With the already high cost of education, more students are being forced to live at home whilst attending local universities. Statistics show that in 2010, more than 310,000 students opted to attend local universities in order to save on the high cost of accommodations by living with their parents.
When asked if this would have been their first choice, an overwhelming number of those surveyed said that they would actually have rather attended another university but the high costs were prohibitive. Figures released by the Higher Education Statistic Agency show that 19% of undergraduates are now staying at home when less than two decades ago only 8% opted to study locally. In fact, the study indicated that 8 of 10 only remained living at home for financial reasons.
Keeping in mind that tuition fees and cost of living is going to triple with the soon to start school year, it is not surprising that more students are being literally forced to live at home if they desire upper level education. In another survey conducted the HSBC in July, more than a quarter of all parents will need their children to live at home during their tenure at university in order to make college affordable.
Even with the bursary some students are eligible for, the high cost of tuition alone is going to be prohibitive for a greater number of students than ever before. Unfortunately, most students living at home will still need to travel a distance to and from classes and also report that it is much more difficult to become involved with campus activities. Only 1/5 of all students living at home report that they were able to get involved in activities on campus which is in comparison with 70% who live on campus.
