Browsing by Author "Nurminen, Hanna"

The thesis focuses on essential consumption of university students in Helsinki metropolitan area. This study utilizes the consensual or so called consumer-driven method for building reference budgets in which the students have participated in. The data were collected in four group interviews with a total of 19 college students. On the basis of group interviews of higher education students, the reference budget is built on a reasonable minimum, according to the monthly and annual basis. Budget reference is built on consumption expenditure groups which are: food, housing, mobility and travel, clothing, household goods and appliances, leisure, and health and hygiene. Data has been analyzed with content analysis and thematic analysis. This work aims to answer how the necessary consumption of university students is composed, and how they perceive the adequacy of their money and how they fund living. The aim is to determine which kind of consumption determines the minimum level of consumption, with which university students get along and feel that they can participate in social activities. The study shows that the student benefit is not enough to cover the necessary expenditure of university students. Interviews show that the main aids for economic survival are student loans, support from parents and work. According to the interviewees, work slows the progress of studies. In group interviews, the students reacted quite positively to their economic situation. Some, however, felt that survival was difficult and, for example, without parental support, it would be almost impossible. Only a few of the interviewees is trying to survive only with student benefit, but they have to calculate very carefully what they are able to buy.