Entering university shifted my whole life, it was a complete change, my environment and everything I knew simply disappeared, and I was completely alone for the first time. I remember my induction class, the people around me, the feelings I had, was it happiness or excitement? Or maybe all my feelings combined? During my first week of university, I had to familiarise myself with my new surroundings and getting used to uncertainty is always difficult.
I did not expect the unexpected and that made my situation worse. A specific case happened during my first week of university. My student loan did not come through neither did I have a laptop or money to pay my monthly rent. It was then the last week of September and I was told that I would not receive any money until at least two or three weeks. I was very desperate and just did not know what to do or expect.
After a few days of thinking and looking at all my options I stood up and started to create a ‘salvation plan’. I contacted King’s Student Funding department, my bank, student finance and every service I could in order to obtain some type of funding. That same day King’s Student Funding department emailed me back and after hours of research, I got a temporary loan in order to pay my rent. The library services told me that I could rent a laptop for 24 hours every day and that saved me! The next day my bank contacted me and told me that I could obtain an overdraft of £1,500!
At the end, everything turned out well and I was able to pay back my loans and obtain my student funding a few weeks later. I did not plan for the unexpected and that was a huge failure on my side. My first few weeks at university would have been much easier and fun had I planned for the unexpected, from there on I learned to always expect the unexpected, so always have a contingency plan.
Lisa Maria Martin
Money Mentor, Psychology BSc (UG)
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