Wales Decides 2016: Funding the Future

More than £650 million is spent supporting full-time Welsh students every year. That total includes Welsh Government contributions to tuition fees, as well as the loans students take out to pay for their course and living costs.

At the moment the Welsh Government pays up to £5,190 a year towards tuition fees, with other grants also available. Many students end up taking large loans to pay for their living costs. As part of a series looking at the big issues facing Wales ahead of the election, I spent the day with student Hannah Matthews.

Watch Megan Boot's report:

Hannah is in her second year at Swansea University, studying English Literature. While she sees university as a great opportunity to make good friends, become independent and get the skills she needs for a future career, she says money is a concern.

In order to make ends meet, Hannah works eight hours a week and also receives financial support from her parents. After rent, she lives off £50 a week including:

But Hannah is not alone in being concerned about money. According to the National Union of Students (NUS), nearly a third of students in Wales are worried about their finances.

The big change came in 2012/13, when universities were able to charge tuition fees of up to £9,000 a year for full-time students. To offset this increase the Welsh Government introduced a tuition fee grant of up to £5,190 a year.

Student support costs the Welsh Government hundreds of millions of pounds a year, whilst students themselves can end up in tens of thousands of pounds worth of debt.

Many believe the current situation isn't working, and as the country prepares itself to decide who should be in government come May, it will be an opportunity for political parties to give their take on how to fund higher education.

Owain Phillips explains the different parties' policies: