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| Student Accounts |
| Living Costs |
| Making Money |
| Student Travel |
| The Future |
Paying off your student loan
You will normally start making repayments in the April after you have graduated or stopped attending your course, assuming that your income is over £1,250 per month, (£288 per week or £15,000 per annum). No income that you might have had before the start date will be taken into account in calculating your repayments.
You may chose to pay off your loan more quickly by making voluntary repayments, whether or not your income is above the threshold. Any voluntary repayments should be made direct to SLC, who can advise how to do this. The repayments which you make on the basis of your income will not be reduced, but you will pay off your loan more quickly by making voluntary repayments. Only voluntary repayments of £5 or more will be accepted
ICR Predictor "If you want to know when your student loans will be repaid. All you have to do is contact us in writing or by telephone and explain that you would like to know when you are likely to finish repaying your student loans."
Repayments deducted by your employer will be shown on your pay slip in addition and separate to tax and national insurance.
Once you reach the age of 65 your loan will be cancelled - even if you have not paid it all off.
More details can be found at Student Loans Company Limited
Buying a house
| 1st time buying facts | |
|---|---|
| Average Price | £140,000 |
| Average Deposit | £24,000 |
| Average time it takes to save Deposit | 5 years |
| Average Age | 34 years |
Although mortgages vary, generally you will be allowed to borrow three times your current salary as an individual or two and half times if buying with others. Therefore if you are earning 30,000/year, have 30,000 savings you could borrow 90,000 enabling you to buy a 120,000 house.
Saving so that you can place a large deposit on your property is advisable as it means the mortgage you need to take will be smaller and thus you will have less to repay.
Being prudent while a student might not be enjoyable but it will leave you in good stead for the future.
Renting/ Buying with a friend.
Average Job Salaries
The Average starting salary is £21,000 (median) for 2004 and forecast of a 4.8% rise to £22,000 for 2005, according to the Association of Graduate Recruiters (AGR).
2004 median starting salaries by types of jobs (below).
| Investment banking | £35,000 |
| Consulting | £28,500 |
| Legal work | £28,000 |
| General management | £24,200 |
| Actuarial work | £24,000 |
| Financial management | £24,000 |
| Marketing | £21,500 |
| IT | £21,500 |
| Manufacturing engineering | £21,500 |
| Sales | £21,000 |
| Electrical/electronic engineering | £21,000 |
| Mechanical engineering | £21,000 |
| Human resources | £20,900 |
| Science, research & development | £20,600 |
| Accountancy | £20,000 |
| Civil engineering | £19,800 |
| Logistics | £19,500 |
| Retail management | £19,000 |
| Purchasing | £17,000 |
| All types of jobs | £21,000 |
Source: The AGR Graduate Recruitment Survey 2005 Winter Review