2 minute read
MY MONEY
from My Life Issue 43
by Student-Life
CO-EDITOR ADRIANNA GNIFKA
What You Should Know About Student Bank Accounts
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BY ADRIANNA GNIFKA
If you’re starting university this year and you’ve already applied for student finance, the next logical step is to start looking into student bank accounts and working out which one is best for you. Each bank usually offers different perks that come with a student account which is why it’s important to do your research.
Once you decide where you would like to open up a student account, you will usually need to apply using some form of confirmation that you will be studying at your chosen university – this could be a UCAS letter or a letter from the university which confirms your place. As well as this, you will need some form of proof of address and identity which can include a passport, birth certificate or a driving license.
Some of the perks of the student bank accounts are overdrafts with no interest rates, free railcards or memberships for things like Amazon Prime, but these all depend on what each bank offers. When it comes to overdrafts, a key detail is whether the overdraft is ‘guaranteed’ or ‘up to’ - if it is guaranteed it means it is available as soon as you are accepted for the student bank account, whilst if it is an ‘up to’ overdraft this will depend on your credit score. A credit score is a number between 300 and 850 which indicates how likely you are to pay back loans to lenders, so those with higher credit scores would be eligible for the ‘up to’ overdrafts.
One of the most popular student bank accounts offered by Nationwide is the ‘FlexStudent’ account which offers a guaranteed overdraft with 0% interest that increases every year (£1000 in year one, £2000 in year two and £3000 in year 3). Another popular student bank account offered by Santander is the ‘Santander 123’account that comes with a free fouryear railcard. The guaranteed overdraft for this account is £1500 for three years. You can find other up to date student bank accounts compared in a handy table on the Money Saving Expert website, and as well as this the Save The Student website provides extra guidance when it comes to looking for and setting up student bank accounts. Whilst this article provides the basic information, it is important for you to do your own research and find an account that is right for you.
