Cost of Living - Student Guide
Cost of Living
By planning your budget before you arrive at SAE Oxford, you'll be able to stay on top of your finances.
However, cost of living varies significantly from student to student, so you will need to think realistically about what you will spend.
Student Budget Calculator
The International Student Calculator is very useful and will help you plan and manage your money for your studies in the UK
The International Student Calculator is there to help you plan and manage your money for study in the UK.
The UNIAID Student Life Wiki is an interactive uni guide which allows students to view and edit articles about their town, University, living costs, and much more.
Preparing a Budget
It is a good idea to analyse your income and expenditure in a spreadsheet. Each column may be for a month (or for a week or for a term if you prefer). Keep any bills, bank statements or payslips which you receive, and enter the amounts into the spreadsheet (including future bills such as course instalments). At first you may need to use estimates, but you can make these more accurate over time. This will help you to manage your money more carefully and to avoid financial difficulties.
If you notice that your savings are falling more quickly than you can afford, reduce your expenditure on non-essential things (such as alcohol or cigarettes), try to find cheaper ways of shopping, and consider moving into cheaper accommodation. If this is not enough, ask for advice. Avoid building up large unpaid balances on credit cards, as this can be a very expensive way to borrow money.
Transport Costs
Typically bus fares can range from £2.20 single to £2.50 return on the Park & Ride or £1.80 single to £2.80 return on Oxford Buses - this can be more depending on the journey you take.
Oxford Buses also offer passengers ‘The Key' this is a re-chargeable bus pass that saves you money, time and hassle.
It offers you big savings off the cost of a Daily Return ticket - with discounts of up to 73%.
There are 3 different types of key.
- Time-Based key
- Multi-Trip key
- 5-Day Carnet
Each key type is designed to match different travel patterns. Make sure you maximise your savings by buying the right kind of key.
Taxi
Hackney Carriage (Black Cab) fares start at £2.30 for the first 80 metres or part thereof but increase the further the distance that you travel and also depends on the time and day.
Food
Allow £140 a month approx for food and domestic shopping for one person. If you prefer eating out Oxford has a very cosmopolitan choice of cuisine at a broad range of prices depending on where you go and what you eat.
Social Costs
A quiet night in a local pub in the city could cost less than £10 depending on where you go and what you do.
