Student Nurse

mike_d_2

I am also a nursing student, nearly at the end of my first year now. im in need of extra cash.
The bursary is not enough to cover my expenses, i get just over £550 a month but as im living in halls i have to pay nearly £400 in rent each month!
This leaves me with roughly £130 to spend on food and other essentials over a 5 week period, however i have to pay to travel to my placement which my last placement cost £110, leaving me with £20 to spend.

I dont get how we are supposed to be able to survive on the bursary, i have a job on the nurse bank and work as often as i can but during my 8 week placements is hard to do.

Is anyone aware of any extra money i can get as a student nurse??

Cherry_Bomb

mike_d wrote: »

I am also a nursing student, nearly at the end of my first year now. im in need of extra cash.
The bursary is not enough to cover my expenses, i get just over £550 a month but as im living in halls i have to pay nearly £400 in rent each month!

Most of the people in my cohort who lived in halls for 1st year moved into shared houses for 2nd, would that be an option for you? Might work out cheaper. How long are you guaranteed a room in halls for?

mike_d wrote: »

This leaves me with roughly £130 to spend on food and other essentials over a 5 week period, however i have to pay to travel to my placement which my last placement cost £110, leaving me with £20 to spend.

You should be claiming back travel expenses (provided the placement is further away than your normal travel to uni) Have you done that yet?

mike_d wrote: »

I dont get how we are supposed to be able to survive on the bursary, i have a job on the nurse bank and work as often as i can but during my 8 week placements is hard to do.

Is anyone aware of any extra money i can get as a student nurse??

I honestly understand (I'm in my 3rd year) but there is nothing else you can do other than work. Does your trust allow long days? If so and you're not already doing them then ask to do them! It makes life so much easier fitting in bank shifts. Worst case scenario your placement keeps you on short days do for example, an early on placement and then do a bank shift. I've never had a problem starting a bank shift at 3pm. I've had the odd moan from some wards but when the HCA's on an early leave most are pretty happy to have you regardless of what time you start!

Good luck with the rest of your course!

Oldernotwiser

This thread is more than 2 years old!

Person_one

GlasweJen wrote: »

I live with a nursing student and to be honest I don't think nursing students should get any more financial help than other students. For starters I need to do more anatomy and physiology for my course than my nursing student friend does, I need to write more essays (her stuff is mostly log books with 3 or 4 essays per semester), I am in uni Monday til Friday 9 - 5 doing lab work and the rest while my nursing student friend can call up the hospital she's "learning" in and rearrange her uni times to suit herself only having to actually go to uni once or twice a month for seminars. She's never had to sit up til 4am with 5 deadlines in the same week and the biology I'm learning goes over her head. The best of it is I'm studying to be qualified to analyse blood/urine/stool samples and they're going to trust someone who barely has a grasp of 2nd year biology with patients? No wonder the NHS is in tatters.

GlasweJen, just in case you see this, did this person actually qualify?

Because the picture you paint bears no relation to life for most student nurses* and if this story is true then there's no way she'd have achieved the theory and practice hours required for NMC registration.

I hope since 2008 you've managed to let go of some of your bitterness and dropped the superior attitude too.

*For example I have 7 hours of taught A+P every week as well as the related independent work, that's just one of ten units this semester. I also have 4 deadlines this week, 3 in January and 5 exams in one week in January. I don't plan to be up til 4am for any of them though as I've planned my time better.

Person_one

mike_d wrote: »

I am also a nursing student, nearly at the end of my first year now. im in need of extra cash.
The bursary is not enough to cover my expenses, i get just over £550 a month but as im living in halls i have to pay nearly £400 in rent each month!
This leaves me with roughly £130 to spend on food and other essentials over a 5 week period, however i have to pay to travel to my placement which my last placement cost £110, leaving me with £20 to spend.

I dont get how we are supposed to be able to survive on the bursary, i have a job on the nurse bank and work as often as i can but during my 8 week placements is hard to do.

Is anyone aware of any extra money i can get as a student nurse??

Are you studying for the degree or the diploma? If you're doing the degree you'll be entitled to a non means tested student loan of £2324 p/a on top of your bursary.

If you're from a low income household you should also be entitled to a small bursary from your uni, ring the finance office.

mike_d_2

Person_one wrote: »

Are you studying for the degree or the diploma? If you're doing the degree you'll be entitled to a non means tested student loan of £2324 p/a on top of your bursary.

If you're from a low income household you should also be entitled to a small bursary from your uni, ring the finance office.

Im only doing the diploma so not entitled to get the bursary.
Ah well looks like im going to be working a lot of bank shifts for the next few years!
On the plus side though i move out of halls in March so will save money there, and im nearly in 2nd year so the rest will fly over i hope

mumps

mike_d wrote: »

Im only doing the diploma so not entitled to get the bursary.
Ah well looks like im going to be working a lot of bank shifts for the next few years!
On the plus side though i move out of halls in March so will save money there, and im nearly in 2nd year so the rest will fly over i hope

I thought diploma students got the full non means tested bursary, degree students got the means tested bursary?

Just checked, here is the link
http://www.nhsbsa.nhs.uk/Students/Documents/Students/FAQ_8.pdf
says for diploma students you should be getting £6438 if you are outside London. I think you need to apply.

rubytuesday

Oldernotwiser wrote: »

This thread is more than 2 years old!

Ooh well I enjoyed it!:rotfl:

littlereen

I agree with all the nursing students have said tbh. Im a student MW so we have to now follow the degree course, which is income assessed, and for me it is assessed on my parents income despite me being in my mid twenties and not having lived at home since I was 18!

As a student MW we have to complete over 500 more hours during the course to qualify than nurses, which equates to about 3 months worth of hours. As well as essays and exams in uni, log books and competencies to complete, we have over 60 OSCE's (practical exams) to complete in the 3 years. Still wouldn't change it. I firmly believe I have the best job in the world!

kazzah60

ko1obos wrote: »

Im 23 and I currently live in Middlesbrough with my partner. We are both going to full-time university next year (she is going to Manchester and its Liverpool for me). I am originally from the Wirral so I will be returning home and staying with my parents (they do not earn a large income).

Obviously my parents will help me out with money troubles and I'm sure someone will mention that if I get any replies but I will be studying Diagnostic Radiography or Radiotherapy (decisions, decisions) and I will be applying for an NHS bursary.

Using the bursary calculator, here: http://www.nhspa.gov.uk/sgu/bursarycalculator/default.asp I will recieve £3452. I know that student nurses work hard, as do students from nearly all degree courses but surely if I was to study Diagnostic Radiography then I should get the same as someone studying nursing, bearing in mind that the hours are roughly the same.

Now I'll sit back and watch myself get slated.
Enjoy.

I quite agree - my son is currently in his 2nd year at Liverpool studying Radiotherapy - he gets £2400 bursary to live on
he is in uni from 9-5 most days and on placement in Manchester for long periods of time ( currently 6 weeks)
so he has to pay rent on his accommodation in Liverpool AND for hospital accommodation whilst he is on placement
so far he has spent almost £700 on accommodation for Hospital placement and although we have claimed it back from the NHS Bursary people we STILL have not received a penny
a £5000 bursary would GREATLY help him financially as he is unable to get part time work due to Uni lectures and then having to leave Liverpool to go to Manchester every 8 weeks

It does seem unfais that Nursing bursaries are better paid than others.