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The Independent
11-08-2025
- General
- The Independent
Why part-time job may not be enough for university students to meet basic standard of living
University students in England must undertake more than 20 hours of paid work a week to meet the basic standard of living, a new report has suggested. The pressures of part-time work are 'squeezing out' the other elements of a university experience such as studying, sports, societies and socialising, according to the Higher Education Policy Institute (Hepi) think tank. University sector leaders have suggested that cost-of-living pressures are affecting young people's choices – with more opting to stay living at home for university and more taking on part-time work alongside their studies. Hepi has called for maintenance support to be increased so that all students can reach a 'minimum socially acceptable standard of living'. The findings come as students in England, Wales and Northern Ireland receive their A-level and Level 3 BTec results on Thursday, with many finding out if they have secured a university place. A report from Hepi, TechnologyOne and the Centre for Research in Social Policy (CRSP) at Loughborough University has suggested how much first-year students need for a 'minimum socially acceptable standard of living' that covers the basics and full participation in university life. It estimated a student in England will need around £61,000 over the course of a three-year degree, or around £77,000 if studying in London, to reach a minimum socially acceptable standard of living – all excluding tuition fees. For students in England, the maximum annual maintenance loan (up to £10,544), which is available only to people from low-income households, covers just half the costs faced by first-year students, the report said. It also found that even with the highest levels of maintenance support, students in England must work more than 20 hours per week to meet a basic standard of living. Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson has said the government is 'looking at all of the options' for how to support university students facing costs. When asked about the cost-of-living pressures facing university students, Ms Phillipson said the government recognises that there is 'still more to do' to tackle some of the disparities that young people experience. She said: 'I do want all students to be able to get the full benefits of their time at university, to be able to take up internships, study trips (and) other work experience opportunities. 'I don't want students from less well-off backgrounds to be deterred from doing that because of having to take on more hours of paid work.' Last year, the government announced that undergraduate tuition fees in England, which have been frozen at £9,250 since 2017, will rise to £9,535 for the 2025-26 academic year. It also announced that maintenance loans will increase in line with inflation in the 2025-26 academic year to help students with their living costs. The latest report from Hepi has suggested students might be expected to undertake some part-time work, such as 10 hours of paid employment a week, but the remainder should be covered by maintenance support. It has also called for maintenance support to be 'pegged to inflation' and for the household income thresholds to be increased so parents do not need to contribute to their child's living costs until they have enough money to meet a basic standard of living for themselves. Nick Hillman, director of Hepi, said: 'Maintenance support is currently woefully inadequate, leading students to live in substandard ways, to take on a dangerous number of hours of paid employment on top of their full-time studies or to take out commercial debts at high interest rates. 'We hope our results will lead to deeper conversations about the insufficiency of the current maintenance support packages, how much the imputed parental contribution should be and whether it is unreasonable to expect most full-time students to have to find lots of paid work even during term time.' Josh Freeman, one of the authors of the report, said: 'These findings demonstrate three serious risks to UK higher education: access to higher education becomes more unequal, the quality of the student experience suffers and the sustainability of the sector is put at risk. 'The harm students currently face cannot be overstated. 'Too many students are struggling to cover their basic costs, let alone participate fully in higher education. 'It is not only good policy: there is a moral imperative to give students a fair chance of succeeding and thriving in higher education.' A spokesperson for Universities UK said: 'Going to university is an investment in your future, and no-one should have their experience of higher education limited due to financial pressures. 'Universities already offer scholarships, bursaries and hardship support for students who are struggling, but this research shows that the maintenance package just doesn't go far enough. 'This is why we are calling on the government to increase maintenance support offered to students to better track inflation and living costs, so that everyone with the potential to succeed can do so, whatever their background.'
