student loan thinking of doing a degree.

[Nick G]

It would depend on which course you're doing. Also whether or not you're planning on going post-grad.

[QW.]

I guess it depends on what you want to study. Research the degree that you want to do, make sure that you will be able stick with it.

[Nomad]

on average if you stay at home and go to uni how much should your student loan be?

As Winston I think uni is well worth it. Even for Arts students, b/c if you just want to do a job that isn't really specific. Ie., not IT, not Architecture, not medical, not law, not accounting. An arts degree still gives you some "ground" to apply for jobs. Thou you could argue that and I know people who just went to work in a bank after high school and after 5 or so years they are doing the same work as some uni grads without the loan but they might not have the unique (I think) uni life.

I've lived at home and away from home.

At home:
Fees that is $15k for the 3yrs.
Course related costs: $3k for the 3yrs.

You get the allowance or the weekly loan. $170 per week.
Most students draw out the max. If you have extra you can keep in the bank or save up for something else.

Some of the costs could be covered above with the course related costs but I'll list them all up:
Weekly IME or those around me:
$30-40 for bus.
Maybe $50 for lunches either buy or make it.
Entertainments maybe $50-100. This varies a lot, ie., cafe lunches or the odd dinner with friends outside etc ... a normal meal could be $18-25 without drinks. And how much pubs/pizzas.
Your internet and mobile phone
Buying clothes, socks, underwear as required
Haircuts
Various gifts for Christmas/birthdays/valentines/mothers-fathers day etc.
Own hobbies of your own.
Maybe trips away at the occasional weekend.

[Nick G]

As Winston I think uni is well worth it. Even for Arts students, b/c if you just want to do a job that isn't really specific. Ie., not IT, not Architecture, not medical, not law, not accounting. An arts degree still gives you some "ground" to apply for jobs. Thou you could argue that and I know people who just went to work in a bank after high school and after 5 or so years they are doing the same work as some uni grads without the loan but they might not have the unique (I think) uni life.

I've lived at home and away from home.

At home:
Fees that is $15k for the 3yrs.
Course related costs: $3k for the 3yrs.

You get the allowance or the weekly loan. $170 per week.
Most students draw out the max. If you have extra you can keep in the bank or save up for something else.

Some of the costs could be covered above with the course related costs but I'll list them all up:
Weekly IME or those around me:
$30-40 for bus.
Maybe $50 for lunches either buy or make it.
Entertainments maybe $50-100. This varies a lot, ie., cafe lunches or the odd dinner with friends outside etc ... a normal meal could be $18-25 without drinks. And how much pubs/pizzas.
Your internet and mobile phone
Buying clothes, socks, underwear as required
Haircuts
Various gifts for Christmas/birthdays/valentines/mothers-fathers day etc.
Own hobbies of your own.
Maybe trips away at the occasional weekend.

Yes and no. Some of that you would need to do even if you didn't go, so doesn't really count as a uni cost.

[Nomad]

Yes and no. Some of that you would need to do even if you didn't go, so doesn't really count as a uni cost.

Yep, if the OP was going to uni then those are the costs that would need to be somehow financed.
You could not go to uni but not factor in food for eg ..

[Billy T]

Both of our kids went right through to Bachelor's degrees without a student loan and without direct financial subsidies for Uni costs. We gave them free board and lodging, medical insurance and dental care (minimal for two healthy teenagers) and bus passes, that was it. Both found part-time work and paid their fees no problems, though Billy Jnr had a slightly easier ride by earning supportive (but not full) scholarships in his second, third and Honours years.

Keeping costs down: Lunches-taken from home every day; entertainment-minimal, study came first but they didn't lack friends and fun; mobile phone: free issue from Telecom and prepay, used for emergency/transport calls only, plus texts to friends. Greeting cards for family & friends they made themselves and had enormous fun doing it; Gifts-yes, no trips during Uni years, though both travelled NZ with Orchestras, classical and jazz, and both travelled internationally during Intermediate School (Taiwan) and College: Korea & Australia. Billy jnr also travelled to the US and Australia for both music and sport (playing and refereeing basketball as a NZ Rep).

They seem to value their degrees a lot more than their peers who were put through Uni by their parents, nearly all of them quit and took a gap year (or two) after completing their degree. Billy Jnr was the only member of his class to go straight back to do Honours, most of the others either didn't want to, or said they'd do it later once the landing ground for the flying pigs is completed.

Success comes from commitment, dedication and hard work, and even with minimal parental assistance, it can be achieved without debt.

Cheers

Billy 8-{)

[Bozo]

I have 3 pieces of advice for you:

1 - Start looking for work experience.
Once you have decided on your topic of study, research the job market and start applying for work experience right off the bat within said field. If you are studying I.T. start asking various companies if you can come in and get some work experience - even if it is just sitting there and watching. Especially in your final year, get all the work experience you can and make sure you get it written down and signed by the person/company with. Having this on your CV when applying for a job at the other end helps a LOT.

2 - Keep your living expenses to a minimum.
Don't buy your lunch, don't waste money on fast food and booze. Don't worry about following the latest fashion trends or having the latest smartphone on the market. You are a student borrowing money to study, so keep financial losses to a minimum as they follow you your entire life. Live cheap, every penny you borrow now you have to pay back when you get a job instead of saving for a new car or new computer etc.
Of course you will want to have parties and the like as studying is a great time to make friends and the like. Just pace yourself. Don't go out every weekend, save it for special occasions like end of exams etc.
I can't stress this one enough: Keep your expenses as low as possible or they will haunt you for years to come.

3 - Your first job won't pay you thousands of dollars a week.
Ignore your tutors when they speak to you of vast sums of money and high paying jobs once you finish. This is very rarely the case. Typically you will get a graduate job that pays a fairly low-modest wage. After putting in a year or 2 of hard work and proving yourself, then expect some raises to come. But under no circumstance believe that you will pay your 50k student loan off in 2 years because of your awesome new high-paying job because you have a degree. Refer to #2.

[Barnabas]

Beer x trying to impress hot uni girls (and usually failing) + mid semester snowboard trips = large student loan......oh so worth it though