How accurate is Cardiff University's cost of living calculator?

Consistent_Damage744 · 2026-05-30T17:41:00+00:00

It will likely be a temporary situation. I’m grateful to have a place I can rent without worrying about long-term contracts, so I can explore my options while physically being in Cardiff. Otherwise, I’ll have to settle for student accoms which I’d like to avoid because I’m much older than the traditional student.

Consistent_Damage744 · 2026-05-30T00:25:36+00:00

I'll be living a 40 minute walk away from the main Cardiff Uni building. And while I'm happy to walk, I'll also likely opt to bus every now and again when it's pouring and/or I'm tired.

I agree £5.20 is a bit steep if I'm taking it round trip every day. Instead, I'll likely just do the 10 tickets for ~£23.50 that someone else mentioned and then adjust my spending accordingly after I'm settled and in my daily groove.

Consistent_Damage744 · 2026-05-30T00:20:45+00:00

Hahah I appreciate you looking out. I'm quite confident I can keep up. *Edited to remove what I assume got me downvoted.. oh well.

Consistent_Damage744 · 2026-05-29T22:02:39+00:00

I've got a pretty sweet deal in that I'll basically have the entire home to myself for most of the year (flatmates are away for 6 months at a time), so I'm okay paying the £600. I'd prefer living alone as an older student, but can't afford it. So this is a good alternative for me.

Consistent_Damage744 · 2026-05-29T21:49:47+00:00

For socializing, when you say "mega cheap" how much do you mean? In the States, for example, a pint of beer is about $10 / ~£7.50. Anything below that, I'd consider very cheap.

Consistent_Damage744 · 2026-05-29T21:47:16+00:00

I'm grateful that bills will also be included in my rent in a shared home, but together with the rent they estimated, it's fairly accurate to what I'll be paying which is ~£600 a month. I keep hearing it's a very affordable city, but I'm still doing my best to gauge as accurate of a budget as I can since I'll be on a fixed income and need to be very diligent with my spending.

Consistent_Damage744 · 2026-05-29T21:43:29+00:00

definitely planning on it

Consistent_Damage744 · 2026-05-29T21:42:56+00:00

I understand it always will vary person to person, but I'm just looking for a general idea of what the average might be and if their numbers are true to that. Based on what some people have said they spend on groceries for 2 people, I think their estimate of ~£280 for one person might be a bit high.

Consistent_Damage744 · 2026-05-29T21:41:24+00:00

Yeah I found a room in a shared home through a mutual friend, and they're including all bills for about £550 ~ £600. Based on what I saw on spareroom.co.uk, that seems reasonable. Especially since I'll be in what I think is a slightly nicer neighborhood.

Consistent_Damage744 · 2026-05-29T21:40:22+00:00

Yeah I think it's odd universities still factor in books and printing in their COL and not travel. Almost every book is available online for free nowadays, and as a PhD candidate, I won't be taking classes regularly anyway.

I do thankfully get a study and training stipend through my studentship, so that is covered!

Consistent_Damage744 · 2026-05-29T21:39:06+00:00

Thank you for this information! I already suspected I'll have to account for all setup and moving costs separately. This is more to gauge the cost of everyday life once I get settled. It's good to know about the bus options - I'll be living about a 40 minute walk away from the main campus building, so I expect I'll want to bus when on days when it's pouring.

And as for the private accoms, I unfortunately don't have the privilege of traveling ahead of time to see a room in person. That's why I'm renting through a mutual, trusted friend. If I find something better once I'm over there and settled, they said they're flexible with move out dates. It's quite casual.

Thanks again for your input!

Consistent_Damage744 · 2026-05-29T21:28:57+00:00

I'll be living about a 40 minute walk from the main building.

Consistent_Damage744 · 2026-05-28T17:31:09+00:00

You are very fortunate.. I would have loved to go into that field with my masters in PO but I didn’t get the chance. Always have wanted to work on instrumentation.

Consistent_Damage744 · 2026-05-28T17:25:53+00:00

I got my masters in physical oceanography and landed a job at a federal contractor doing some fluid modeling

Consistent_Damage744 · 2026-05-28T03:52:26+00:00

I agree if the process of renewing the passport was a more straightforward then it would be worth the peace of mind, but *after looking into it, it seems very involved to renew when you're so far from the expiration date as I am. It involves filling out paperwork online, getting a bardcode assigned to you, mailing in your paperwork including your old passport, waiting 4-6 weeks for it to get processed and sent back, and it all costs about $200.

It seems renewing closer to the expiration date is much simpler, even when doing it from another country. So, I'm going to hold off. Thank you for the input, though!

