Cost of living support

Here's how we're helping

Getting you started regardless of your financial situation

We provide a wide range of Scholarships and Bursaries for students to make sure they can start with us regardless of the country they are applying from and their situation. Many of these scholarships relate to are also auto-awarded when you apply with us.

Browse through the range and see what you might be eligible for.

Accommodation that makes life more affordable

Accommodation costs at Essex include your energy bills and internet access so regardless of what happens to supplier costs, you can rest assured you'll be fine with Essex.

As well as this, our accommodation also provides a range of different facilities and benefits such a on-site or close by laundrettes, and at our Colchester Campus you'll also receive a Silver gym membership and other benefits to living with us too.  Our prices for a single room start at as little as £109.90 per person per week ensuring they are affordable too.

Keeping prices on campus low

Nobody should have to choose between a warm home and a hot meal, so we're offering a range of £2 food options available at Essex Food outlets across campus. From a classic English fry up to jacket potatoes, burritos, burgers and more, there's a range of meals available throughout the week. Bonus points for the washing up it saves too!

As well as this the Students' Union has launched its SU Basics range. By buying in bulk they are able to pass the savings on to you, our students. So every Monday they host a pop-up market selling everyday groceries for less. We can't promise they'll have all your favourite snacks but it's a good place to start, right? The SU are also running regular Eat and Meet events, where students can come and get a hot free meal while meeting and talking with other students. 

We've also removed resit fees to ensure students aren't held back from resitting exams due to finance. 

Jobs on campus

One of the standout areas of an Essex Education is the opportunity we provide students to help boost their career.  We offer personalised career counselling, internship placements, and workshops on CV building and interview preparation to help get you ready for life after graduation.  

We know that you might also need to get a job whilst studying with us, which is why we provide a collection of different job opportunities on campus (all paid at least the Voluntary Living Wage) to support you during your time with us, and to boost your CV after graduation.

You don't need to buy books

No one should miss out on being able to study because they cant buy books.  All essential reading for each module on your course is provided in online reading lists by our library services.  If you prefer the feel of paper, many of your essential reading list items can also be found in our physical library spaces.

Our libraries also provide access to hundreds of online e-books, journals, databases and subscription services for students, as well as hundreds of thousands of physical books, journals and resources associated with each of our subject areas and beyond. You can also borrow a laptop from each of our three libraries on a short-term loan basis.

And if things get really difficult...

Hardship Fund

We have a Hardship Fund designed to help Essex students who are experiencing financial difficulty by giving non-repayable grants to those who need it. Last year the fund provided students with £489,000, this year we've expanded the funding to £1.5million.

The Hardship fund will help cover, food, travel, course costs, childcare, accommodation, energy costs, IT equipment and sports and society memberships

You can apply multiple times over the year to a maximum of £1,500 a year per student. We believe that financial background should never be a barrier to a university education so please, if you feel you would benefit from our Hardship Fund, find out more here. 

More support and resources