The cost to get started, geez!

Nursing Students General Students

Published

I was looking over the required and recommended textbooks for nursing and have counted 22 in all for the duration of school! I still have to get my titers for Varicella, Measles, Mumps, Rubella, and Hep B, plus get my tetenus, meningitis, and TB shots! I also need to get CPR certified and purchase medical insurance. Needless to say, being a new student for Fall 08, I'm feeling a bit overwhelmed with the expense of it all. I don't have health insurance and I was told that health clinics don't run titer tests. Each titer test can be quite costly! Thank God I have several months ahead to get everything I need but I'm still worried about how much this will cost me. This doesn't include my steth, scrubs, nursing pack, and anything else needed. :uhoh3: How do you manage this without going broke. I live on student loans and grants. Any suggestions or info would be helpful.

Thanks.

Up Vote Up Vote ×

I start spring of 08, and so far I have spent close to $900 buying all the things you have listed, I guess if you need it so badly, you will have to find the means to get them. I am so broke that this Christmas, I am spending it dry, and hope to make up to my family the xmas after graduation which will be Dec 09. :crying2:

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in NICU.
I was looking over the required and recommended textbooks for nursing and have counted 22 in all for the duration of school! I still have to get my titers for Varicella, Measles, Mumps, Rubella, and Hep B, plus get my tetenus, meningitis, and TB shots! I also need to get CPR certified and purchase medical insurance. Needless to say, being a new student for Fall 08, I'm feeling a bit overwhelmed with the expense of it all. I don't have health insurance and I was told that health clinics don't run titer tests. Each titer test can be quite costly! Thank God I have several months ahead to get everything I need but I'm still worried about how much this will cost me. This doesn't include my steth, scrubs, nursing pack, and anything else needed. :uhoh3: How do you manage this without going broke. I live on student loans and grants. Any suggestions or info would be helpful.

Thanks.

Text Books get the IBS # and look online I have saved at least 25% up to 75% on books this way. I also go to used Book stores (Half Price Books) The School that I went to we did not have to provide titers but prof of vaccinations I am adult an no longer had records of all of my vaccinations, I went to a clinic and got all of the shots that I needed for $3 , the health clinic at my college told me about the shot clinic. My Schools health clinic did my TB test for free.

Stethoscope I found a new Littman Master Classic II for $35 on ebay. If you just have to get a certain color of scrubs look for sales and online, Walmart has started to carry a new line of scrubs that are nice and they do not cost much. A watch with a second hand found one at Target for $10. Good luck with nursing school.

Up Vote Up Vote ×
I was looking over the required and recommended textbooks for nursing and have counted 22 in all for the duration of school! I still have to get my titers for Varicella, Measles, Mumps, Rubella, and Hep B, plus get my tetenus, meningitis, and TB shots! I also need to get CPR certified and purchase medical insurance. Needless to say, being a new student for Fall 08, I'm feeling a bit overwhelmed with the expense of it all. I don't have health insurance and I was told that health clinics don't run titer tests. Each titer test can be quite costly! Thank God I have several months ahead to get everything I need but I'm still worried about how much this will cost me. This doesn't include my steth, scrubs, nursing pack, and anything else needed. :uhoh3: How do you manage this without going broke. I live on student loans and grants. Any suggestions or info would be helpful.

Thanks.

You say you have to have medical insurance? You should make sure that is what you are supposed to have because at ALL the nursing schools around me, including my own, we don't have to have medical insurance, we have to have . I would check with your program director to verify that. Our liability insurance is for things that we do in clinicals, should something go wrong, there is something there protecting us. I can't imagine why they would want you to have personal medical insurance. The liability insurance runs between 60-100 per year while we are in school, depending on what company you use.

GOOD LUCK

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in NICU.

The nursing school that I go to requires both liability and medical and dental insurance. Not sure they really check the medical insurance we have to provide a copy of our insurance card. I am not exactly sure why this is but our school has a list of low cost insurance , if a student does not have it.

Up Vote Up Vote ×
You say you have to have medical insurance? You should make sure that is what you are supposed to have because at ALL the nursing schools around me, including my own, we don't have to have medical insurance, we have to have liability insurance. I would check with your program director to verify that. Our liability insurance is for things that we do in clinicals, should something go wrong, there is something there protecting us. I can't imagine why they would want you to have personal medical insurance. The liability insurance runs between 60-100 per year while we are in school, depending on what company you use.

GOOD LUCK

I'm sorry, you're absolutely right. We need . I typed in the wrong thing.

Up Vote Up Vote ×

This semester is one of the most expensive semesters I've ever had. I start nursing school in January.

Books and tuition alone are over $1300 right now. I just paid for 2 uniforms, and I still need to get shoes, a stethoscope and bandage scissors. I had no choice for uniforms, we HAVE to have specific ones for our school. My mom gave me uniforms for Christmas. My mother-in-law said she'd get me shoes.