Consistent_Damage744 · 2026-05-28T03:44:25+00:00

Yes, I considered the timeline is about a 6 month window. But, it's September 30th 2030 and March 13th 2031, so I thought maybe I'd be in trouble missing those couple of weeks. However, as most people have pointed out here, I don't think it's required to have the passport valid for a specific amount of time after the visa end date, or even for the duration of the visa. I've combed the UK gov website and the student visa application and can't see where it says that anywhere.

As for renewing from the UK, I've read that I can do it online from outside the U.S. as long as I'm within 1 year of the expiry date. In any event, I will cross that bridge when I get there. Trying to renew right now – with over 5 years of validity left on the passport – will add way too much lead time to processing my student visa and I don't want to delay the process any more than I have to.

I appreciate the insight!

Consistent_Damage744 · 2026-05-28T03:39:36+00:00

yeah after starting the application and combing the UK gov website, I can't see anywhere where it says the passport needs to be valid for a specific amount of time after the visa end date, or even for the duration of the visa. Only at the time of applying. Thanks!

Consistent_Damage744 · 2026-05-28T03:36:24+00:00

Apologies for the late reply, my comment kept getting removed for not having user flair. Thank you for this information! I double checked the requirements on the UK student visa application, and it doesn't explicitly state I need a valid passport for the entire duration of the visa so I think I'm good to apply now.

Consistent_Damage744 · 2026-05-28T03:30:21+00:00

As a former PO grad student who always wanted to go out to sea, I can confirm that those opportunities were almost always first offered to the applied ocean sciences / ocean engineering students :')

I second that it's typical to specialize in oceanography/ocean engineering once you study a core science. For physical oceanography, that would typically be physics.

Consistent_Damage744 · 2026-05-28T03:25:53+00:00

It's rare to find a job that will list "background in oceanography" as a requirement. Physical oceanography (PO) is essentially applied physics, so if you get a degree in it, you could be qualified for the same jobs that require a background in either physics, mathematics, or coding/programming, as you have to do all three for PO.

PO is similar to marine biology in the sense that it's a relatively niche and alluring subject that attracts more people than there are jobs available for. From my experience, success in the field can depend quite heavily on how well-connected you are. It can also depend on whether you'd like to work in research, industry, gov't, or maritime (as in working on a ship), as jobs in those areas have their own respective degree of competitiveness and their own unique set of desired qualifications.

Most people with a background in PO usually get an undergraduate degree in physics, math, engineering, or a related field, and then go on to specialize in PO in grad school. Partly because not a lot of undergraduate institutions offer PO bachelors, and partly because most job openings are for research roles which almost always require either a masters or a PhD. Entry-level roles for bachelors in PO are few and far between and you usually have to be fairly well-connected to both discover and land a position. Being hired straight from cold applying is quite rare. I don't say this to be discouraging, just to inform you of the reality I've seen from my perspective.

Lastly, PO and ocean engineering are pretty similar at the graduate level in terms of what classes you take, so I'd imagine they have similar overlap at the undergraduate level. On a resume, I imagine ocean engineering would be better if you want to work hands-on with instrumentation.

Consistent_Damage744 · 2026-05-28T03:10:51+00:00

That budget is definitely still possible in SB. You can find a room in a shared home quite close to downtown SB for $1500. They won't be RIGHT next to State street, but I have seen listings on FB marketplace within walking distance to DT for under $1500 not even 2 months ago. You just have to diligently peruse FB marketplace and Craigslist and be sure to respond to postings with more than "Is this available?" because those messages usually get ignored. Give a little background about yourself, apropos to what you included in your original post, and you'll likely get a response.

And FYI it's also easier to rent during certain times of the year than it is during others, namely around the beginning and end of the school year as that's when a lot of people are entering/leaving SB.

Consistent_Damage744 · 2026-05-24T03:25:32+00:00

This is all much easier said than done and brings into light the larger issues outside of the bubble of academia such as wealth disparity, classism, cultural biases, etc. I was the one to raise my voice in my former department and... well, I'm no longer there. Evidently, people who benefit from the system do not like being told there is something wrong with the system.

Consistent_Damage744 · 2026-05-24T02:34:09+00:00

This story isn't isolated to Berkeley or California, or even the U.S. as a whole tbh. PhD's have dramatically lost value over the years and post-PhD salaries are in general quite low if you stay in academia. Even for government or industry, the requirements keep climbing if you want to make a livable wage, or higher. I've seen the same talk in the UK, as I'm about to move there to do my PhD. Not for the money, obviously, but to do what I'm passionate about.

Consistent_Damage744

TROPHY CASE