[berlingo]

(Original post by Mel27x)
its not lookin good that ill be into uni this year for radiography...and ive jst have a frikkin wonderful surprise that some unis are putting their requirements up drastically! im not happy at all..hallam have upped theirs for the access diplomas so bad i wunt have a cat in hells chance of getting it im not happy! x

what have they put it up to?

B

[razzmatazz rach]

(Original post by Mel27x)
Im 21 my birthday is the 27th hahaha! just to confuse ya! im gnna start lookin at accommodation now ive seen some private housing which i think wud be more for me. i wud prefer ensuite but non seem to be what i can find xx

Cityblock have ensuite. It is a private halls. It is a bit more expensive but has a longer contract which would be go for first year. I have had to pay my landlord or an extra 2 weeks rent because I don't finish until the 3rd of August. People in uni halls have had to pay extra too and they get kicked out on the 31st of July so some have to stay in travel lodges and stuff for the last 3 days.

Cityblock is pretty nice and it is fairly quite too, not too much of a party place. Being in a house is good through I prefer it to halls. It hasn't really effected the social side of uni either which I was worried about. I have met people on my course and met nursing students through my house mates. Some times people do forget to invite us to last minute things that are going on in halls but it's not too bad.

[berlingo]

wow, just looked at their new criteria - i think that rules out (m)any Access Students applying there.

B

[berlingo]

just totalled up my credits so far, and i meet the 45 at level 3 but am 3 credits off on the sciences. still have about 9 credits outstanding, so i would do it at a push. but id hate to get this far and then find that if i had to delay applying, that i wouldnt meet the criteria next year

B

[razzmatazz rach]

(Original post by berlingo)
you are the first person who has said to me that their placement costs arent covered by the bursary allowance. everyone i have spoken to has just stayed onsite in the hospital student accommodation, which was arranged by their Uni and was cheaper than what they normally pay in halls

B

Maybe it's because I'm in a student house but this is what happened to my housemate. She had to stay in a hotel while on placement, she only stayed 2 nights a week at £20 ish a night. She thought it would be reimbursed and when it was it was short so she rang NHS bursary and that is what she was told. They work out what you pay per night in rent and you get 110% of that. It's supposed to stop you staying in like the Hilton and getting them to pay for it.

Also our uni do not organise the accommodation for us because our placement hospitals don't have much onsite accommodation and what they do have is mainly for med students. We have hotels and B&Bs that the uni have recommended and got discount on but we organise it ourselves and the cheapest was £19 per night. Only one guy on our course stays in onsite accommodation and as far as I know he has claimed it all back but I think it is because it is cheap accommodation.

Placement costs are covered by the bursary but they have a limit of 110% of your rent. They don't really shout about that part though.
They also have something that says if you are driving to placement and your petrol costs are more than the public transport costs then they will only reimburse you the public transport costs. They have a lot of little tricks to get out of paying out more money than they have too and I know a few people who have been caught out with them.

[berlingo]

[QUOTE=razzmatazz rach;37727135]Also our uni do not organise the accommodation for us because our placement hospitals don't have much onsite accommodation and what they do have is mainly for med students. /QUOTE]

i thought you were at cumbria? their website says accommodation is available at your placement hospital, so i just wondered why you hadnt taken advantage of it?

they must have had many students through their course who needed to pay for double accommodation, so im surprised this isnt flagged up as being a problem that needs to be addressed, if its not actually possible to find somewhere to stay that is a similar price to halls

B

[razzmatazz rach]

[QUOTE=berlingo;37727383]

(Original post by razzmatazz rach)
Also our uni do not organise the accommodation for us because our placement hospitals don't have much onsite accommodation and what they do have is mainly for med students. /QUOTE]

i thought you were at cumbria? their website says accommodation is available at your placement hospital, so i just wondered why you hadnt taken advantage of it?

they must have had many students through their course who needed to pay for double accommodation, so im surprised this isnt flagged up as being a problem that needs to be addressed, if its not actually possible to find somewhere to stay that is a similar price to halls

B

Yeah I'm at Cumbria. I don't know why it says that on their website, I was told on open days and interview days that they didn't provide accommodation while on placement.
Someone at Blackburn is staying in hospital accommodation and that is £10 a night so it does happen and if I was placed there I would stay but I'm at Blackpool and they don't have any onsite accommodation and recommend a nearby B&B which is £19 so I can't claim for that. It is up to us to organise it though the uni don't organise it for us.

I would rather stay in my house that I am paying rent for anyway. I wouldn't like to stay in accommodation because I would spend more on food etc because I would need stuff to eat in both places and I would have to lug my stuff there and back each week on the train. The car share is a lot easier, I leave at 7.30am and get back at 6pm. It is a long day but at least I get to sleep in my own bed and still go to the extra curricular stuff I do at uni and I don't have to pay out a penny for travelling because the guy driving claims for it all.

