Managing Living Expenses: Tips for International Students
Living abroad provides a unique experience to the students. However, living in a foreign land can be challenging if students face financial burdens. This limits the students to create & manage their expenses. This blog will provide tips for international students to utilise their financial resources & save money effectively.
Navigating Living Expenses Abroad
Living abroad can be pretty difficult for the students. Students not only face challenges in adapting to new cultures, making new friends, gaining independence, and getting exposure but also in managing expenses, creating a budget & following it. However, one of the major difficulties faced by the students is managing living expenses. Staying abroad can be expensive for students since the cost of living abroad is higher than in India. This can create a financial burden on the students if their budget is not managed properly.
Expenses like accommodation, public transport, food and leisure can cause economic problems for students. There are multiple ways of managing living expenses & saving money.
Budgeting Tips for International Students
- Fix a Budget: Fixing a budget will help the students to plan their living expenses. By making a budget, they can understand how much they are supposed to spend per month on essentials, accommodation, food, groceries, etc. This fixation will help them to stick to their budget & avoid paying more.
- Accommodation: One of the best ways of managing living expenses is choosing a student-friendly accommodation. Staying alone will not be an advantage for those students who have a rigid budget. So, the most affordable way of managing living expenses is to stay with roommates or flatmates. This helps them split the bills, reducing the financial burden by paying them together.
- Living in Suburbans: Living in the city centre can be expensive for students. So, students living abroad can manage their day-to-day expenses by taking care of the most significant thing, i.e., location. Instead of living in the city centre, students can live near the suburban areas where the cost of living is pretty affordable compared to the city centre.
- Using Public Transport: Using public transport, bicycle or walking to the university is one of the most effective ways of managing living expenses. It lowers the cost of travelling compared to booking a taxi or a cab.
- Cooking Your Meals: Cooking your food will help you manage your expenses. It not only saves money but allows you to enjoy the food you like. This is a better alternative to managing monthly costs compared to ordering food or eating outside.
- Part-time Work: Another way to manage living expenses & increase your income is through part-time jobs. These jobs help students to pay their rent and electricity bills or pay for their living costs. Foreign countries provide different types of jobs like bartenders, servers, copyists, type-writers, etc.
- Discounts for Students: The most convenient method of managing living expenses is to maximise the use of discounts available for students. To do the same, students should carry a valid student ID that allows them to get the benefits from it.
- Focus on Monthly Essentials: To effectively use the money, students should first utilise the money for buying monthly essentials like groceries, vegetables, fruits, etc. Once the essentials are catered, the extra money left can be used for travelling, dining out, etc. For buying vegetables & fruits, students can patronise the local markets over supermarkets. This will help them to save more since the farmer’s market provides fresh produce at a lower price compared to supermarkets.
Cost of Living for International Students
The cost of living abroad can be quite expensive for students. This cost varies from country to country & is dependent on multiple factors. For example, in the USA, the average cost of living is 1,57,626 INR per month, while in the UK, it can cost around 1,14,000 INR. In countries like Germany, the average cost of living is €1070 or 95,765 INR per month. In Australia, the cost of living is 94,025 INR per month.
Having an idea about the average cost of living will help students to plan their living budget effectively & to choose a country after considering all the factors
| Countries | Average Cost of living (per month) |
|---|---|
| USA | $1,889.56 (1,57,626 INR) |
| UK | ￡1,095 (1,14,109 INR) |
| Germany | €1070 (95,765 INR) |
| Australia | AU$ 1,730 (94,025 INR) |
| Canada | CA$ 1510 (91,732.50 INR) |
| Ireland | €1210 (1,08,295 INR) |
Also read – Ways to Fund your Overseas Education
How to Track Monthly Expenses
- Categorise your expenses: Students can categorise their monthly expenditures. This segmentation will allow them to manage their living expenses & to avoid over-expenses.
- Use Apps: One of the most effective ways to track living expenses is to use an app. Features provided by the app allow customers to keep track of their living expenses. Apps like Day-to Day Expenses, PocketGuard, etc are some useful apps developed for tracking daily expenses & managing them.
- Separate Bank Accounts: Having separate accounts will help students manage living expenses & other expenditures separately. This will help them to manage their living expenses & avoid economic strains effectively.
Conclusion
Every student’s dream is to get into their dream university & get the best opportunities for themselves. And living a hassle-free life is easy if students channel their resources wisely. Living abroad isn’t very difficult for students if they try to manage their expenses, effectively plan their budget & follow it. The journey gets smoother once the financial problems are addressed.
FAQs
How to manage living expenses abroad?
The first step is to create a budget. Students should also leave room for unforeseen expenses. Stick to your budget, if you have financial strain. Students should also adopt methods that allow them to save better.
How much should an international student budget per month?
International students can plan their budget based on the country that they are living in. Countries like the USA & UK have a high cost of living. However, creating a budget & managing their expenses efficiently will help students to save money & channel their financial resources. The table listed above provides data about the cost of living in different countries.
What are some affordable countries to study for Indian students?
Germany, Malaysia, France, Denmark, Norway, Ireland, etc are some of the most affordable countries for Indian students.
If you are an aspirant looking to study at your dream university, book an appointment with AdmitX today and start your applications early to avail yourself of all the benefits.
