lets you choose the level of cover you need to insure your things against loss, theft, or damage while they're in your student home. Plus, it covers when your things are in transit!

Find out more at www.barclays.co.uk/studentcontentscover. Make sure you know what's covered and what isn't.