[berlingo]

[QUOTE=razzmatazz rach;37728841]

(Original post by berlingo)

I would rather stay in my house that I am paying rent for anyway. The car share is a lot easier, I leave at 7.30am and get back at 6pm. It is a long day but at least I get to sleep in my own bed and still go to the extra curricular stuff I do at uni and I don't have to pay out a penny for travelling because the guy driving claims for it all.

i agree its easier to stay put. i think that most placements are commutable, as they are usually within an hours drive of Uni. but i dont think i would commute long distance if i didnt have access to a car

if 7.30 til 6pm is a long day as a radiographer, i cant wait lol. i currently leave the house at 7am and get home at gone 9pm. im really looking forward to the 9-5, 5-day week

B

[razzmatazz rach]

[QUOTE=berlingo;37730570]

(Original post by razzmatazz rach)


if 7.30 til 6pm is a long day as a radiographer, i cant wait lol. i currently leave the house at 7am and get home at gone 9pm. im really looking forward to the 9-5, 5-day week

B

That isn't a long shift for a radiographer, some do 8pm - 10am. We don't do nights or lates until 2nd year at Blackpool.

I just meant it is a long day compared to the people who live in Blackpool and leave at 8.50am and get home at 5.10pm. I don't mind my shifts, I still have time to go to karate after placement which I'm happy about. We get a lot of breaks too so it's not a hard day. The travelling is only bad because I'm stuck in a tiny Suzuki wagon with 4 guys and I get squashed in the back middle seat.

[sophie15]

Hey, Im in year 12 and was thinking of applying for radiography, can i just ask what a levels you guys got as i am worried that i wont get good enough Thanks!

[Mr Student]

(Original post by sophie15)
Hey, Im in year 12 and was thinking of applying for radiography, can i just ask what a levels you guys got as i am worried that i wont get good enough Thanks!

ABBC

[razzmatazz rach]

(Original post by sophie15)
Hey, Im in year 12 and was thinking of applying for radiography, can i just ask what a levels you guys got as i am worried that i wont get good enough Thanks!

I got ABCD. The AB was in AS Double Health and Social Care and then C in A2 Bio and D in A2 RS which got me the UCAS points points I needed. Not many uni's would accept 2 A2's and 2 AS's when I applied and I think less do now because it is even more competitive. I know the uni I am at now isn't accepting that this year when they accepted me last year.

Check entry requirements for this year but be prepared for some of them to go up in September because it does happen.

[SarahJayne2103]

Finally got my risk assessment forms and appointment at James Cook Hospital for Teesside! Starting to feel real now..

[Mr Student]

Do you think there are any disadvantages to going to BCU?

[zoe1992]

(Original post by Mr Student)
Do you think there are any disadvantages to going to BCU?

I'm going BCU, it looks really good. The only thing at the moment that slightly concerns me is the number of students on the course and having lectures with so many people.

[J3551CA]

(Original post by zoe1992)
I'm going BCU, it looks really good. The only thing at the moment that slightly concerns me is the number of students on the course and having lectures with so many people.

Yes this worry's me too. Isn't there around 130 places on this course?

[hello123450]

i have sent off my student finance application... but i have not fully applied for my bursary.
Anyone else who's done the same?
I am halfway filling out the aplpication form online.. but i did this without the uni sending me any information, so im a little confused if i should carry on and apply through the nhs website or wait for the uni to give me details...... D:

[JordanUK]

I'm thinking of withdrawing from UCAS this year despite having two good offers. I have just been offered a job as a pre-reg hospital pharmacy technician which is a two year program. At the moment I think I will accept this, and reapply with deferred entry this September, it will give me time to save money for accommodation so I will hopefully leave with no loans at all.

[zoe1992]

(Original post by J3551CA)
Yes this worry's me too. Isn't there around 130 places on this course?

Yeah I think so, plus I think some lectures are shared with radiotherapy students too.

[ecokid]

(Original post by JordanUK)
I'm thinking of withdrawing from UCAS this year despite having two good offers. I have just been offered a job as a pre-reg hospital pharmacy technician which is a two year program. At the moment I think I will accept this, and reapply with deferred entry this September, it will give me time to save money for accommodation so I will hopefully leave with no loans at all.

That's great and would definitely give you fantastic experience - my only concern would be that in 2 years time the situation regarding places/finances could be very different. For instance, funding could easily be slashed or withdrawn completely by the government - sure you'll be able to get a loan, but that depends if you fancy paying 9k per year? Also the job market is currently becoming more competitive, which is likely to only increase in the next few years.

Ultimately, you'd have more experience and money, plus you'd get to see what working in the NHS really is about before you commit; however, things could potentially change for the worse. It's really a toughie, but you'd have to go with your gut feeling about what would benefit you more. There's also a lot to be said about going to university after a few years of working life behind you.