**Facing the Crunch: How UK University Students Are Working to Make Ends Meet**
As the clock ticked towards 4 p.m., Tianna Hunkins was already preparing for a hectic evening. Her university lecture ended at the same time her shift at a local fast-food restaurant began—a schedule she’d grown used to. Dressed inconspicuously in her work uniform under a hoodie, the 19-year-old from Nottingham made sure she was always on time. For Tianna, and a growing number of university students in the UK, balancing paid work with academic study has become a necessity, not a choice. The root cause: maintenance loans, designed to cover living costs, simply aren’t stretching far enough.
### The Financial Reality
Recent research by the Higher Education Policy Institute (HEPI) paints a stark picture. According to their findings, students in England need approximately £61,000 across a standard three-year degree to maintain what is considered a “minimum socially acceptable standard of living.” However, the maximum maintenance loan covers only about half of what a first-year student typically needs. A separate survey by Save the Student found that, on average, the gap between maintenance loans and actual living costs is now £502 per month.
This shortfall forces students into tough situations. Many, like Tianna, have to work demanding part-time jobs just to get by, while others make lengthy daily commutes from their family homes to avoid the soaring cost of university accommodation.
### Tianna’s Story: Hard Work and Sacrifice
Now in her second year at Northumbria University, Tianna expects to receive a maintenance loan of £4,915 this academic year. Her rent alone comes to £7,932—leaving her with a significant deficit. Fortunately, her parents are able to help with accommodation, which means her loan can go towards essentials like food, transportation, social activities, and the expensive law books required for her course. Tianna also hopes to set aside money from her job to save for a future house deposit.
But university for Tianna isn’t just about studying; she also wants to enjoy hobbies and make friends. To fund her social life and sports activities like netball and ice-skating, she knew she’d need a part-time job. After submitting more than 100 job applications, she landed a position at a fast-food restaurant. During her first year, she often worked up to 30 hours a week, with some shifts ending as late as 2 a.m. With public transport no longer running at that hour, she’d spend £8 on an Uber to get home safely and ensure she got enough sleep before her 9 a.m. lectures.
This grueling schedule came at a cost. Tianna sometimes had to skip valuable academic and career opportunities. For instance, she missed out on a legal internship because she was scheduled to work. “I wouldn’t put myself through this stress if I didn’t have to,” she says.
### A Widespread Challenge
Tianna’s experience is far from unique. The amount students can borrow for living costs in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland increased slightly this year, with the maximum maintenance loan now set at £10,544 for students living away from home and outside London. The actual amount a student can borrow depends on household income, meaning many students receive far less.
Despite these increases, more students than ever are taking on part-time work. Data from HEPI and Advance HE indicates that 68% of UK students now have term-time jobs, up from just 35% in 2015. The need to work is reshaping the university experience for a large segment of the student population.
### The Commuter Student: Faith’s Story
For Faith Webb, a 20-year-old linguistics student at the University of Manchester, the numbers simply didn’t add up. Her maintenance loan covered accommodation in her first year, but when she and her friends planned to rent a flat together for their second year, she realized her loan wouldn’t cover the higher rent.
Unwilling to move back into halls, which she hadn’t enjoyed previously, or to rent alone (which she couldn’t afford), Faith made a difficult decision: she would live at home with her parents in Birkenhead, Wirral, and commute to Manchester for her studies. Each day, she faces a 6:30 a.m. bus to Liverpool, a train to Manchester, and then a 20