ABC News
16-07-2025
- Business
- ABC News
Connection to mining brings Peruvians to Western Australia's Goldfieds
Food is the biggest thing mining student Roberto Huapaya Montes misses from home. Five months ago, the Peruvian national moved to Kalgoorlie. "I don't have the magic to make my Peruvian food," he said. "I have to adapt." Almost 600 kilometres from Perth in WA's outback, the red dirt town might seem worlds apart from his Latin American home. The similarities between Peru and Kalgoorlie are not immediately obvious, but Mr Huapaya Montes said there were lots to be found. "I also come from a mining country, so it's pretty familiar, but at the same time different," he said. Mr Huapaya Montes is one of a handful of Peruvian students studying at the Western Australian School of Mines. He was keen to explore a new culture after completing his undergraduate degree in the country's capital, Lima. It was the mining on Kalgoorlie's doorstep that made it an attractive place to study for Mr Huapaya Montes. "You go with your work uniform and you go to the street, you go to the supermarket," he said. "It's more the identity." Peru and Australia both boast positions as global leaders in mining exports. Mining accounts for around 63 per cent of Peru's total exports, led by copper, gold, zinc and iron. Peru's ambassador Vitaliano Gallardo Valencia said the South American country looked to learn a lot from Australian mining processes. Hoping to strengthen the ties with Western Australia's mining industry, the ambassador made a stop in Kalgoorlie-Boulder on a recent trip to the state. "Like the technology sector, you can have the impression you are in the centre of the industry in Silicon Valley," Mr Gallardo Valencia said. Mr Gallardo Valencia said greater connectivity with the world had made Western Australia an incentive for more Peruvians to travel to the state. "The journey to arrive in Australia was more of a tourist stop," he said. "You leave Lima by plane, you stop in Santiago, and from Santiago to Easter Island, from Easter Island to Tahiti, from Tahiti to Sydney, from Sydney to Perth. "You can't perceive how important changes in connecting our countries have been." The relationship between the two countries is also underpinned by a free trade agreement signed in 2020. In times of global trade uncertainty, Mr Gallardo Valencia said maintaining strong partnerships in the Pacific was at the forefront. "This is the moment when you see who your partners are," he said. "We need to be a reliable source of critical minerals, and we need to be open as a country with an open market economy to ensure the flow of rare earth minerals to the rest of the globe." Australian Mining Equipment Services and Technologies (METs) were set to be among the benefits of a zero-tariff agreement with Peru. In 2017, METs were Australia's top export to Peru, according to the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, valued at close to $77 million. Mr Gallardo Valencia said modern mining required an increasingly diverse set of skills. "You sometimes think that the only point of connection is geology, metallurgy, mining engineering," he said. He said Peru was looking to Australia for innovation in areas such as AI, environmental sustainability, working with First Nations communities, and encouraging more women to enter the mining industry. Mr Huapaya Montes would like to see more sustainable mining practices in his country. He hoped to take what he had learnt from Australia back to Peru once he graduated. "Now we have to be aware we have to give the next generation what we've been given," Mr Huapaya Montes said. While he might miss Peruvian food, Mr Huapaya Montes has found a community of other Latin Americans who like to cook together on the weekends. He has enjoyed sharing his culture with other students at his university. "We danced salsa, and then an Aussie was teaching us how to dance," he said. "It's a really good community."
Daily Mail
25-06-2025
- Lifestyle
- Daily Mail
My urgent warning to everyone shopping at Kmart this winter: 'I know it's $15 but do not use it'
A $15 winter 'essential' from Kmart is causing major regret for some Aussie shoppers, who are learning the hard way that budget buys can come with sky-high consequences - namely, exorbitant electricity bills. A number of Aussies who are feeling the winter chill have taken to social media in recent days, urging followers to not make the same mistake as they did. They are warning shoppers not to be fooled by the low price tag of Kmart's popular portable fan heater, cautioning that it may be guzzling power at an alarming rate. One of the warnings comes from Sydney-based mum Jaz, who posted a now-viral PSA video that's been viewed more than 545,000 times. 'Quick PSA for some of you girlies that are spending your first winter out of home,' Jaz said. 'Do not use the Kmart heater. I know they're $15 - don't use it.' She goes on to explain that despite only using the compact fan heater briefly to warm her bedroom at night, the results were financially devastating. 'Winter living in Sydney I used a Kmart heater just to heat up my room every night, it wasn't even on for that long and my power bill was $1000 for a month,' she said in disbelief. 'Just get some fluffy socks, a dressing gown, an Oodie and you'll be alright. Hot chocolates are way cheaper than a Kmart heater.' Jaz's video sparked a wave of similar confessions in the comments, with young renters and students echoing the same horror stories of bill shock after plugging in the seemingly innocent white plastic fan heater, which is available in-store and online. Another Sydney woman, Harriet Burns, posted her own TikTok shortly after, confirming to FEMAIL that her friends were also left out of pocket due to the energy-sapping device. '$15 to buy, $500 to run,' Harriet captioned the video of her snuggled in a large, fluffy pink dressing gown instead of relying on her heater for warmth. While Kmart's budget heater boasts portability and instant warmth, what it lacks is energy efficiency. The appliance, like most small fan heaters, uses resistive heating, meaning it draws a lot of power in a short amount of time - often between 1800 to 2400 watts per hour. That's significantly more than other home appliances like fridges or LED lights. When left on for even a couple of hours each night, especially in poorly insulated homes or bedrooms with single-pane windows, the cost adds up rapidly. If you're charged on a time-of-use electricity plan, running it during peak hours (typically early evening) only worsens the damage to your bank account. In Australia, electricity bills are typically issued on a quarterly basis, which can make it even easier for costs to accumulate unnoticed, especially for first-time renters or those adjusting to life out of home. However, many providers now offer monthly billing options, particularly for customers with smart meters that allow regular tracking of electricity usage. For renters or families concerned about their winter costs blowing out unexpectedly, monthly bills can be a safer way to monitor and adjust usage in real-time. If you're worried about mounting bills during such a cost-of-living crunch, it might be time to look at other alternatives to surviving the winter chill at home. Layered clothing like thermals, socks, and robes, switching to an electric blanket (which cost significantly less per hour to run), reverse-cycle air conditioners that are more efficient in heating mode if used correctly, and draft stoppers and door seals to retain heat in smaller spaces. And as Jaz wisely pointed out, sometimes a hot chocolate and a pair of fuzzy socks really is the cheaper way to go. With Sydney's chillier months still lingering, it might be time to think twice before hitting add to cart before you've done your research.
