Required Supplies for Nursing Program

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I am using student loans, so how do I go about getting these supplies without dipping into grocery/bill/daycare money? Obviously, some of these items are less expensive and we can easily afford, but considering 3 kids getting ready to return to school and everything they need, and NEW latchkey and NEW daycare expenses, I'm thinkin' we may have some financial difficulty coming up with these supplies.

Required supplies:

White uniforms or scrubs

White mid-thigh length lab coat

Uniform patch

Bandage scissors

White leather/uniform shoes (must be all white, no Croc style)

Stethoscope with a diaphragm and bell

Watch w/second hand

Recommended Supplies:

Pocket calculator

BP Cuff (manual, adult size)

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Specializes in Neuro, Neuro ICU.

my advice for the scrubs is to get them on walmart.com, i'm sure there are other websites out there that are cheap, but they have white tops for 10 and pants for 12-then you can do "site to store" shipping, so that its free. The only reason i recommend getting them online is b/c at my store every

time i check, they are out of the white.

You could also get plain white shoes from walmart for about 20 dollars, and if you need to, get some insoles.

The uniform patch you can probably get in your school bookstore. Mine cost 4 dollars and I had to get 3 b/c i have 2 sets of scrubs, and for my labcoat.

Also- you can check your bookstore for the stethoscope & cuff. My school has them in a package for about 20-25 you may be able to find package that comes with the pen light & scissors too....but you could also go on Amazon.com---i find sooooo many things on amazon and they are the cheapest 99% of the time.

Oh, and the calculator---i just saw some in the "school supply" section of walmart for a buck!

Maybe something that you can do to save some money, is buy your books online (USED if available). They are usually cheaper on amazon than in the bookstore. Unfortunately many of my books are the 2010 or 2011 edition, so I wasn't able to save as much as i would have getting them used, but I saved 100 bucks by getting them all new from amazon.

Hope this helps!!!! Good Luck!

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Check with your program, does your school have any specific requirements? I know for my program we have to by a specific kit with a lot of stuff in it. One of my friends ordered a kit that they assumed was the same online and came to find out that even though the BP cuff, bandage scissors, penlight were all fine, we were required to have a littman stethoscope and not the one that came with that kit sold online.

We're also required to get a specific kind of scrubs as well so just make sure your school doesn't have specific requirements before you do online shopping. Also agree for online shopping for books. BUT make sure there is the same exact ISBN number. I know people suggest Half but a lot of the time I can't find packages that come with everything (cd and study guide) and Amazon has that. I saved about 150 bucks on all new books.

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Specializes in ED.

You've gotten some great tips already.

My school has a used uniform sale every year. Graduating seniors donate their old uniforms to the NSNA chapter and they sell each piece for about $5 each for the scrubs and $10 for the lab coat. We also have a uniform closet where we store any left overs and people can get those for free.

I'd call the school and see if there are any similar programs.

I cannot tell you how much you can save by buying used books from amazon.com, half.com, or alibris.com. I would also ask any upper class students about selling or borrowing their books.

I haven't purchased books since my first semester in nursing. I borrowed all the books I needed. Ok, maybe I bought one but that was only because it was a book I thought I wanted to keep.

good luck!

m

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Thanks for all the great tips. I'm sweatin' a little less now.

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This may sound crazy, but I saw 2 really nice Littmann stethoscopes at..... Goodwill. They were only like $50. They sell for $100 online.

I would just buy the scrubs online.

And yes, amazon marketplace is amazing.

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My advice...DO NOT BUY your books from the bookstore....it is a RIP-OFF... I have bought all my books and suplies online since I started last fall in Nursing School and have saved a bundle...I got the first semester books that would of cost $700+ from the book store I got online for around $80 incl. shipping :0):yeah:

Now the book were not the current edition but the previous and worked just as well... the only difference is there may be a chapter off or a few page numbers different but I was able to keep up...so check the used books on Ebay, Half.com, alibris.com and sometimes on Amazon.:p

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