To understand the financial pressures facing students the Money and Pensions Service partnered with the National Association of Student Money Advisers (NASMA) to commission a unique survey of the UK student population. This research, conducted with 5,118 full-time undergraduate students, examines the student experience of money at university or college.

It shows there are reasons to be positive. Most students feel confident managing their money and pay attention to their finances. For example, three-quarters check their bank balance at least once a week. Over half are satisfied with their financial circumstances and most do not have outstanding borrowing. If they need advice about money, most students will seek it out and around eight in 10 have savings in some form.

But there is still significant cause for concern. Over 431,000 students are finding keeping up with their study costs, including course materials, travel costs and accommodation, a ‘heavy burden’4. One in five find themselves frequently overdrawn and of those, 40% have gone over their overdraft limit or used an unauthorised overdraft.

In total, 38% of students (607,000) have some form of outstanding credit with 18% owing £1,000 or more. A fifth (21%) believes they owe more this year than they did last year, while only 11% believe they owe less. In the last six months, 176,000 students have fallen behind on, or missed, payments on bills or credit for three or more months.

This can have a big impact on their mental health. Almost two-thirds (65%) of students, over a million, have had a negative experience, including mental health difficulties, because of their financial situation. Over half (51%) have experienced stress or anxiety and a third low mood or depression.