Q&A: Rachel Dugan asks a group of NUI Galway studtents the hard question
Caitriona Ross (19), third-year arts, from Cavan
Average weekly budget
(excluding rent) €80-€100
Food would be the main thing and then drink, obviously. I try to budget and mainly drink at home. Galway's not too bad though. I think you can live on a budget here because you don't have to spend too much getting around the place. Everyone I know drinks at home.
Terrence Maloney (20), second-year arts, from Foxford, Co Mayo
Average weekly budget
(excluding rent) €140
Honestly, cigarettes, drink and food. I drink at least six cans a night and smoke about 40 fags a day, and that takes up the majority of my budget.
I only buy my clothes in September, and that does me for the year. My friends are very good with money, but I'm not.
Macdara Glynn (27), Phd in science,f rom Galway city
Average weekly budget
(excluding rent) €150
Most of it goes on food and then sports. Most of the sports I do are heavily equipment-based, so a lot of it goes into that. I don't actually drink, so I can keep it down to about €25 a night. I do spend more now that I'm a postgraduate, but I still feel I'm living a student life.
Sarah Barron (20), fourth-year biomedical science, from Limerick
Average weekly budget
(excluding rent) €120
I definitely spend €50 a week on food, but I live really close to college, so I tend to go home for lunch and stuff. There's a lot of tea drunk at home, rather than in college. I wouldn't spend that much on drink really, but it depends on the week. I buy CDs and tickets for gigs too.