New research from Novuna Personal Finance finds that Edinburgh University ranks eighth in the UK for the strength of its part-time job market.
The survey compared the number of part-time jobs available in each city with its population of students, finding Hull to top the list at 251 jobs per 100 students, followed by Derby and Swansea.
Edinburgh came in at 159 part time jobs per 100 students, falling narrowly below Birmingham at 160, and ranking just above Cardiff at 158.
This report was released after the 2026 Unite Students and Higher Education Policy Institute (HEPI) Applicant Index found that 65 per cent of full-time undergraduate students are in part-time employment, earning an average of £547 a month across almost 14 hours per week.
Meanwhile, the University of Edinburgh estimates an average living cost of £1,546 per month for undergraduate students, excluding tuition fees.
This includes an average estimated rent of £688 per month for students in private housing (excluding private student accommodation), and an average of £248 spent on shopping, such as food and toiletries.
The average maintenance loan given to students in the Rest of UK fees category in the 2025/26 academic year was £8,150, coming to £906 per month of the academic year (September-May).
Students expressed surprise at the number of jobs said to be available, finding the part-time job market more competitive than the Novuna report indicates.
“I believe there are that many part-time jobs, I don’t believe there are that many accessible part-time jobs. I believe that the ones that are accessible are oversubscribed,” one student said.
Another student mentioned the difficulty of fitting part-time work around a strict academic timetable: “a lot of them would immediately discount you if you aren’t available for a certain number of hours per week.”
Photo by Cemrecan Yurtman on Unsplash.