Daily Mail
24-06-2025
- Health
- Daily Mail
Students will spend 25 years glued to their phones if current screen habits don't change, study shows
Students will spend 25 years glued to their phones if they don't change their screen habits, a study has found. The average school, college, or university student spends five and a half hours on their phone per day, which could amount to 25 years of their lives. And the four per cent who spend nine hours or more on their phone could see themselves wasting 41 years of their lives locked into a screen. The research, which was conducted by Fluid Focus over the first five months of the year, highlights rates of smartphone usage, the negative impact it has on learning and attention span, and student's desire to reduce it. Their figures are based on a waking day of 16 hours and 72 years of smartphone use from the age of 11 to 83. To get their figures, they tracked the screen times of 1,346 middle school/junior high pupils, 198 university students, and 1,296 people at further education colleges. App genres which dominated the screens were social media, messaging, and streaming. Screen time averages increased with age - from five hours and 12 minutes for middle school/junior high students to six hours and 12 minutes for university students. For many students, their phone was the first thing they check when they wake up and the last thing they look at before bed. Worryingly, 68 per cent of students believe their academic performance is impacted by their phone use. Despite this self-awareness, around 40 per cent admitted to constantly checking their phone while studying. Checking your phone seems like a harmless habit, but another study found it can take 20 minutes to regain focus afterwards. Dr Paul Redmond, who studies generational change, called the findings 'quite stark'. He was director of student experience and enhancement at Liverpool University in England, one of 18 institutions involved in the research. He said: 'I think what's powerful is how students feel that it's damaging their academic performance. That awareness that "I could do so much better if I manage this".' Nearly half of students (47 per cent) said their sleep is disturbed because of late-night phone usage, a figure that rose to 66 per cent for those at university. Dr Redmond said it was helpful to talk with young people about strategies to manage screen time. He explained how one new technique they tried out was to put elastic bands around their phones so when they took them out to go on them 'they were made to stop and think about why'. Lisa Humphries is associate principal at Chichester College Group in England, where some of the 11,000 students across its seven constituent colleges participated. She said: 'By the time we see them in college, they've had five, six, seven years of living inside their phone. The levels of social anxiety are crippling in the young people we're seeing, and it comes from that whole thing. 'Everyone's living in their bedroom on their phone, and they're not outside, and they're not socializing, communicating. They're not developing those skills to build relationships.' The report's authors urge schools, colleges, and universities to make digital well-being part of their curriculum and strategic plans. They even encouraged them to reward students who display healthy digital behaviors. Another suggestion was to cut university lectures from 60 or 90 minutes to blocks of 30 minutes in order to cater to the new generations short attention spans. They added the single biggest change a student can make is leaving their phone outside the bedroom up to 45 minutes before they want to go to sleep. The authors also called for ministers to treat technology overuse as a public health problem and want their to be a public health campaign targeted at Gen Z. Glenn Stephenson, co-founder of Fluid Focus, said: 'This research is a mirror. It forces us, as a society, to confront an uncomfortable truth: we unknowingly handed powerful, addictive technologies to children during their most formative years - without fully understanding the risks in doing so. 'However, what was great to see, and what should give us all hope, is that students aren't oblivious to the impact - far from it. They're aware, reflective, and increasingly motivated to change. 'Many are already trying. They just need to be met with the right education, the right tools and the belief that change is possible.' Another study found three quarters of Gen Zs admitted struggling to maintain concentration while interacting with someone and 39 per cent feel a strong urge to look at their device. Social events (28 per cent), speaking with friends (18 per cent) and parents (17 per cent) are some of the scenarios where the younger generation stop paying attention. And 28 per cent said they are even switching off at work, affecting their productivity. The study of 2,000 18 to 28-year-olds found that Gen Z will reach for their phone after just two minutes and 15 seconds of talking to someone. The biggest temptations when chatting face-to-face with someone include checking messages (48 per cent), scrolling social media (44 per cent) and even opening YouTube (18 per cent). Calls (32 per cent), text messages (23 per cent), and social media mentions (14 per cent) are deemed hardest to ignore. The research, commissioned by AXA UK as part of the annual Mind Health Report, found 63 per cent admit they struggle with real-life interaction - and 77 per cent use their phone as a form of escape.
