12 BACK TO THEMES U NITE STUDENTS | APPLICANT INDEX REPORT | 2023 As the cost of living crisis continues to affect most people’s day to day lives, it is perhaps surprising to find that financial confidence is higher among this year’s applicants than it was last year. Confidence in ability to budget has risen three percentage points, perhaps reflecting a greater emphasis on financial education. This year’s applicants are also more likely to believe that they have family and friends that they can reach out to for financial support. However the realities of the real-term reduction in the student maintenance package in England appear to have had an impact, and they are less likely to believe that they will have enough money to cover their costs. The proportion reporting that financial issues are affecting their mental health is 37% overall, which is similar to last year 1 , and some groups are affected more severely than others. FINANCE 59 The Finance score indicates the level of confidence in financial means and skills. 1 The percentage has risen from 36% to 37% but this is within the margin of error for the size of the research sample. I will have enough money to cover my costs at university I have family or friends that I would feel comfortable about asking for financial help if needed I am confident that I can budget and manage my money while at university *Financial issues are affecting my mental health 0% 100% 80% 50% 20% 90% 60% 30% 70% 40% 10% Figure 1: Breakdown of responses to finance theme questions THEMATIC ANALYSIS - FINANCE ■ Strong disagreement ■ Moderate disagreement ■ Neutral ■ Moderate agreement ■ Strong agreement *For this question, agreement indicates a negative response; the score for this question was reversed when calculating the index score. +1 from 2022