University students’ financial needs have been steadily increasing the recent years in Greece. The last two years, the economic crisis has affected the standard of living in urban areas where the most Universities are located. In addition, this crisis has also affected the income of the students’ families. Therefore it is even more difficult for the families to support their children through higher education.
The economic capacity of the families contributes to their Socioeconomic Status (SES), which has been often cited as the reason for differences in participation rates in higher education. Also, social disadvantage in higher education settings is commonly measured by parental education and parental occupation. It has been repeatedly demonstrated that the children of highly educated, professional, and managerial groups are overrepresented in higher education (Julie & Western, 2000).
Dye (2002) observed that approximately 15 million students in the United States alone attend some type of institution of higher education. Race, class, and gender diversity expanded as inner-city, low-income residents, including minorities and women, gained access to advanced education. However, expansion of educational opportunities across class lines has demanded changes in institutional delivery systems; foremost in this shift has been the rise of the urban university. With the ascendance of the urban university, questions of location where education will occur, who will have access, and how such knowledge and training will be disseminated assume a new urgency. In the past, typical university students were attending school at some distance from home. They tended to be younger, be single, live on campus, work part time, and make steady progression toward a four-year degree, primarily attending daytime courses (Gerry, 2003). Urban universities tapped a different market of older first-time or returning students, many supporting families, and most working part-time or full-time jobs, yet still depending on some form of financial aid. Most of these students, because of their off-campus obligations, need more than the minimum time to complete their studies.
The aim of the present study is to investigate Greek university students’ financial needs as well as their financial behavior, financial management and how those could be differenciate according to students’ demographic characteristics and especially according to their family SES. Moreover, the study records students’ revenue sources (family / job or both) and how those could effect their academic achievement and their everyday life and activities.

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