Prinsjesdag (the Dutch Budget Day) brought few windfalls for students. “Students will once again see the lowest increase,” student union LSVb concludes. After a 6.6 percent decline in purchasing power last year, there will now be a 1 percent rise. 

And that's despite the fact that, according to the LSVb, students living in student accommodation spend around half of their income on rent. A 1 percent increase in purchasing power is therefore “not enough to allow students to study without financial worries,” student interest group ISO states. But does that apply to students at TU/e too?

Canteens

Fortunately, the students Cursor spoke to (see video below) do not have to live on a shoestring. Coincidentally—or perhaps not—these were exclusively students who do not have to pay their own rent or who still live with their parents. In addition to the housing shortage, financial considerations certainly play a role in the latter group's decision to continue living at home for the time being. 

Nevertheless, even students who are relatively well off need to watch their spending so that they don't find themselves ‘at the end of their money with a chunk of the month left’. Among the items mentioned as cost factors are the high prices in the TU/e canteens and the annual tuition fees.

Are you a TU/e student who does have to tighten their belt every month to make ends meet? Cursor would like to talk to you. Please reach us at cursor@remove-this.tue.nl

This article was translated using AI-assisted tools and reviewed by an editor