Daily Mail
22-06-2025
- Health
- Daily Mail
Students will spend 25 YEARS on their phones if screen habits don't change, study finds
Students will spend 25 years glued to their phones if they don't change their screen habits, a study has found. The average school, college or university student spends five and a half hours on their phone per day, which could amount to 25 years of their lives. And the four per cent who spend nine hours or more on their phone could see themselves wasting 41 years of their lives locked into a screen. The research, which was conducted by Fluid Focus over the first five months of the year, highlights rates of smartphone usage, the negative impact it has on learning and attention span, and student's desire to reduce it. Their figures are based on a waking day of 16 hours and 72 years of smartphone use from the age of 11 to 83. To get their figures, they tracked the screen times of 1,346 secondary school pupils, 198 university students and 1,296 people at further education colleges. App genres which dominated the screens were social media, messaging and streaming. Screen time averages increased with age - from five hours and 12 minutes for secondary school students to six hours and 12 minutes for university students. For many students, their phone was the first thing they check when they wake up and the last thing they look at before bed. Worryingly, 68 per cent of students believe their academic performance is impacted by their phone use. Despite this self-awareness, around 40 per cent admitted to constantly checking their phone while studying. Checking your phone seems like a harmless habit, but another study found it can take 20 minutes to regain focus afterwards. Dr Paul Redmond, who studies generational change, called the findings 'quite stark'. He was director of student experience and enhancement at Liverpool University, one of 18 institutions involved in the research. He added: 'I think what's powerful is how students feel that it's damaging their academic performance. That awareness that "I could do so much better if I manage this".' Nearly half of students (47 per cent) said their sleep is disturbed because of late-night phone usage, a figure that rose to 66 per cent for those at university. Dr Redmond said it was helpful to talk with young people about strategies to manage screen time. He explained how one new technique they tried out was to put elastic bands around their phones so when they took them out to go on them 'they were made to stop and think about why'. Lisa Humphries is associate principal at Chichester College Group where some of the 11,000 students across its seven constituent colleges participated. She said: 'By the time we see them in college, they've had five, six, seven years of living inside their phone. The levels of social anxiety are crippling in the young people we're seeing, and it comes from that whole thing. 'Everyone's living in their bedroom on their phone, and they're not outside, and they're not socialising, communicating. They're not developing those skills to build relationships.' The report's authors urge schools, colleges and universities to make digital wellbeing part of their curriculum and strategic plans. They even encouraged them to reward students who display healthy digital behaviours. Another suggestion was to cut university lectures from 60 or 90 minutes to blocks of 30 minutes in order to cater to the new generations short attention spans. They added the single biggest change a student can make is leaving their phone outside the bedroom up to 45 minutes before they want to go to sleep. The authors also called for ministers to treat technology overuse as a public health problem and want their to be a public health campaign targeted at Gen Z. Glenn Stephenson, co-founder of Fluid Focus, said: 'This research is a mirror. It forces us, as a society, to confront an uncomfortable truth: we unknowingly handed powerful, addictive technologies to children during their most formative years — without fully understanding the risks in doing so. 'However, what was great to see, and what should give us all hope, is that students aren't oblivious to the impact — far from it. They're aware, reflective, and increasingly motivated to change. 'Many are already trying. They just need to be met with the right education, the right tools and the belief that change is possible.' Another study found three quarters of Gen Zs admitted struggling to maintain concentration while interacting with someone and 39 per cent feel a strong urge to look at their device. Social events (28 per cent), speaking with friends (18 per cent) and parents (17 per cent) are some of the scenarios where the younger generation stop paying attention. And 28 per cent said they are even switching off at work, affecting their productivity. The study of 2,000 18 to 28-year-olds found that Gen Z will reach for their phone after just two minutes and 15 seconds of talking to someone. The biggest temptations when chatting face-to-face with someone include checking messages (48 per cent), scrolling social media (44 per cent) and even opening YouTube (18 per cent). Calls (32 per cent), WhatsApp messages (23 per cent) and social media mentions (14 per cent) are deemed hardest to ignore. The research, commissioned by AXA UK as part of the annual Mind Health Report, found 63 per cent admit they struggle with real-life interaction – and 77 per cent use their phone as a form of escape.
