Studying Nursing at Uni

[whitecloud]

Would like to ask kind Mumsnetters for advice if your dd-ds is studying nursing at uni. Have been to some open days but would like to hear "from the horse's mouth" good and bad experiences. Things like how easy is it to get to your placements without a car, how far away they are, how near student accommodation is to hospital/public transport etc. Many unis let them have the first term doing their academic study. This seems like a good idea so that they can settle in and not have to do long shifts and placements too early.

Any experiences/advice would be really welcome. Thank you all.

[MedusaIsHavingABadHairDay]

MY DD2 isn't there yet.. but is going in September and we narrowed down her options partly on transport for non drivers, as she doesn't drive (and couldn't afford a car if she did!)

For us it ruled out Northampton and UWE as both have very wide spread placements some of which were really not doable by public transport. Keele we also ruled out as even the medical education centre was a couple of miles away with no shuttle bus and they admitted it was very difficult for non drivers (was also not impressed on their open day anyway.
DD2 has firmed Nottingham and has Coventry as insurance.. to be honest I almost wish she had firmed Coventry as it is a city Uni with the halls very close and an excellent transport network, however Nottingham is also doable, and the likelihood is that will find friends to pay for lifts some of the time:)

What branch of nursing is your DD hoping to do?

[whitecloud]

Medusa - thanks so much for replying and for the info about other unis. Dd is hoping to do adult nursing. Coventry sounds good for transport - what did you and your dd think about the nursing school? A lot of them seem to ask for quite high grades so you need to have a lower insurance choice, don't you? But you want to make sure that the insurance place is good. We went to Nottingham open day and were quite impressed, but some of the halls were a bit of a long way out. Did your dd go for a group interview at Nottingham? They told us that they didn't do individual interviews at all, which did seem a bit odd to me. Some do just individual interviews.

Personally I think it's crazy if they haven't got decent transport to the hospital/placement/halls of residence. Not everyone can afford and/or wants the hassle of a car even if they have learned to drive. And a half hour walk on top of a long shift seems pretty tough to me.

[MedusaIsHavingABadHairDay]

My DD2 had interviews for all her choices (got offered 4) and they were ALL different. I think she had to write an essay at Coventry and had an interview with a panel of people. Nottingham was a group event with some team work but plenty of chance to show her own personality ..lots of individual questions in there.

Nottingham asks for higher grades (hence Coventry as back up..it uses UCAS tariff points which gives more flexibility if she hasn't done so well in Biology!) We liked Coventry..as a uni it's not so high up the league tables because it's not a Russel Group one and of course there is massive university snobbery, however that seems a bit ridiculous to be snobby about professional vocational degrees.. might be different for Law or English! Coventry have spent a fortune on their facilities and it showed, the halls were nice and convenient and it was very walkable for day to day with bus routes everywhere.

However Notts had the edge on the course and opportunities (DD doingLearning Disability nursing!)and DD just liked it. Most nurses start in Raleigh , which is off campus but a 15 min walk from the education centre and is self catering.. and there are shuttle buses aplenty. we have a friend there now and has found it fine (she doesn't drive).
Where is your daughter looking at?

[whitecloud]

Thanks for the info. We have been to Birmingham Uni - she really liked that, but the offer is high, ABB, and the competition likely to be stiff. Also to Sheffield Hallam and Cardiff. Did you go to Birmingham City? They want 3Cs, which would be better for insurance. She did like Nottingham. We went to Raleigh but it did seem a fair way from everything. Do they put the nurses there? Would be interested to hear whether the friend likes it and if is OK for placements and the hospital. We also went to Broadgate Park and dd really liked that because it had more amenities and a community feel.

Sounds as if Coventry would be definitely worth a look. Where else did you visit and what did you think of it? Also, where else did your dd get interviews and what did she think of them? Hope you don't mind me picking your brains like this, it is a realy help!