NUS CARD - is it worth it ?

veggie4life

Hi guys im a little unsure what to do. NUS cards cost seven pounds but im unsure wether they're actually worth it!

I have my student i.d card from my college and this is accepted in some shops e.t.c

what are your guys views?

Moomum

I bought the NUS extra card for £10 and earned it back the first time I used it on a ticket somewhere. Most shops are getting strict on the student card thing, well in london anyway. I always used to get away with my student card but now they always ask for NUS. I guess what im trying to say is yes, its worth it! lol

veggie4life

natmid wrote: »

I bought the NUS extra card for £10 and earned it back the first time I used it on a ticket somewhere. Most shops are getting strict on the student card thing, well in london anyway. I always used to get away with my student card but now they always ask for NUS. I guess what im trying to say is yes, its worth it! lol

thanks whats the difference vetween an nus extra card and an ordinary one ?

elisebutt65

With the ordinary (democracy) card you can't get the discounts that the Extra card entitles you to. A lot of shops are wising up to this now so you may have to fork out the tenner to get the discounts.

I got 20% off at Pizza Hut the other day, 15% at Rymans and I think clothes shops like DP's are offering 15% as opposed to their ususal 10 as well at the moment.

I've already made back my tenner on books, food and clothes.

Last year Yo Sushi also did a student deal - I think it was 10 plates - any colour for about £12.00 so 3 of us shared it

Beehive

The card I got from my university looks very fake and is often refused, especially because it has no expiry date, so I wanted a card that looked more official. An NUS "democracy" card might have done the trick- after all, it does prove without doubt that you are a student and so most places wouldn't/couldn't refuse you student discount. However, I don't know if they are easy to get- you can't get them directly from NUS and I think most universities use their own IDs instead and wouldn't be able to get you one either. I do have an "enrolment slip" that I carry around with the card with all my course details, the course expiry date and the university stamp on it, and put with my card that is pretty solid proof that I am currently a student. I think in most places, especially small/local shops, I could have argued my case with that (or just with a better student ID!).

I kindof resent having to pay ten quid just to prove I am a student. And there are some universities where you can't get the card at all- Glasgow, St. Andrews, Southampton, UMIST for example. There's a lot of students at these places and they must be able to get discounts somehow. The campaign "no to NUS" claims student discounts are protected by law, though I don't really know how that would work.

Having said all that, I did actually get the card! That's because I'm planning to travel to New York with STA Travel and they would need me to get an ISIC card (the international student ID) for the discount on the flight. ISIC's included with the Extra card and costs about the same, so it was worth it for me. Otherwise, I don't think I would have bothered.

Beehive

Aha- just remembered that it's illegal to discriminate against someone for not belonging to a union- so maybe you can use that if someone refuses to give you a discount cause you haven't got the Extra card?

veggie4life

okay i can apply for the ordinary card but my college isn't listed on the nus website for the extra card :-s

CrispyUK

By your mention of £7 in your first post it sounds like your college has the NUS Associate card in which case I think that would be your only option and the Democracy/Extra cards won't be available to you.

teeb

Beehive wrote: »

I kindof resent having to pay ten quid just to prove I am a student. And there are some universities where you can't get the card at all- Glasgow, St. Andrews, Southampton, UMIST for example. There's a lot of students at these places and they must be able to get discounts somehow. The campaign "no to NUS" claims student discounts are protected by law, though I don't really know how that would work.

I'm at Glasgow (and, coincidentally, voted no to NUS last year). I just use my normal Glasgow University student card wherever I go - I've never had it declined, including trips to England, London etc. The only additional student discount the Extra card will get you is Amazon, I believe.

I do now have an ISIC card, but only because I'm abroad for the year and figured better safe than sorry.

mikewebs

Remember that if you are away from home at uni and want a reasonably cheap night out the Students' Union is the place to go. No card no entry generally

o_t_e

Beehive wrote: »

Aha- just remembered that it's illegal to discriminate against someone for not belonging to a union- so maybe you can use that if someone refuses to give you a discount cause you haven't got the Extra card?

Hi - I think you're referring to employment law which provides workers with protection from discrimination by their employer because of membership, or non-membership, of a union.

If a store chain has a commercial arrangement with the NUS to offer certain benefits to it's members I would imagine that is perfectly legal. Equally, if a company wants to voluntarily offer certain benefits to pensioners, the unemployed or students it's at their discretion how they go about it.

Personally my uni id card is also a student union card, no mention of the NUS as we're not affiliated, and I've never had any problems using it -maybe you should be asking your SU to sort out a more kosher looking card.