It has never been more difficult to find a well paid graduate job. According to the Association of Graduate Recruiters (AGR), employers are currently receiving sixty nine applications per vacancy. This is an increase from forty nine for every job in 2009 and thirty five in 2000. The lack of positions has been caused by the economic downturn.

One of the problems with not being able to find a good job directly after you graduate is how to pay off your student debt. Getting into debt is often a way of life for a student. However focusing on managing your money and minimising the amount of student debt you have to repay after graduating has never been more important.

Graduate jobs will be much harder to find

The fact is that getting into some student debt while studying is virtually unavoidable particularly as the majority of students have to support their own living costs often for the first time. However, on arriving at university, many people have a tendency towards a “live life for the now and worry about the consequences sometime down the line” attitude.

For this reason, it is now assumed by the National Union of Students that the average graduate will owe around £20,000 by the time they leave university.

In the past, students have looked forward to the prospect of getting a well paid job and therefore this attitude has not been so much of an issue. However, in today’s market, getting any kind of job after graduation is by no means certain.

Many graduates will face long periods of unemployment or lower paid work.  Students today therefore need to take a much more mature attitude towards getting into debt and how they will be able to repay it after graduation.

Set your living expenses budget

When you are at university, the way to avoid getting into unnecessary debt is to understand your budget and stick to it. At the beginning of each term, you should consider the income you receive from student loans and other sources and divide that between the number of weeks in the term.

This weekly budget should then be split on paper giving you a spending plan for each of the main areas of your expenditure – accommodation, food, travel, university expenses (such as books) and of course entertainment.

Once you have calculated your budget in these areas you need to try and stick to it. If you need additional funds, before asking your bank for a loan or credit card, look to see if you can get a part time job. Try to avoid borrowing more unless it is absolutely necessary.

What if your debts are out of control?

Borrowing more should be avoided if at all possible. It is all too easy to borrow a little bit here and there but before you know it, a student overdraft can run up to £2000 and a credit card balance creep up to £3000 or more.

Having to face paying off this kind of debt on top of your student loans when you graduate is not easy particularly if you are unable to find a well paid job.

If once you have graduated you find that you are struggling with debt you need to take advice from a debt expert and consider implementing a debt management solution.