Many students are living on or below the poverty line, according to the Union of Students in Ireland. It is estimated that over half the student population work during the academic year. Cian O'Callaghan, welfare officer with the Union of Students in Ireland, believes the situation has got worse since a poverty survey was carried out three years ago by the union, which found that 57 per cent of third-level students work during the college term.

The escalating rents in Dublin and other urban centres is one of the main reasons why students work, says O'Callaghan. Rents rose by 25 per cent in Dublin in the last year alone, he says. "When your grant is not increasing in proportion to that, you're going to have to work," he explains. "It does take a toll on students' academic careers, depending on how many hours they are working," he claims, "but it's essential for some students." The effects, he says, "can be seen in the high level of dropouts which are related to working. Students who have to work too much, don't find it possible to work and concentrate on their course at the same time."

Conor Power, welfare officer for TCD's student union, says the percentage who work is probably up to 70 per cent at this stage as a result of "the explosion in rent".

Some students do two and three jobs "and still try to hold down a college course". Working during college "does have a detrimental effect on students," he says. There are some students who don't work but the number of students who do "is pretty much across the board. They need money to live and they have to get it from some where".

In particular, he says, it's very hard for students living away from home. Kay O'Leary (21), from Ballincollig in Cork, is going into her degree year in business studies at Cork Institute of Technology. "I know I won't get a grant, so I'll work for at least half of the year," she says. She works in a grocery shop, the same one since she was in first year. Students can pick up work because "they know we put the hours in", she says. "I work on and off for six months of the (academic) year but it's tough coming up to the exams. You have to do at least 20 hours a week. It often ends up being 25 hours."

She's not sure how much her studying suffers "but it's very difficult when you get a project. You say `I'll start that straight away' but just when you're half-way there you get another assignment. You're constantly under pressure with deadlines."

Her week-nights are "automatically" given over to study, then she works on Friday night, all day Saturday and all day Sunday. "You don't get a break. It's continuous slog all the way".

She finishes around 10.00 or 10.30 at night "depending on queues, cleaning up or whatever". Friends work in bars and night-clubs, she says. "That's hard, because they're dealing with crowds and they have much later nights." Kay adds: "It's tough. And then you have the pressure of exams and assessments. You do want to go out as well but that's extra."

Her expenses include books, stationery, lunches and bus fares. "I live at home. It's harder for people who aren't living at home. I'm certainly not the only one doing part-time work," she adds. One of her tips is to eat well. That's helped her to stay healthy and not get too exhausted.

It was the year of the buses for Leon Ronan (18). All last winter he commuted, travelling between home near Naas, Co Kildare, and Dublin. Fridays were particularly difficult, he says. As a full-time student at Pearse College in Crumlin and a part-time worker in MacDonalds in Naas, his time was cut in two. The work was "necessary and everybody over 16 needs income, "he says. His friends also work, he says. One friend works in a bar on week nights. Another works in a supermarket. Fridays usually started at 7.30 a.m. when he left home. He finished college at 3.30 p.m. and hurried to Busarus to catch a bus to arrive in Naas and start work at 6 p.m.

He worked until 11 o'clock or later on Friday nights, whilst on Saturdays, he started at 4 p.m. and worked until 11 p.m. "I enjoyed the work and the people and I was given responsibility in the job," he says. The work was physically demanding, stacking and storing the delivered boxes to the shop.

His main concern was the time for studying that he lost out on during the year. He had assignments and projects to do that were often difficult. "We'd have to do drawings or project work. On a Saturday most of my friends would go to the library," he says, while he had to work.

He's about to go into second year at Pearse College, where he's studying architectural drawing, a two-year full-time course. At the moment he's between two minds about working during his second year, asking himself "whether it's worth it or not to go back to work". Financially, he'd be much worse off. "My parents would help but there's only so much they can do. I feel I'd have to be earning some money."