Where to Get Help

1. Where to Get Help for Mental Health and Wellbeing at University

University life brings immense changes, and it is entirely normal to feel overwhelmed. Whether you are dealing with homesickness, anxiety, depression, or stress related to your studies, reaching out early is the best step you can take.

According to the Higher Education Statistics Agency (2024), the number of students declaring a mental health condition has almost quadrupled over the past decade [1]. This means universities are more equipped than ever to assist you.

Your first point of contact should be your university’s student wellbeing or mental health service. These departments offer free, confidential triage appointments. Depending on your needs, they can refer you to short-term counselling, cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT), or external specialist services. You can usually self-refer via your university’s student portal.

If you prefer to speak to someone outside of your university, several excellent charities focus entirely on young adults. You can find dedicated Mental health support through Student Minds, which runs peer support groups across many UK campuses. Additionally, Nightline is a confidential listening service run by students, for students, operating through the night when other services are closed.

2. Where to Get Financial Help and Money Advice as a Student

Money worries are one of the biggest causes of stress for undergraduates. Managing rent, bills, and food on a tight budget is difficult, especially when inflation drives up everyday costs.

According to the National Union of Students (2024), a third of students are living on less than £50 a month after paying rent and bills [2]. If you find yourself in this position, you have options.

Your primary source of income is likely your government maintenance loan. If your circumstances have changed—for example, if your parents’ household income has dropped by 15% or more—you can ask for a current year income assessment to increase your loan entitlement. You can manage your application and report changes via the official Student finance portal.

If your loan still falls short, look into your university’s hardship fund. This is a pot of money set aside to aid students experiencing financial difficulty.

Follow these steps to apply for a hardship fund:

1. Gather three months of recent bank statements for all your accounts.
2. Write a short statement explaining your financial shortfall and any unexpected costs you have faced.
3. Submit your tenancy agreement and proof of your student loan entitlement.
4. Attend a brief, confidential meeting with a student money adviser if requested.

To see exactly how a hardship fund can help, consider this practical budgeting scenario:

Imagine your maintenance loan provides £1,800 for a 12-week term, but your rent is £1,200. This leaves you with £600, or £50 a week for food, bills, and travel. If your essential weekly outgoings are £80, you face a £30 weekly deficit (amounting to £360 for the term). By applying to the hardship fund and providing your budget breakdown, you could receive a non-repayable grant of £400. This clears your deficit and ensures you do not need to rely on high-interest credit cards or overdrafts.

For everyday money management, we highly recommend using our Student Budget Calculator to track your income and outgoings. You can also explore our Student Money section for guides on stretching your loan further.

3. Where to Get Help with Academic Struggles and Coursework

Falling behind on coursework or struggling to understand your lectures happens to almost everyone at some point. The worst thing you can do is ignore the problem and hope it resolves itself. Universities have multiple layers of academic support designed to catch you before you fail.

According to TASO (2025), almost one-fifth of students reported a mental health difficulty during their studies, which frequently intersects with academic stress and burnout [3].

If you are finding the workload unmanageable, your personal tutor or academic advisor is your first port of call. They do not mark your exams, so you can be entirely honest with them about your struggles. They can explain how to apply for mitigating circumstances (also known as extenuating circumstances), which can grant you deadline extensions or allow you to retake an exam without your mark being capped.

To understand why addressing academic issues early is so important, look at this grade calculation example:

Suppose your module is assessed by a mid-term essay worth 40% and a final exam worth 60%. If personal difficulties cause you to rush the essay and score 35%, you would need to score at least 50% on the final exam just to pass the module overall with a 44% mark ((35 x 0.4) + (50 x 0.6) = 14 + 30 = 44). However, if you apply for mitigating circumstances before the essay deadline and receive a two-week extension, you give yourself the time needed to aim for a 60% essay mark. This significantly reduces the pressure on your final exam and protects your overall degree classification.

Here are a few signs you might need academic support:

• You are consistently missing lectures or seminars because you feel overwhelmed.
• You do not understand the feedback on your previous assignments.
• You are spending hours reading but retaining very little information.
• You are relying heavily on AI tools because you lack confidence in your own writing.

If you struggle with the mechanics of writing, referencing, or research, visit your university’s study skills centre. They run free workshops and one-to-one sessions on academic writing, time management, and effective revision techniques.

4. Where to Get Help for Housing and Accommodation Issues

Living away from home is exciting, but dealing with difficult housemates, unresponsive landlords, or mouldy properties is stressful.

If you live in university halls, your first point of contact should be your accommodation manager or the resident assistants (RAs). They can mediate disputes between flatmates, handle noise complaints, and arrange emergency maintenance.

If you rent privately, the situation can be slightly more complex. Your Students’ Union advice centre is an incredible resource here. The advisors are trained in housing law and can check your tenancy agreement before you sign it. They can also help you draft formal letters to your landlord if repairs are being ignored.

If your landlord refuses to protect your deposit in a government-backed scheme, or tries to make unfair deductions at the end of your tenancy, you can get free legal guidance from Citizens Advice. They offer step-by-step instructions on how to challenge unfair charges.

To make living with housemates easier and avoid arguments over money, use our Bills Splitter Tool to divide shared costs fairly. You can also read more about your renting rights in our Accommodation hub.

5. Where to Get Help Planning Your Graduate Career

Thinking about life after university can be daunting, especially when balancing final-year exams and dissertation deadlines. You do not have to figure out your career path alone.

Your university careers service is available to you from your first day, and usually for up to three years after you graduate. They offer CV reviews, mock interviews, psychometric testing practice, and one-to-one career guidance appointments. They also host career fairs where you can meet graduate recruiters directly.

You can also research different career pathways and check average graduate salaries using Prospects careers, which provides detailed job profiles for hundreds of different roles.

When you are ready to start applying for roles, head over to your personal dashboard on our site. Here, you can use our CV builder, generate tailored cover letters, and practice with our interview simulator.