Four out of 10 third-level students say they own a car - but almost a third claim they receive no financial assistance from their parents, according to new research from Bank of Ireland.
In what the bank says is a trend whereby students are becoming more financially independent of their parents, one-quarter of those who do receive parental financial assistance also said this amounts to €100 or less per month. A further 30 per cent said they receive no such financial assistance at all.
More than half of students work part-time, with many of these earning over €400 a month. Almost a quarter say their parents remain their primary source of income overall, with the latter paying up to €1,000 a month to subsidise their children's college years.
Although half of students cited employment - typically part-time or summer work - as their primary source of income, roughly the same number live at home during their college years.
Nicola Brady, marketing manager with BOI, said the annual research confirmed a recent trend whereby students are becoming less financially dependent on their parents.
Four out of 10 respondents said they expected to graduate less than €1,000 in debt, although three out of 10 said they would owe more than €4,000.
Ms Brady said male students are slightly more likely to pay off their credit card bills or loans every month than females.
The research reports that 35 per cent of students said they own a secondhand car, while a further 5 per cent own a new car. Buses and cars were also the two types of transport used most frequently by students. A further 35 per cent also said they intend to buy a car within the year.
Students who pay rent to a landlord spend an average of €370 a month on this, while other student expenses include €162 a month on socialising and €221 on groceries and other day-to-day expenses, the research reveals.
Household bills and spending on clothing account for €84 a month each, while students pay marginally more on their mobile phone (€42 per month) than they do on gym or sporting activities (€39). Spending on course material accounts for €56 a month, while travel costs amount to €42 a month.
STUDENT SURVEY: MAIN FINDINGS
AVERAGE MONTHLY EXPENDITURE
Rent€370
Socialising€162
Day-to-day expenses€102
Groceries€119
Household bills€84
Clothes/Shoes€84
Course Material€56
Travel€57
Gym/Sport€39
Mobile Phone€42
MAIN SOURCE OF INCOME
Employment48%
Parents24%
Grant/Scholarship15%
Savings7%
TOP PRODUCT OWNERSHIP
Laptop69%
PC50%
Pay as you go mobile phone83%
Bill pay mobile phone19%
MP3 Player/iPod82%
Car40%
LIVING ARRANGEMENTS
At home with parents51%
Rented accommodation/digs38%
Campus accommodation6%
MONTHLY FINANCIAL HELP FROM PARENTS
Nothing30%
Less than €509%
€50-€10017%
€100-25016%
€250-€50017%
€500-€10009%
More than €1,0002%
* Research conducted by W5 Marketing Intelligence during April 2007 with a nationally representative sample of over 1,000 students