Students starting university in Northern Ireland this year can expect to owe around £21,000 by the time they finish their studies, according to the UK’s largest survey of student finance.

The annual survey by Push also found that student debt in the province currently stands at around £4,300 for each year of study — compared to £5,000 across the UK as a whole.

The local figure — which relates to students studying at Queen’s University, Belfast, and the University of Ulster — is up 29%.

The Push Student Debt Survey (published at www.push.co.uk) is the most detailed annual analysis of students' financial position and this year's is the largest to date involving face-to-face interviews with over 2,000 students at 137 university campuses throughout the UK.

It is published today as thousands of students in Northern Ireland prepare to receive their A-level results this Thursday.

Other research by Push.co.uk suggests that 80% of students rely on part-time or holiday jobs to supplement their income by an average of £2,000 a year but these jobs are getting harder to find.

The different funding arrangements around the UK are also reflected in the data.

In Scotland, which has the most generous funding system, debts have actually fallen to £2,194 a year and are much lower than the rest of the UK.

Meanwhile, with an average of £5,271, students in England owe £205 for each year more than the national average.

“With the economy in recession, students are even more concerned about debt than they have been in recent years. Finding part-time work has got harder and many students are facing real financial hardship and are worrying about what lies ahead,” Johnny Rich, editor of push.co.uk, said.

“Even so, the advantages of having a degree still vastly outweigh the costs and the Push survey shows that — with high-quality advice and information — students can keep their debts down while still enjoying the benefits of university.”

However, the University and College Union (UCU) said that people were being priced out of going to university.

UCU general secretary, Sally Hunt, said: “These are really worrying figures. It is criminal that generations of students will be saddled with thousands of pounds of debt.

“For all the talk of widening participation the sad reality is that students and their families are facing even higher financial barriers to going to university.

“There should be little surprise that students in Scotland, where there are no tuition fees, are coping much better than their counterparts in England and Wales.

“Any further increase in university fees will be about as popular as the poll tax with hard-working families and their children.”

The figures posted today on Push.co.uk form part of the website's detailed profiles of every university in the UK covering every aspect of student life from teaching standards to the price of beer on each campus.

l See Friday’s Belfast Telegraph for our free guide to university admission. ‘Options’ includes information on student finances, clearing vacancies for universities across the UK and advice on taking a gap year.