lavish student spending habits

According to the 2015 Student Spending Report released in Johannesburg yesterday, the average student continues to prioritise instant gratification over saving. Over 30% of students did not save, while 58% saved between R1 and R540 on a monthly basis. And those who did save said they only saved for “rainy days”, which usually occurred once a week.

The report’s findings are based on the online interviews marketing specialists Student Village conducted with over 3000 students aged between 17 and 25 earlier this year.

Male students were found to be more free-spending than female students, with 79% of their budget going towards alcohol. Female students spent most of their money on hairdressers and beauticians, with the remainder generally dedicated to medicine, the maintenance of their health and contraception.

Clothing, gadgets and take-aways were the primary purchases of coloured students, while white students generally concentrated their purchases on contraceptives, toiletries and music. For most black students, the big buys were alcohol, petrol and bling.

Students are spending more on themselves than the average consumer.

According to Student Village’s 2015 Student Spend Survey, students spend an average of around R32 000 a year – and this excludes textbooks, travel and tuition.

The sample of just over 3 000 students found that female students spend more on health, hairdressers, beauticians and cigarettes.

Their male counterparts are using their cash on car insurance, clothes, alcohol and sporting equipment. The study found that white students are more likely to have a credit card while black students prefer retail cards.

Six in 10 students surveyed have some form of credit and while many know that saving is important, they often simply save to spend on the next big item.

The country has about 52m people with a combined annual spend of R4.14 trillion and an average spend per person of an estimated R25208 a year. The students, on the other hand, are about 938000 with a combined spend of R30.4bn and an average spend per student of R32424.

This was revealed yesterday in a report by Student Village, a youth marketing company. The student–spending study was done online with more than 3000 respondents aged between 17 and 25.

The survey found that students get 86% of their income from parents, 30% from part-time or full-time work and 15% from bursaries. The total monthly spend for the students has increased compared to last year as it is now R3324 from R2702.

Male students spend more than females with most of their spending going straight to alcohol while females spend most on hairdressers and beauty products. Other areas students spend on include groceries, transport, rent, clothing and medical aid. The survey found that the high-value products students buy are smart phones, laptops and tablets.