Realistic cost of living in Tampere for exchange student

[mrshourula]

My daughter is filling out her application for her study abroad program at University of Tampere and needs to make a budget (and show available resources) for a 9-month stay. Unfortunately, the cost of living information on her university's Web page is woefully out of date. I've searched around and come up with this estimated budget. If there is anyone currently living and studying in Tampere who could give us a reality check on these numbers -- and also what we might be missing-- it would be most appreciated.

(Amounts are based on 1 USD = 0.662246 EUR)

Meals/Food: 2700€/$4077 (based on 300€/$453 per month)
Bus: 315€/$477 (based on 35€/$53 per month)
Housing: 2160€/$3267 (based on 240€/$363 per month and probably living in a place called Lapinkaari)
Books/Materials 993€/$1500 (this is a guess based on what she spends in US)
Personal expenses 1350€/$$2043 (based 150€/$227 per month and might include things like internet,phone)
Travel/Entertainment: 3000€/$4529 (based on cost of trips organized by student union groups)

[Mark I.]

Someone can give more detailed info, but food cost 10e/day for a student is a lot, one can get by with some 5e/day (using student's meals, not eating out, etc.)

Students in Finland don't buy their study books, they lend them from Uni library for free.

Do they really organize such expensive trips by student union? Wow, when I was studying, the average could have been something like 200e for a year (and those trips were optional). (Sure, drinking at restaurants amounted close to 3000e a year , but average students were not so eager to celebrate many times a week. )

[sammy]

Mark I is right - usually, the amount of books a student absolutely needs to buy is fairly small (and in most cases, the university libraries are the answer)... and that 3000€ for student union trips sounds a bit weird - if she hasn't done so already, your daughter could contact TAMY (the University of Tampere student union) - http://www.tamy.fi/en/ for all this kind of practical questions regarding student life in Tampere

[EP]

Meals/Food: 2700€/$4077 (based on 300€/$453 per month) ---> Sounds realistic. Sure she can manage with 5 € per day, but that might mean that when she buys a Coke, a bread and coffee and a bag of chips, she will have to skip a meal. With 10 € she can eat a decent meal at a student cafeteria, and there is still money left for some grocery shopping.

Bus: 315€/$477 (based on 35€/$53 per month) ---> Sounds fine.

Housing: 2160€/$3267 (based on 240€/$363 per month and probably living in a place called Lapinkaari) --> If it is student housing, sounds fine.

Books/Materials 993€/$1500 (this is a guess based on what she spends in US) ---> Way too much. Like people have already said, you buy books only if there is a months long queue at the library for the most popular books. Usually there isn´t. The library card costs nothing.

Personal expenses 1350€/$$2043 (based 150€/$227 per month and might include things like internet,phone) ---> Sounds a bit too much. OK, maybe not if she likes to go to movies/concerts/clubs.

Travel/Entertainment: 3000€/$4529 (based on cost of trips organized by student union groups) ---> That sounds really too much. With that she could make 10 weekend trips to different European capitals.

[EP]

.I checked the university´s living costs info:

Rent 150-220 €
Food 250 €
Transport 40 €
Leisure etc. costs 100 €

It is not out of date, mayby the 150 € rent is, but otherwise it seems to be fine.

[donald]

I'd say housing is from 200 upwards if you're lucky, but 250 or more would be more realistic.
Food is definitely less than 250. One can eat at the eateries at the university, costs some 2,5€/lunch and the food is good. It does not necessarily taste good, but it is good in terms of nutritious values. Then add a few home made meals to it, or do it as some people do in Jyväskylä, where the eatery is open from 10am to 5pm: go have lunch at 10 and dinner at 4:30.

From my experience as a student (two years ago) I'd say one can survive with 600€/month and start to live with 700€/month. But these are quite minimalistic values.

[Salopian]

Moi.

Bus: 315€/$477 (based on 35€)

the cost of a monthly travel card.

Re: Meals - university caffeteria food (which isn't bad at all) is €2.5 a meal, and is as much as you can carry, inc. salad. Another €5/day on top of that surely enough.

Housing: 2160€/$3267

: €250-300 would cover it. The rent approximation on the university page is deffo out of date. And for the love of God, avoid Lapinkaari at all costs, unless your daughter wants to be able to hear the person the cell - I mean room - next door breathing, and can deal with Spanish students making 'music' and partying into the early hours. Every day/night.
Also, there may not be an internet connection available there. If you can get TOAS accomodation elsewhere, it will probably have a free internet connection to boot.

Books/Materials 993€/$1500

- €0* - See Mark I.'s post.

Personal expenses 1350€/$$2043

- Phone contract with DNA (can be terminated at any time) @€9/month, inc. free minutes/texts as is preferred. €25/month should do it. Free skype for int'l calls (with aforementioned free internet connection).

Re: Travel/entertainment:
There's an organised ferry trip to Sweden and back for €80 inc. all-you-eat at the buffet, and tour of Stockholm.
Day cruise return trip to Tallinn €25-40 depending on when booked, plus €13 each for train journey to Helsinki.
Seven day trip to St. Petersburg and Moscow: c.€350+visa.
There's a trip to Lapland too, around €200, but can't remember exactly.

Final thing: INSURANCE

[Hank W.]

Lets put it this way - its better to "overbudget" a bit. Also when you go silly and send her stuff she needs to go collect from the customs post office she'll need the money to pay the customs taxes She'll need the "comfort food"... and its a bit hard to get here occasionally. What she needs to bring with is a computer/laptop... the powers should be dual voltage and the cord is 5 euros in the store. And she shouldn't bring any stupid hairblowers or anything like that as they'll fry in the sockets. A cheap one is a tenner at Tarjoustalo and will do the job. And definitely organize a Skype thing and figure out how to use it, as otherwise you'll get reamed with the phone charges. Everyone here has a mobile, but not much use bringing an US one over unless it takes the Finnish GSM frequencies and you can switch the chip. You can get a basic model that "works" for under a hundred - and yeah, "everybody has one", you don't ask people if they got shoes...

