What is young life worth?

A student should be poor - this is an established opinion. Perhaps there is some truth in this: it is better to gnaw on the granite of science on an empty stomach, and the body, in which life is barely supported by domestic dumplings and meager lunches in the student canteen, is not distracted by extraneous thoughts while in a theater gallery or in a conservatory hall. But, as can be seen from the table above, even modest needs are not covered by a scholarship: the budget deficit of a domestic student ranges from 775 rubles. 45 kopecks in Kazan up to 1491 rub. in Yekaterinburg (however, this cannot be attributed only to the economic crisis, because even in Soviet times, a student stipend was barely enough for a travel pass and daily lunches). The budget deficit is made up from parents' pockets and through traditional student jobs: selling newspapers or writing coursework and diplomas for careless but wealthier fellow students. But at least once a year, a student simply must be full, drunk and happy with life - on Tatiana’s Day (January 25), which in Russia is traditionally considered a student holiday.

MIKHAIL POLININ

How much does student life cost (RUB per month)

in St. Petersburg in Moscow in Samara in Kazan in Chelyabinsk in Yekaterinburg

Student	40.00	54.00	25.00	32.00	140.00	75.00
travel card (single)
Dormitory fee	20.00	6.50	35.00	19.20	40.00	9.00
Dumplings (20 packs)	220.00	560.00	640.00	500.00	340.00	560.00
Beer "Zhigulevskoe"	25.00	22.50	21.00	22.50	22.50	25.00
(5 bottles)
Vodka "Stolichnaya"	25.00	28.00	28.00	18.75	20.00	27.00
(0.5 liters)
Subscription to	—	—	10.00	—	—	80.00
library
Theater ticket (for	5.00	9.00	4.00	40.00	25.00	25.00
gallery)
Ticket to	—	15.00	20.00	15.00	35.00	30.00
conservatory
Lunches in the student hall	750.00	585.00	540.00	210.00	360.00	750.00
dining room
Total	1085.00	1280.00	1323.00	857.45	982.50	1581.00
Scholarship	140.00	96.00	110.00	82.00	96.00	90.00
Budget deficit	945.00	1183.99	1213.00	775.45	886.50	1491.00

Magazine "Kommersant Money" No. 3 dated January 27, 1999, p. 44