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The funding that you receive during your year abroad (e.g., maintenance loan) may be different to what you normally receive when studying at 糖心TV, so make sure you know what you're entitled to. If you are eligible for a student loan (i.e., maintenance loan and/or tuition fee loan), be careful to tick the right boxes about where you are living and studying in each term on your application, so you can be assessed for the right amount of money. Remember you must apply for your student loans for each upcoming year of study (including if your upcoming academic year is your study abroad year). Applications are usually made in the spring/summer time, so make sure you submit yours on time! More information can be found at the website.

If you are applying for any additional funding opportunities, make sure to check if they require an application form and whether they have a deadline to submit this.

For any and all funding you are due to receive, check when your payments are due to go into your bank account so you can work out if you'll have enough money available to meet payment dates you will have, such as accommodation. You should note, in certain instances, payments of any maintenance loan you are eligible for may differ from the termly payment schedule you are used to. Depending on the country you will be studying in, you may be required to demonstrate you have access to an appropriate level of funds for your VISA.

There are ways that you can top up your income, such as trying to save money before you leave and talking to your family to see if they can offer any help. Look into part-time work opportunities whilst you're away but remember this might depend on your availability and VISA restrictions.

Take some time to think about the day-to-day expenses that you will have during your year abroad. Don't forget to include extra costs, such as travel and medical insurance. Doing your research into these costs early will really help you to get an idea of how far your money will go.

Remember that the cost of living in the country that you are studying might be quite different to what you are used to. There are some useful websites, such as that give a comparison of day-to-day living costs between cities across the world. Make sure you find out what is included in your rent to make sure you aren't budgeting for and/or buying things unnecessarily.

Finally, don't only think about costs related to your study or day-to-day living, remember to include activities that you want to get involved in whilst you're away. For example, you might want to spend some time travelling in the region you are visiting, if so - make sure you budget for this.

Always look at ways you can make some savings on the expenses you have. You can use comparison websites to get cheaper deals on flights or insurance and better rates on exchanging your currency. is a really good website to start with. Talk to other students who have lived and studied in the countries where you are going to get their tips and advice on making your money go further.

You should notify your bank that you will be studying abroad and check out any bank charges that might apply for withdrawing cash or using your debit card. If you don't already have internet banking, you could think about setting this up so you can keep better track of your money. Depending on which country you are going to and for how long, you may want to consider opening an account in the country you are studying in as you might find it easier and cheaper to make payments this way. You may be able to open an international account with your current UK bank, so make sure you chat with them about your options first.

If you currently have a mobile contract, talk to your provider to see what the charges will be for using it abroad. Look into mobile deals in the country you are going to as this might work out cheaper and avoid roaming charges. Think about other ways to keep in touch such as through wi-fi (e.g., Skype, Facetime, Whatsapp) but make sure to check your wi-fi coverage and allowance within your rent contract or individual wi-fi contract.

Finally, try to build in a contingency fund in case an emergency crops up, like an expense you hadn't planned for or a delay in receiving your funding.

A good budget takes time to set up so the first thing to do is to set aside some time to work through your money, income, and expenses. Everyone budgets in a different way and there are lots of tools available. If you don't already budget regularly, have a go at finding a way that suits you. You might prefer to keep track of your money by completing a paper budget planner such as our Study Abroad Budgeting Planner.Link opens in a new window If you are more technically minded, you might like to try a budgeting app instead that can give you a real-time picture of your cash flow and help you to keep track of where your money is going. Certain banks now offer some budgeting insights to their customers within their mobile banking apps.

Once you have an idea about whether your income is going to cover your expenses, you can revisit your costs to see if you can go without them or get them cheaper to save some money.