These are the 10 biggest student news stories of the DECADE
In the decade where many of us left school, started uni and became adults (somehow?!), a LOT happened in the world of student news. Time to get nostalgic and look back at our top stories.
Credit: Fiona Pok – Facebook, Michael Tubi – Shutterstock
Since 2010, so much has happened – we've seen Kony 2012, four Prime Ministers, Gillian McKeith 'fainting' on TV, Madonna falling off stage, Greta Thunberg inspiring millions, football nearly coming home, Theresa May dancing to ABBA and, well, Brexit.
But, "what happened in the world of student money?", we hear you ask.
You've come to the right place. Here are our biggest student news stories from the last 10 years...
Top news stories from 2010–2019
Here are our favourite and most-read news articles from each year of the past decade:
2010
Save the Student launched in 2007, but 2010 was the year the site really started to take off. And it just so happens to be the year of our very first news piece.
In October 2010, Owen Burek reported on our petition against the proposed rise in tuition fees to £9,000. It was the biggest petition on the issue at the time and was even signed by Ed Miliband(!).
Despite our best efforts of running the petition alongside a Facebook campaign and taking part in protests in Manchester and London, the next year brought news that we had really, really hoped to avoid...
2011
Credit: Pajor Pawel – Shutterstock
Although the Lib Dems had promised not to increase tuition fees, they broke their trust with students across the country while in a coalition with the Conservative government.
The rise in tuition fees from £3,290 to £9,000 had a major impact on a lot of people, with applications to uni after 2012 taking a noticeable dip.
But, thankfully, the long-term impact of the rise seems to have been minimal as the following years have seen record numbers of uni applications.
2012
In 2012, it was revealed that the University of Hull Students' Union offered an increased number of food parcels to students – going up to 70.
In the four years prior to this, the Union had found that there had been a 54% increase in students suffering from hardship – a shocking 2,300 students in one year had contacted them about concerns over money management.
Owen was interviewed by BBC News about the story, and he gives an overview of his thoughts on the issue in the article.
2013
Credit: Foppe Smit – Shutterstock
The die-hard Save the Student fans among you may remember that, for a while, our news pieces took the form of news round-ups which included pretty varied stories...
This was one of our first news round-up pieces, which covered some major topics, from Oxford University being accused of discrimination against poorer students, to the news that the 2012 rise in tuition fees had the potential of costing £7 billion to implement.
And, in other news, the Harlem Shake (one of the more bizarre crazes of the decade) was going viral and taking over our social media feeds.
2014
Credit: josepmarti – Shutterstock
Think you have big house parties? 2014 saw some students literally break their lounge floor during a post-exam party. Our expert take at the time:
Good work everybody. Good work… and say goodbye to those house deposits.
The roundup also included the news that student complaints had risen, with over 20,000 students complaining to their uni the previous year.
2015
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In 2015, major stories included the news that over 50,000 graduates were overpaying their Student Loans by an average of £570 each year. If you're worried you might be, check out our guide to repaying your loan.
And, in the same roundup, we covered the news that Zayn Malik's shock exit from One Direction had a surprising money-saving advantage to soften the blow for Directioners.
With "#AlwaysInOurHeartsZaynMalik", Lidl tweeted a pic of their One Direction Easter Egg – reduced in price by a fifth...
2016
Credit: Twocoms – Shutterstock
Remember when the Tories announced plans to introduce a 99p coin?!
No, us neither. This was our first April Fools' story. 😉
Among the comments on Facebook were: "No it makes no sense economically", "Nahh gimme a 1pound 4p coin so I can get a bag too", and "Oh God please stop", so we think it went down quite well.
2017
Credit: Bodnar Taras – Shutterstock
Although first published in 2016, the most read news story in 2017 was actually about the TV Licensing loophole.
The info in this article is still true today, so have a read to find out how to legally watch iPlayer without a TV Licence as a student!
Other big news stories from the year included the news that tuition fees were set to rise each year in line with inflation rates, the government told students to live more frugally and some top unis were rated 'bronze' in the Teaching Excellence Framework results.
2018
Credit: Fiona Pok – Facebook
The biggest news story on our site in 2018 was about Pok Wong, a graduate from Anglia Ruskin University who was trying to sue over the quality of her degree.
At the time, we reported that she was trying to sue for a huge £60,000. Our 2019 piece about the story reveals how much she actually got.
In the same year, we also covered the news that Student Loan interest rates were set to rise again, and that £5 notes with Harry Kane on them could earn you a massive £50,000.
2019
Credit: Michael Tubi – Shutterstock
When Boris Johnson won the election, the response from students was... mixed.
A few months before, we'd covered the news that Johnson had tried to make it harder for students to vote, but there had been moments on the day of the election where it looked like young people could sway the vote to the left. #YouthQuake was even trending on Twitter at one point.
But, despite many people's Twitter feeds featuring loads of pro-Corbyn tweets, Labour suffered one of their biggest defeats in living memory.
Our news article about the results looked at some of Johnson's pledges that affect you, to see what his election win means for students.
Thank you
Credit: Warner Bros.
Finally, we want to say a big thank you to you. Without our readers and the community of students, we wouldn't be able to do the work we do to help you manage your money, and our last decade would look very different.
So it's a Happy New Year from everyone at Save the Student! Here's to 10 more years of student money advice.
New Year, new you? Check out our top New Year's resolutions to save money.
