Students in Slovenia are in no hurry to part with their student status. It is pretty obvious since the student status has many privileges. Firstly, these are surely huge discounts, which can be applied literally to everything. Secondly, the ability to successfully combine study and work.
Who can be considered a student?
All students who applied for Slovenian unified work and residence permit on education basis fall within this category. The student status does not depend on the full-time or part-time study mode, the level of education, and the category of educational institution (secondary vocational or higher). What matters is that the main purpose of staying in Slovenia is to obtain education.
What privileges does the student status in Slovenia provide?
The student discounts in Slovenia are primarily used for getting lower prices at cafes and restaurants. Food discounts are provided through the so-called “student vouchers” (studentski boni). The system works as follows: students register within the system of Student Service (Študentski Servis), upon which the registered phone number is entered into the database. When ordering in a café, which offers student discounts (almost everywhere, including McDonald’s!), the waiter will bring a “Student Menu” along with the small device. After that the student dials a short number on the mobile phone (call is free of charge), applies it to the device, and voilà! An average surcharge for complex dinner (first course, second course with a side dish or pizza as the main dish to choose, dessert or fruit) is around €1.50 to €7. Some cafes — mainly those located near the student canteens — have student bons cover the whole lunch price. For example, in Bežigrad (a district of Ljubljana), near the Faculty of Social Sciences, when using a discount for students you can get soup (with beef or vegetables) and salad / sandwich 15 cm / burek / mini-pizza plus fruit or smoothie for free.
Studentski Boni can be used 2 times a day with a break between calls of at least 4 hours. Usually, there are 20 student vouchers per month for use. Due to the huge size of portions, students often fail to eat the entire lunch at once. The staff of Slovenian cafes and canteens will gladly pack the rest of your lunch into a “to go” container. Therefore, when buying lunch, a student may provide oneself with a dinner as well. Besides student vouchers, there are more student discounts available across the whole Europe.
Using a Slovenian student card, students can travel for half of the original price or even lower, visit most of the museums at a substantial discount, and enjoy the transport benefits. Moreover, Slovenia is located in the heart of Europe, and thus you can easily go on holiday to Italy, Austria, Germany, or Croatia. Many students prefer to gather in groups and travel by car: to Croatia (half an hour from Ljubljana) — to the seaside, to Venice (2.5 hours) — just to have a walk, to Vienna (4 hours) — to feel the spirit of a megalopolis, to Budapest for a weekend (4 hours) — to wander through the old town. Traveling by European buses or trains is also much cheaper for the holders of a student status. A domestic unlimited transport pass for students in Ljubljana – Urbana card – will cost only €20 per month.
Applying for Urbana card is easy as it can be done at the local LPP office. Students can fill out the application on the spot and then submit it along with the personal ID and proof of the student status. The Urbana card is issued straight away.
How to confirm your student status to get a discount?
Student cards are used to confirm this status. This can be either a student ID card issued by an educational institution or one of the international cards.
An International Student Identity Card (ISIC card) is issued for the current academic year and is valid until the end of the academic year plus one additional month, that is from 1 October to 31 October of the following year (13 months).
To get an ISIC card, it is enough to have a notification from the dean office, a photograph and a student’s ID document. The card price is €12.
An ISIC card allows discounts for students at clubs and hostels. Also, in many EU countries, there is a system of student discounts for visiting museums, cultural and historic sites. France even has a number of monuments of national importance, which are free to visit for all residents of the European Union under 26 years. Something similar also exists in Spain. Moreover, students have discounts for entrance tickets to museums and galleries (in Germany, Portugal, etc.), and sometimes even visit them for free (in the UK).
In addition, a student card provides an opportunity to insure oneself against accidents, and personal documents and keys — against theft. There are also other types of student cards.
Can students work in Slovenia?
Yes. There is a large number of part-time student jobs in Slovenia, allowing students to earn extra cash for personal use. Student Service is the official agency that connects employers with students looking for a job. Employers post student jobs and internships on the Student Service website, and students looking for work in Slovenia can search and apply for the vacancies. Unlike other European countries, Slovenian students can officially work without losing their student status and all relevant privileges. This became possible thanks to the already mentioned Student Service. The main resource for finding student jobs is studentski-servis However, it can vary depending on university or faculty, because many educational institutions have career centers, and thus it is more logical to apply there. If an applicant already has a certain experience and qualification, it is worth trying to find a job at any of the available websites, which publish vacancies, and then to negotiate with an employer about work in Slovenia through Student Service.
Usually it is actually perceived as kind of a bonus. In this case, an employer will not have to deal with registering student documents. Thus, an applicant can find any employer, and then register at the Student Service as working student. A recruiting company will be entered into the database, and on this basis, an applicant will receive a job referral. In this case, the Student Service will be concerned with controlling applicant’s salary as well as resolving any situations that may arise between an employer and an applicant.
