THE TIME OF THEIR LIVES; GOING TO COLLEGE OR UNIVERSITY IS EXCITING AND FUN, BUT STUDENTS NEED TO GET SERIOUS ABOUT SORTING OUT FINANCE; (as Long as They () Don't Ignore All That Stuff about Money)

Byline: JO THORNHILL

ANNA Ross is on the brink of a whole new adventure. If she gets the A-level grade she needs on Thursday, she will be off to college next month to study fashion. Anna is excited by the prospect of being a student, living in London and, at 18, being independent for the first time.

There is just one thing worrying her - money, or more precisely the lack of it.

At this time of year most banks have a big push on their student accounts. Abbey has a [pounds sterling]50 cash gift and HSBC offers free travel insurance and discounts on music and laptops while NatWest provides a free five-year 16-25 Railcard, for example, which cuts one third off all rail travel.

Banks know that young people who open an account at 18 usually become lifelong customers because few can be bothered to switch later in life. …

Questia, a part of Gale, Cengage Learning. www.questia.com
Publication information: Article title: THE TIME OF THEIR LIVES; GOING TO COLLEGE OR UNIVERSITY IS EXCITING AND FUN, BUT STUDENTS NEED TO GET SERIOUS ABOUT SORTING OUT FINANCE; (as Long as They () Don't Ignore All That Stuff about Money). Contributors: Not available. Newspaper title: The Mail on Sunday (London, England). Publication date: August 16, 2009. Page number: 58. © 2009 Solo Syndication Limited. COPYRIGHT 2009 Gale Group.

This material is protected by copyright and, with the exception of fair use, may not be further copied, distributed or transmitted in any form or by any means.