Most of the medical "stuff" I had to have done was covered under my health insurance. I only had to pay for doctor's visits, which was really nice. I did have to pay for , but that was cheap, only $29 for this next year.

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Text Books get the IBS # and look online I have saved at least 25% up to 75% on books this way. I also go to used Book stores (Half Price Books) The School that I went to we did not have to provide titers but prof of vaccinations I am adult an no longer had records of all of my vaccinations, I went to a clinic and got all of the shots that I needed for $3 , the health clinic at my college told me about the shot clinic. My Schools health clinic did my TB test for free.

Stethoscope I found a new Littman Master Classic II for $35 on ebay. If you just have to get a certain color of scrubs look for sales and online, Walmart has started to carry a new line of scrubs that are nice and they do not cost much. A watch with a second hand found one at Target for $10. Good luck with nursing school.

Thanks for the info. I'll check with half.com and ebay to see if can get deal. So let me ask you, since you didn't have proof of immunizations like myself, you went on and got all the vaccinations again? This may be a cheaper route for me b/c the health clinic can give shots for free or very little cost. I just didn't know if it would hurt to get all the vaccinations all over again.

Boy, I should've asked for medical stuff for Chistmas for anyone who wanted to get me something but I didn't find out until last week that I was accepted. That would've been a great gift!

Up Vote Up Vote ×
I start spring of 08, and so far I have spent close to $900 buying all the things you have listed, I guess if you need it so badly, you will have to find the means to get them. I am so broke that this Christmas, I am spending it dry, and hope to make up to my family the xmas after graduation which will be Dec 09. :crying2:

ladyk, I know exactly how you feel at Christmas! I was invited to an extended family house on Sunday and was told to just bring myself, my kids, and Christmas cheer! I feel bad really bad going empty handed but I can't help it. They understand too but it's a guilt I carry.

So your nursing program is only a year long? I start in Aug. '08 and won't finish until May '10. That's great that you have only a year!

Thanks for the cost estimate too. Now I know what how much to expect. Buying a little at a time is all I can do.

Up Vote Up Vote ×
This semester is one of the most expensive semesters I've ever had. I start nursing school in January.

Books and tuition alone are over $1300 right now. I just paid for 2 uniforms, and I still need to get shoes, a stethoscope and bandage scissors. I had no choice for uniforms, we HAVE to have specific ones for our school. My mom gave me uniforms for Christmas. My mother-in-law said she'd get me shoes.

Most of the medical "stuff" I had to have done was covered under my health insurance. I only had to pay for doctor's visits, which was really nice. I did have to pay for liability insurance, but that was cheap, only $29 for this next year.

See, that's what i'm saying, giving you your nusing stuff for a Christmas is a great gift. Wish I had known earlier b/c I would've mentined that when asked what I need! lol.

Good luck to you starting in January. ;)

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in Med-Surg, Oncology, telemetry/stepdown.

well, you give up your social life and little extras for a while lol. That's what I did. It's worth it though.

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in Tele Step Down, Oncology, ICU, Med/Surg.

It's a tough xmas this year with me in nursing school/no income and with three kids.

The students at my school were encouraged to buy the pre-bundled package from the Elsiver rep because of the cd that comes with it. Apparently, it will be a big help when we go on to do care plans....although I've tried using it to answer lecture objectives as part of my study group and found that it takes more time to use than finding the info in the books, so it doesn't seem worth the money.

If you don't need these "book rep commission producing bundles," used books would be the way to go.

Beware of thinking your health insurance will cover your titers. I have fairly good health insurance thru United Health, but ended up having to pay for most of my titers and fees and for the dr. to fill out all my forms. Bills are still coming, and am confused why my insurance didn't pay anything. That along with the reg fees, books, uniform, nursing supplies, CPR, background checks/drug tests, and a new lap top put me at $5,000 for my first quarter. And, this is without any of the "recommended texts" which I hear are necessary for subsequent semesters.

Visa is getting a work out. But my biggest problem is the extra child care expenses now that I am in school full time and can't use the local community college child care center which was subsidized. Next qtr, I will need to leave the house at 6:30am two days a week for clinicals, and classes will go until 4:30 pm afternoons, so need to figure out child care coverage at the front and back ends of the day. So far, it's been impossible to find a teenager or neighbor who is interested in helping me out even though I am willing to pay well. Husband works long days to support my lack of income; have no family to lean on.

Did get a $2,000 scholarship from the local hospital I volunteer with on weekends when hub is home w/kids....which will go towards childcare at this point...if I can find anybody. There seems to be a lot of scholarships out there for nursing students, and will spend some time during break researching this more; recommend everyone do the same.

Yes, nursing school is turning out to be way more expensive than anticipated. And this is with a California State University BSN program--I had been accepted into a couple more expensive entry level MSN programs which clearly would have been out of my league without huge loans.

I think taking the ADN to BSN route is the most affordable option, but those programs are the most impacted around here.

Up Vote Up Vote ×
+ Add a Comment