You might be offered a whole host of goodies, such as a free railcard or shopping voucher, if you open a student account.
However, a more important consideration may be the size of the authorised interest free overdraft. This will allow you to exceed the funds in your account by a set amount. This can be anything up to £3,000, depending on your individual circumstances, and you may find you can temporarily increase this if you need to, subject to your bank’s approval.
You should always try and spend within your means, but an interest free overdraft can be useful as a safety net, for example when you are waiting for your next payment of Student Finance and have a payment to make such as your rent.
Try not to exceed your authorised overdraft limit as this can incur extra charges, which you can usually find in the terms of conditions of your overdraft agreement.
Websites such as Savethestudent and Moneysavingexpert.com have useful comparisons of student accounts. Blackbullion also has some helpful advice on what to consider before opening an account.