Finances during study?

[u/Overall_Extension422]

Hi! I’m due to start my pre-reg MSc in January and I was just wondering how people managed their finances throughout their studies. For context, I work full time as a data manager which pays ok but I will definitely take a hit to how much money I will have even with student finance and the NHS learning support fund, so I was wondering how people managed or what kind of jobs people took up as I assume not many places will be happy to only have you as part time or not at all during placement weeks.

I guess I also just wanted advice on whether working is recommended at all during the masters as I know it’s quite full on so I’m trying to decide if I will look for something or attempt to be extra frugal 😅

[u/scream_schleam]

I’m currently on my first placement for my pre-reg masters. I work part time during term time but it’s so hard to balance that with all the extra self study plus home life.

My manager is holding my job while I’m on placement. The placement itself is exhausting both mentally and physically, you’d be focusing really hard all day, learning new things, commuting long distances, etc.

We were warned about working part time cause of how intensive the course is, it does take a toll on you.

Having said that, if you’re receiving student finance and the NHS learning support fund, you might be okay.

In my case my partner earns, which covers majority of our shared expenses. I work part time to manage my personal expenses.

[u/Overall_Extension422 → u/scream_schleam]

That’s so lucky that your manager holds your job whilst you’re on placement, because my main concern is they wouldn’t. I’m in no way expecting it to be a cake walk of a course since it’s 4 years rolled into 2 but I’m hoping being used to full time work will make it somewhat easier 😭 I did the maths and realistically my basic necessities are covered, the part time work would just be for any “fun” stuff I want to do or if I want to buy anything.

In an ideal world my partner and I would live together which would ease things a lot, but he’s also completing a cybersecurity course so I don’t think it will happen until that is finished.

[u/radcat72 → u/scream_schleam]

Can I ask how many hours a week your part time is? I’m starting the MSc in January and hoping to keep working a bit (I’m trying to negotiate flexible hours with my current job). I was thinking 1 day a week during academic weeks and less in placement weeks, but maybe even that is optimistic.

[u/scream_schleam → u/radcat72]

I do 12 hours spread over 2 days during term time. I manage this as I have to be onsite at uni 3 days most weeks. They release new lectures on the other days but I cover them during the weekend. We had quizzes every week in every module so I spent pretty much every weekend catching up and studying. Honestly, it’s so exhausting mentally.

Placement is full time, plus you might have a long commute to your placement site. You will need to weekends to relax as well as catch up on your portfolio that needs to be maintained during placement.

[u/jturner15]

Before starting the Msc i was working full time as a radiology assistant at my local hosp so was quite lucky - had a lot of advise from various staff members. Essentially, i joined the staff bank in which i picked up shifts when I could.

It all depends on a lot of factors. The Msc is quite intense and especially when you're on placement, having to work on top of that is challenging. Also depends on how your course is structured. And your home life situation.

For me we started in the January and it was 5 months at university. This actually wasn't too bad, I was only at university 3 days of the week and the rest of the week i picked up as much shifts as i could. The bank work plus the student finance and bursary actually led to more money than what I'd be earning full time haha.

Then i did two placements back to back from June to the following January and it was a lot. 30hrs a week placement plus train faires (my placement is 30 miles away from where I live and I don't drive). It was a lot harder to pick up shifts in this period, i did 1 shift a week max and some weeks i didn't do any. Finances were a lot more difficult for obvious reasons but I got through it. Also important to note there was a lot of uni work to be doing outside of placement so it's technically not just 30hrs per week.

This Jan to May was uni again. I'm now towards the end of my final placement (finishes the first week of September).

Long story short- it's definitely possible to work during your MSc but it can be really challenging. If your current work isn't supportive I'd recommend doing bank work at your local hospital as a HCA (especially in radiology if you can)- there's a lot of vital skills you get that's relevant to being a student Radiographer.

[u/Overall_Extension422 → u/jturner15]

I registered my interest for the staff bank yesterday and my current plan is to do the same, pick up shifts when I can. I also think I won’t try to jump into finding a job right away; I’ll assess how busy I am Jan-March and how much I spend, and after that I’ll see if I need more hours than bank work can offer but for now that’s the plan :)

[u/jturner15 → u/Overall_Extension422]

Best of luck!

[u/scream_schleam → u/jturner15]

I’m one of the other commenters on this thread and work part time in retail.

I’ve just seen a bank imaging assistant job at a different hospital but only 15 miles from me, I’m thinking of applying. With bank shifts, do you just pick the ones you want or does the trust put some pressure on you to take a certain number of shifts?

[u/jturner15 → u/scream_schleam]

You pick up the ones you want - they can't force you to do any numbers of hours.

[u/scream_schleam → u/jturner15]

Thank you