Introduction on students going abroad for study

Going abroad for higher studies is on the to-do list of almost all youngsters nowadays. In the dynamically expanding world, going to places to get quality higher education is not only a matter of want but also a matter of need. The number of students flying abroad every year to pursue their higher studies has shown a significant surge in recent years.

Most young students like you are excited to go to countries like the USA, Canada, United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, Germany, France, etc. But at the same time, you need to learn and understand the finances that run in the background before you go abroad and start your studies.

Students should know how to deal with high university fees, unfavourable foreign exchange, steep rent, and unreasonable cost of living in different parts of the world, especially in these unprecedented post-covid recession times. We are sure that you do not want to get stranded out of funds while studying in a foreign land. Therefore, in this article, we will be sharing 7 tips that you can follow to save money while studying abroad during a recession time also, we will discuss the effects of the recession on abroad studies. 

Rupee touching its low

In recent months the geopolitical quandary and uncertainties due to the Russia-Ukraine war has worsened the economic condition of most of the countries around the world, especially when the economies were looking forward to recovering from the bump of Covid 19 in the past two years. The reserve banks of all major economies are stumbling to curb the fall of their currency against the US dollar. Such congested global financial conditions amidst Russia’s invasion of Ukraine are the major reasons for the depreciation of the Indian rupee.

Apart from this, the outflow of foreign portfolio capital from the Indian capital market is also one of the major reasons for the weakening of the Indian Currency. In 2022-2023 so far, foreign portfolio investors have withdrawn about $14 billion from the Indian Equity market. This has made a significant impact on the dipping of the Indian currency, in recent months Indian rupee touched its lowest mark of 80.06 per dollar, which is a record low as stated by Bloomberg data compiled by ETIG.

Will there be a recession again?

Along with other countries, India was also recovering from the devastating impact of Covid-19, the invasion of Ukraine by Russia added new economic challenges to the existing ones. The war in Europe resulted in supply chain disruptions, currency falls, and high inflation along with the predictions of possible stagflation.

We live in a world where a country’s economy depends on the performance of another country’s economy. In this world of globally interlinked economies, if there is again a slowdown in the United States markets, then it will surely impact the Indian economy as well.

Amid the ongoing negative developments around the globe, analysts and economists based on indicators have predicted that a recession may hit the USA, Europe, and even China sooner or later. Already the repo rates have been increased by RBI for the third time in a row Read: The effect of repo rate on education loan interest rate to understand the relationship of repo rate with education loan interest rate, especially when there are speculations of recession.

Effect of recession on students

Scrolling through the reels of the great depression that happened in the US, between 2007-2009, it is clear that we have come a long way from there and have gained a good experience of the effects of the recession on students studying abroad. As soon as the shadow of recession darkens, the pillars of all major economies begin to shake as the employability of newly graduated youth is unpredictable the recession. Therefore, it becomes incalculable for students to decide whether to go abroad for higher studies or not.  

The different effects of the recession on students are:

  • Studies will become costlier:
    Colleges and universities will not increase tuition fees they might even cut the fees. But the quantitative cost will feel higher than usual and students may find it difficult to pay their fees. 
  • Increase in educated unemployed youth:
    The number of job vacancies will dip drastically as a result of which many newly graduated students will find it difficult to get a job because the market will already be filled with job-seeking unemployed professionals. 
  • Increase in accommodation and travel costs: 
    Once you go abroad for your education, your living expenses will take away a big share of money from your pocket. During the recession, the monetary dependency of localities on the earnings from international students increased. Therefore, if a recession hits, it will surely hit your pocket too. 

Tips on earning & saving money

1. Use public transportation
When moving abroad, a lack of knowledge about public transportation can lighten your pocket as you might always prefer the easy way out by travelling via cab or taxi and overpaying for your transportation needs.

Therefore, the first thing you should do when going abroad is to learn how the public transportation system works there. Surf the bus networks and subways available in your city and cut your transportation cost.

2. Carry and use your international student ID

Don’t forget to take your student ID card from your university and if they do not provide it then apply online for an international student ID card. The ISIC card is proof of your status as a student, endorsed by UNESCO. It offers you 1,60,000 offers and discounts for travel, food, accommodation, shopping, and transport across 133 countries. You can save lots of bucks by taking advantage of the discounts.

3. Learn to plan a budget
It is always good to stick around and spend only according to your pre-planned budget, especially when studying abroad. Of Course everyone plans, but the question is, what are all expenses to consider while estimating a budget?

You should take stock of the monthly cost of food, rent, electricity, internet, gas, water, transportation, phone, and entertainment (going out for dinner, movies, etc). But don’t forget to save a fixed amount in your piggy bank for emergency expenses. 

4. Save money on phone bills and international calls
While studying abroad, talking to family and friends is reassuring and healing sometimes, but, bills of international calls will cause a huge dent in your wallet, even if you use a loan sim card. To avoid it you can use apps like Skype, Google Voice, WhatsApp, or Viber. A local sim card will keep your local calls there cheap and these apps will keep your international call costs nil.

5. Freelance from home
If you don’t find it comfortable to work by going out every day you can freelance from the comfort of your home. You can create an account on various freelancing websites, list your skills, apply for projects and just sit back and wait.  If you are a graphic designer or content writer, upload samples of your work in your Linkedin profile and continue hunting for freelancing projects.

6. On-campus jobs
Many universities offer on-campus jobs which may not pay much but would be pretty easy to do and give you time to study on the side. You can easily apply for an assistantship in teaching or research, library attendant, administrative assistant, or System administrator. These jobs will not only bring in some much-needed money but will also provide you with a good experience and boost up your CV.

7. Apply for scholarships and grants
 The sweetest way to save money is by not spending it at all and still enjoying its benefits of it. A scholarship for your study abroad education will do exactly this. Different scholarships are awarded to international students. You can find the best suitable scholarship for yourself on the WeMakeScholars scholarship portal. 

Conclusion

Towards the end, we simply conclude that considering the current market trend lines, it is still blurry whether the recession will hit or not. But one thing is for sure that recession would affect the process for students, who are either already studying abroad or are planning to go abroad for their higher studies. 

But its impacts will fade away with time, and that is something which you should focus more upon. You should entirely focus on doing good in your studies, for the time being. In whichever course you are or in whichever country you plan to go abroad. If your scores are exceptional, nobody can drag you down.

Still worried about managing funds for your education abroad? We have got you covered. The process of applying for an education loan is already simple and it gets simpler when you process your loan with WeMakeScholars. We are here to help! Simply Request a Callback on our website, and one of our expert loan officers will revert to you at the earliest.

Thanks for reading this blog on 7 tips to save money while studying abroad in recession time. If you are interested in learning more about studying abroad and student life abroad, then I highly recommend you to read: