| Not sure if this fits but compsci student from Germany here. Ever since I was unceremoneously kicked out of my parents' house after graduating from HS I've lived in a student dorm, now sharing a flat with a friend splitting rent.
Been somewhat "cruising along" financially in the sense that I gained roughly enough to pay my monthly expenses with not much wiggle room. Had to go a bit into debt to fund moving into the dorm initially and never exactly recovered from that debt, just hovering with nothing really changing. Recently lost access to my student loan as I am too slow to study for their requirements but I've managed to offset that by working as sysadmin/tech support at a small uni lab. My main sources of income being this job, "child benefits", and a half-orphan pension (lost my mom to alcohol when I was 15, dad remarried later). This half-orphan pension now _also_ fell off until I have the paperwork handled to re-request it after they asked me for proof that I've been studying two years ago, which I sent in too late. This pension also covered healthcare automatically. Now with my pension out of the picture until they process it I have been thrown into the regular healthcare system, which added a monthly expense that I was not prepared for, especially because they are also requesting that I retroactively pay up for 3 months of apparently missed contributions/fees. Sent them an email a few days ago asking if it was possible to pay this off in monthly rates to hopefully make it a bit more manageable, but they have a very archaic policy of not responding to emails and only sending out paper mail. I also tried calling but the person I talked to wasn't exactly helpful outside of "have you tried sending an email".
I am honestly at a bit of a loss as to how to approach this. There were some pipe dreams of finding more work but the job market is, excuse the expression, fucked. Nobody would employ a student who hasn't finished their bachelor's yet. I'll probably try to find a job at some fastfood place or grocery store next and put my studies on pause. This might bite me back later because of credit point requirements from my course but still better than having debt collectors on my ass. I understand that this is all over the place. It would mean the world to me if someone could even find the time to chime in and give some advice. |
Healthcare costs: Does your uni or city offer free legal consultation? They might be able to help with how to ask your health insurance for monthly rates or a delay in bills.
Rent: How close are you with your friend? Would it be a possibility that they temporarily loan the rent, so that you can cover your unexpected bills?
Work: How close are you too finishing your studies and how close are you to the maximum study duration? If possible, you could reduce the amount of ECTS you're taking for the semester to make time to work up to 20h or more during semester breaks / exam phases. Taking a semester break for paid internships / any work is also a good possibility, unsure what you mean with credit point requirements. You could argue for an official "vacation semester" due to personal hardships. Working any job to make a living and cover your expenses is honorable. If possible, focus on building a track record of technical jobs. How comfortable are you with programming? Please try applying as working student or freelancer to companies in your area, as programming jobs likely pay higher per hour and build career capital for your next application. Likely, mid/large companies have no open headcount at the end of the year, headcount for these companies typically comes early in the following year. Startups, small local companies, and web/marketing agencies looking for freelancers might be different and also are more likely open to hire someone with little experience. Most CS people I know overuse the internet to look for jobs and underutilize their network. Ask fellow students, friends, and extended family if they know any open roles.
Credit: Have you considered taking a Studienkredit or similar type of loan for students?
Wish you the best!