How to live on a paltry student budget

One of the greatest challenges for international students is to survive on a small budget while living in a foreign city and country. Higher tuition rates for non-Dutch students, limited scholarship funds, and the high cost of living can put a pinch on most students’ wallets. The UT Nieuws explores ways to take advantage of low-cost stores, student nights, inexpensive food products and cheap ways to travel. 

Albert Heijn: Though touted as one of the higher-end grocery stores in the Netherlands, Albert Heijn (AH) has its own line of inexpensive, red and white-packaged eur shopper products that keeps students on a budget quite content. The no frills packaging lists―in bold white letters― the product names in English. In almost every grocery isle, euroshopper products are cleverly mixed in with expensive items. If you don’t know, you might miss them. Can it get any better for a student than Premium Lager beer for  € 0.19 a bottle, Willy Wonka-sized chocolate bars for  € 0.33, eight rolls of toilet paper for  € 1.35 or a 4.5 kilo bag of Surinaam long-grain rice for a mere € 4.72?

The Albert Heijn stores also offer customers a free cup of coffee and free samples of new products from time to time. AH’s largest selection and ‘mega-store’ you can find in the Miro Shopping Center, Noord Esmarkerrondweg  421, open every weekday until 10pm, and also on Sunday afternoons. The closest AH location to campus is on the Maanstraat 161.

Aldi and Lidl: These two grocery stores are affordable havens for the poor students on a budget. Unlike the Albert Heijn, all products on offer are at bargain-basement prices and you feel more like you’re walking in a warehouse than in a grocery store with its no-frills décor and scattered open cardboard boxes. Two Aldi locations in Enschede, close to the campus are on the Haaksbergerstraat 202 and on the Deuringstraat 101. A Lidli grocery can be found on Slijpsteen 11.There’s no beating Aldi or Lidl prices, just ask any Dutch student.

Vrijhof Culture Department: Students and staff for years have been able to borrow works of art for their rooms on campus free-of-charge. You can select a work of art from the art-lending library on every Tuesday and Thursday between 12pm to 1:30pm by stopping in the university library (room 261). To date, the university has a circulating collection of over a thousand works of art in campus buildings and student rooms.

Another inexpensive gem is the Vrijhof lunch performances held every Monday called Broodje Cultuur, which literally means ‘sandwich culture’, where audiences get the chance to watch cabaret, theater, dance and music performances from 12:35pm to 1:35pm for only € 4 by showing their X-tra card. Keep informed on all performances on Facebook, Hyves, Twitter or go to the English site www.cultuur.utwente.nl.

Café Aspen Valley: Many University of Twente and Saxion students swarm to the smoke-free atmosphere of Student Night at Café Aspen Valley on every Thursday, where a beer costs only  € 1.20 euro, starting from 10pm to closing hours at 4am. In one of the three themed rooms, there is a rotating bar which allows people to hop-on and hop-off. Sometimes the bartender will give an impromptu drum performance to the beat of the short clips of music, adding a punch to the lively atmosphere. The café is located at the Oude Markt 18 in Enschede, and you will need to show your student ID at the door. For more information, go to www.aspenvalley.nl Or you can join the Café Aspen Valley community on the Dutch Hyves, Facebook, Twitter or Partyflock sites.

Zeeman and Wibra: Earn your ‘Zeebra stripes’ by shopping at these two discounters that have unbeatable prices for an assortment of textile products, including socks, hats, gloves and protective raingear to keep you warm and dry while cycling in the harsh Dutch weather.

Action: Action says it is a ‘non-food supermarket’ with 220 stores in the Netherlands, Belgium and Germany, but quite often, you can find snacks and seasonal food products in its overflowing isles of products. From air fresheners to extension cords, personal hygiene products to computer paper—and you name it— the Action store will probably have what you need at very low prices.A new location recently opened on the Boulevard 1945, and a smaller Action store can be found in the center city next to the main library.

Vestingbar Movie Night: Every Wednesday, watch a movie while sitting in the tucked-away comfort of the 53-seat Amphitheater at the Vestingbar in the Bastille building. The ‘Amphi’ film program offers top films from classics of the past like the Blues Brothers to fantasy thrillers to less-known modern titles. The movies begin every Wednesday at 9:15pm and the cinema opens its doors at 8:45pm. Entry is free and a half liter of beer costs a mere € 2,50.

Secondhand Furniture: Stop in to visit De Verhuishand store on campus in the Carslaan 60 building, number 163, to select from a wide range of secondhand furniture, electronics, appliances and household goods offered at really low prices from € 0.50 to € 50, and suited to fit in small spaces. The store is open from Monday to Thursday from 12pm to 6pm, and on Fridays from 12pm to 5pm. Go to the Verhuishand website www.deverhuishand.nl or call for more information 053-4342208. 

Train tickets: The Kruidvat drug store offers 2^nd class train tickets for only € 12.49 to travel unlimited for one day in the Netherlands. You can buy a green ticket that can be used on a Saturday or Sunday during 9 October to 5 December 2010. Or choose for a red day ticket that is valid on a Saturday or Sunday during 11 December to 6 February 2011. Even if you’re not sure when you can travel, buy your tickets early, as the Dutch say: ‘op is op’ or ‘gone is gone!’ More information at www.kruidvat.nl/ns.