I'm always amazed in tutorials at the number of students who have just come back from, or are just about to go off on, wonderful-sounding exotic holidays. In view of the "savings gap" that the government keeps going on about, I wondered whether students are blowing all their hard-earned cash on holidays and "things" or whether you all get paid enough to do some serious saving as well. So I'd be interested to hear whether there are many savers/investors out there and what your top tips are for what to do with your money (bearing in mind this mustn't be framed as investment advice). Alternatively, you could make me jealous with details of your latest holiday .
yep, i'm blowing my cash on exotic holidays alright, on the grounds that saving it will yield a meagre return somewhere in the region of 3%, whilst i am likely to get annual salary increases in excess of that as (should??) i progress through my exams. thus, there is far greater value to be had per pound of income earned by blowing current earnings now and saving the future stuff. don't want to end up a miserable (however wealthy) 40-yr-old dreaming 'bout the good times i might've had had i not been quite so prudent in my student days. makes sense to me.
I'm blowing my money on (i) living somewhere near the office and (ii) my wife's PhD and all related university fees, travel costs (NOT holiday) Sorry, no exotic stories or savings tips here
You've worked for it I attended CT9 in May this year and found the same thing - either someone just got back from Bali/Jakarta/Spain or was on their way to Barcelona/NY/The Med. Must admit, I've been to South Africa(twice), Prague, Ireland(twice) and around the country this year only. Why not treat yourself after working very hard for the money you're earning as well as the vast amount of study hours you put in. I find it helps balancing the scale...
Earnings Well the government is probably not talking about the saving gap for actuaries. MPs probably not so worried about us! Travelling is great but I do feel that people are only doing it because everyone else is, not to fulfil some personal ambition. I do not think you can get a true feel of a place unless you live there for a while. The year I lived in Canada was one of the happiest of my life and I gained and learned so much. What do other people think about living/working abroad?
Coming from the continent, I've been working in the UK for just over 5 years now. I like the City atmosphere - a lot more interesting than the Brussels vibe. The Brits really seem to know how to combine work and pleasure, but despite the Jamies and Gordons, something HAS to be done about the British cooking skills (or at least, those I was unlucky enough to experience)! But all is not lost: I get to drive home every once in a while and import real beer and chocolate. If you want some, let me know...;o)
I must be one of the odd ones cos I do both.....I forced myself at age of 19 to save a certain amount ..of which, i won't be able to touch until I am 35 yrs old and also I have shares in my company as well as property. As well as that, I make sure that I budget for at least 2 getaways each yr, otherwise the pressure of the exams would drive me crazy.....but then again I tend to go to asia for my holidays, which is a pretty cheap holiday, hence probably the reason that I can do this.
I think holidays are a must - they are the only things that keep me relatively sane what with all this studying. I also save up for at least 2 getaways each year (usually to Asia as well!) as they give me something to look forward through all the hard work.
I have no interest at the age of 24 of considering my future just yet, especially when I could expect to be earning twice what I do now in a few years.... I'm quite happy to blow my money / savings on socialising / clothes / holidays, but I don't like wasting it, so as a senior student, some is starting to accumulate now you could say the marginal utility is much greater at a young age, hence the reason I didn't care much about the large debt I racked up at uni while enjoying myself and not working at all I guess once salary rises have levelled off post-qualification, then I'll start thinking about buying somewhere and investing my money
The students on this board make me laugh. They are so confident about their future earnings potential in the future. Just wait till they shift all of the jobs to India and then see
