Mature Students: Cost of Living & Budgeting

The Cost of Living in Dublin:

As a Mature Student, you have an advantage over school leavers in that you have most likely already been living independently and have some experience in managing your finances. Nevertheless, budgeting your income as a full-time student may require a little more work. You income may be adversely affected; you may have to learn to adjust your spending habits to accommodate this. The table below is an indicator of the approximate average costs incurred each week, month and academic year by students in Dublin:

How to Budget your Income:

As you can see from the above table, living as a student in Dublin can be quite expensive. In order to manage, the best thing to do is make a budget. This should be based on your income - whether it includes a part-time job, the Higher Education Grant, the Back To Education Allowance or an allowance from your parents where applicable. You should allocate money for essentials such as rent and food first. The Irish National Consumer Agency's website, http://www.itsyourmoney.ie/, has a very good budget calculator - using it will help you to detemine exactly what you spend each month against your income. 

Click here to use the National Consumer Agency's Budget Calculator

Click here to visit the Student Finance page on the It's Your Money website

The Money Advice & Budgeting Service (or MABS) also offers excellent advice on how to manage your finances. It defines exactly what a budget is, how to determine precisely how much you earn and how much your outgoing payments are. It also offers advice on how to maximise your income while keeping your spending to a minimum.

Click here to see MABS Budgeting Advice

Contact Us

The Mature Student Support Service is here to help you with any financial questions you may have - just call Bob O Mhurcu at (01) 402 7658 or email ms.info@dit.ie

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