The cost of studying

Going to university can bring with it many new experiences.

One of the most daunting can be having to fend for yourself financially for the first time.

Students get financial help, of course, in the form of a student loan.

Most students get £4,000 a year but this can be more for those in London and less if they live at home.

Poverty

The National Union of Students has calculated however, that after paying for accommodation, this leaves students with an average of just £30 a week.

TOP BUDGETING TIPS Pay for your accommodation first, or you might spend the money on something else. Manage without a credit card if you can - they're a big temptation. Buy in bulk - you and your housemates can save money by shopping together. Keep records of your spending - then you can see where you need to cut back. Use a pay-as-you-go mobile. Being away from home, your phone costs can easily get out of hand. Resist peer pressure - don't be forced into spending you can't afford. Ask for advice if you get into money trouble. You won't be the only one and you might learn about other funding options.

This means that almost all students graduate heavily in debt; indeed, the average student will leave college or university in 2003 around £12,500 in the red.

The University of Teesside in MIddlesbrough has been a university for 10 years and has 17,000 students, 60% of whom are from the north-east of England.

Affordable

A third of the students don't pay tuition fees, and compared to other student towns the area is reasonably affordable.

Most rooms in the halls of residence cost just £31 a week and a terraced home in Middlesbrough can be bought for around £15,000.

And yet despite this, almost all the students here will soon find themselves deep in debt.

"The travel expenses are ridiculous because I live at home," says Ellie Liddel, a first-year undergraduate.

"You have to get a part-time job to get through."

"It's not too bad now it's my final year," says Alezena Nortie. "My mum helped out and there's always your loan, of course."

Tough

"It's very tough, but if you want it bad enough you have to just do it," says Helen Booth, a single parent and a mature student at the university.

Garry Toulouse is from the university's student services department.

"These days debt is a structured part of student life," he says.

"You're always going to come out with debt unless you're from an extremely wealthy background.

"It means there's an additional pressure for students. They're making a real investment on their future, and it also raises expectations on what we can offer here.

"We respond by hopefully giving them more support and encouragement to get through."

"My message to new students when it comes to finance would be 'take it easy', but laying down heavy rules about budgeting isn't going to work.

"We try to say 'work out what's important to you, and if you're not sure come and talk to us'.

"We can access various funding schemes for them, and minimise expenditure."

Martin Ings is president of the Teesside Student Union.

"The price of living away from home around here is among the cheapest in the country at about £35 a week so we're lucky," he says.

"But elsewhere it's around £48 and this is a considerable expense.

"The abolition of student grants and introduction of tuition fees means that support services need to be in place to help those who find it too expensive."