[mrshourula]

Lets put it this way - its better to "overbudget" a bit. Also when you go silly and send her stuff she needs to go collect from the customs post office she'll need the money to pay the customs taxes She'll need the "comfort food"... and its a bit hard to get here occasionally. What she needs to bring with is a computer/laptop... the powers should be dual voltage and the cord is 5 euros in the store. And she shouldn't bring any stupid hairblowers or anything like that as they'll fry in the sockets. A cheap one is a tenner at Tarjoustalo and will do the job. And definitely organize a Skype thing and figure out how to use it, as otherwise you'll get reamed with the phone charges. Everyone here has a mobile, but not much use bringing an US one over unless it takes the Finnish GSM frequencies and you can switch the chip. You can get a basic model that "works" for under a hundred - and yeah, "everybody has one", you don't ask people if they got shoes...

Thank you, Hank. I am overbudgeting a bit as I expect her to go a little nuts being in a new country and using a different currency. It might be easier to accept a 6 euro cup of coffee than a $9USD one

Now, if I recall correctly from another thread if I can keep my care packages under 45EUR then she might be spared the customs taxes?

She has an old Nokia that is on its last legs so I was going to give her my iPhone to bring but not sure if that will work based on what you say abut the Finnish GSM. Sounds better to buy one there (and then I won't have to give up my beloved iPhone -- and I do love it!). And we will learn to Skype!

[mrshourula]

Housing: 2160€/$3267

: €250-300 would cover it. The rent approximation on the university page is deffo out of date. And for the love of God, avoid Lapinkaari at all costs, unless your daughter wants to be able to hear the person the cell - I mean room - next door breathing, and can deal with Spanish students making 'music' and partying into the early hours. Every day/night.

Final thing: INSURANCE

Thank you, Salopian.

She is applying for a housing scholarship (available to students who go to Tampere from her home university in the US) and it seems that Lapinkaari is where you live if on this scholarship. Maybe saving 2700€ is worth involuntarily partying with the Spaniards

And, yes, I had completely left off the new mandatory health insurance. Thank you for noticing.

[mrshourula]

I'd say housing is from 200 upwards if you're lucky, but 250 or more would be more realistic.
Food is definitely less than 250. One can eat at the eateries at the university, costs some 2,5€/lunch and the food is good. It does not necessarily taste good, but it is good in terms of nutritious values. Then add a few home made meals to it, or do it as some people do in Jyväskylä, where the eatery is open from 10am to 5pm: go have lunch at 10 and dinner at 4:30.

From my experience as a student (two years ago) I'd say one can survive with 600€/month and start to live with 700€/month. But these are quite minimalistic values.

Thank you, Donald. That's a great suggestion about eating an early dinner to get the discount. In the US, that is what our senior citizens do (Early Bird specials they are called)

[mrshourula]

... and that 3000€ for student union trips sounds a bit weird - if she hasn't done so already, your daughter could contact TAMY (the University of Tampere student union) - http://www.tamy.fi/en/ for all this kind of practical questions regarding student life in Tampere

Oh, yes the 3000€ would be a lot for the student union trips. She's also budgeting for travel during breaks and the summer before she comes home. And thanks for the TAMY link -- I forwarded it to daughter.

[raamv]

Travelers checks: avoid em like the plague..
Bank account transfers are like 30$ or 30€ a pop..so figure out a way to either deposit the € in a bank using one wire transfer..Check cashing fee is like 40€..
Another way is to use credit cards but you get hit with the exchange rate..
Also, if she is gonna travel, you need travel insurance too..
An iphone or CDMA phone will not work here..but a tri-band or a quad-band phone will work here and is cheaper there than here..unless you want to get a second hand phone for around 100€ ( or cheap new ones for €100).
Send a good laptop ( with webcam, speakers) in case she wants to spend time listening to music watching movies ( movie tickets are like 8€ a pop without the corn)..and skyping..
and remember to buy only 110-250v equipment, otherwise, they fry here.. ( there are multi country hair dryers, portable DVD players etc available from local Indian or other ethnic shops there in the US)
Clothing for the 9 months is way cheaper there in the US than here..so winter and summer and fall depending on when she arrives..( summer and winter jackets, shoes, thermal wear, etc etc)
if possible, buying a cycle might be better for travel too..
A good samsonite bag ll go a long way here are they are priced 3 times more than the airport prices..
Medicines are good too but then check to make sure about this..( things like carmex for dry lips , ben gay for pain relief, fever tablets, pain relievers, mosquito repellents during summer, medicine for diarrhea etc)
remember, Americans coming to Europe has higher weight allocation ( not on transfers from EU though as they complain about it but still do it without extra charges) so paying excess baggage could save for the 9 months shipping packets..

[mrshourula]

.I checked the university´s living costs info:

Rent 150-220 €
Food 250 €
Transport 40 €
Leisure etc. costs 100 €

It is not out of date, mayby the 150 € rent is, but otherwise it seems to be fine.

Thanks, EP. I actually meant on my daughter's home university web page (they were using an exchange rate from 2005 ) .

I didn't find any cost info on the UTA Web site but did on (I think it's called) TUT. I really appreciate everyone's input -- I think we now have a realistic view of how much we should set aside for her trip. You all are great!

[mrshourula]

Hank,

I've tried to reply to your PM three times now but the messages just seem to stay in my outbox.

Mrs. H