Noelle Lyden starts her Tuesdays at 5:30 a.m., long before the sun rises.

She takes a 6 a.m. bus through a quiet campus, down Commonwealth Avenue, and to the Reservoir T stop. From there, she spends nearly an hour on the D line, riding it to the Longwood Medical and Academic Area, where she arrives at Brigham and Women’s Hospital just in time for her 7 a.m. clinical experience.

“In the morning, it’s really tough,” Lyden, CSON ’28, said. “Getting up at like 5:30 … it’s the worst thing ever.”

Lyden is not alone. 

Clinicals—weekly six- to eight-hour shifts at Boston-area hospitals—are a core component of Boston College’s nursing curriculum, supplementing classroom learning with hands-on experience. Students are often assigned to shifts starting as early as 7 a.m.

Early-morning assignments at faraway hospitals force nursing students into a dilemma—either sit through a tedious ride on the T or shell out the money for an Uber. Because students are responsible for their own transportation to clinicals, they must determine how much their time is really worth.

“We’re in charge of our own transportation, whether that’s T or Uber, and it’s up to us to meet up with the other members of our clinical group—which is usually groups of six—to get there,” said Amira Aitsaid, CSON ’27.

Aitsaid said her clinical sites—primarily in the Longwood Medical and Academic Area—are technically accessible by the MBTA, but not always practical.

“Most of us are left to Uber just because of how long the T takes in the morning,” Aitsaid said. “We have to be there anytime between 6:30 and 7 a.m.”

Uber rides typically cost between $20 and $40 total and are split between a group. Still, those costs accumulate over the course of a semester—especially for students with multiple clinicals per week.

“This semester, since I have two clinicals a week, I’m spending like $15 or $20 to get there and sometimes back,” Aitsaid said.

Even with shared rides, the financial burden can be significant. Zachary Elias, CSON ’27, said his transportation costs depend heavily on where his clinical placements are located. With his clinicals this semester at the Boston Medical Center in the South End and Arbour Hospital in Jamaica Plain, Elias has found himself spending more.

“Quite a few of them you can’t get to by the T, so you either have to Uber or rely on someone with a car,” Elias said. “This semester I have to Uber to both of them—it’s like $20 or $25 each day.”

While Elias splits rides with classmates, he estimates spending $30 to $35 per week on average.

“It can be kind of annoying, because I have to spend my own money to get to something that is required,” he said.

For students who choose public transportation, commutes can take up to an hour each way, depending on the route and time of day.

“I feel like it’s so much wasted time,” Aitsaid said. “The part that I don’t like the most is just getting there, especially so early in the morning.”

Driving is rarely an alternative. Even students with cars often cannot park due to limited availability at Longwood-area hospitals.

And 28 out of 31 surveyed by The Heights said they were unaware that they’d have to organize and pay for their own transportation to clinicals before coming to BC—something that may have factored into their decision had they known sooner. 

“I didn’t realize how much we’d have to rely on Ubers,” Elias said. “I assumed most of them would be on the T.”

According to responses from 31 CSON students surveyed by The Heights, commuting via public transportation can take up to four hours per week—compared to just 30 minutes to an hour when using Uber.

Delays and traffic can further complicate already tight schedules. Aitsaid recalled instances when unreliable transportation made students late to clinicals—something that carries serious consequences.

“We’ve had horror stories with Ubers being late, and that causing us to be late, which is a huge no-no in the nursing world, because the day starts at 7 exactly,” she said. “Most of our preceptors expect us to get there even earlier.”

“Room for Improvement”

Recognizing these challenges, some student leaders have pushed for institutional support. Cami Kulbeida, UGBC president and LSEHD ’26, began advocating for transportation funding after encountering similar issues during her own field placement.

“As soon as I learned that BC does not provide monetary support for LSEHD and CSON student transportation to off-campus sites for required field placements, my passion project was born,” Kulbieda wrote in a statement to The Heights.

“On top of a hefty tuition cost, no student should be responsible for these costs when their practicums and clinicals are required,” she added.

UGBC, in collaboration with the Division of Student Affairs, helped establish a pilot program to provide CharlieCards to LSEHD and CSON students with high financial need for transportation to practicums and clinicals.

Eligible students receive an invitation to participate in the program, according to Associate Vice President of Career Services Joe Du Pont. The form includes basic information to confirm their placement details and transportation needs.

The program remains limited in scope. In late March, UGBC reopened conversations about providing all undergraduate nursing students with free, accessible transportation to clinicals. Senators who supported it hoped to emulate the PULSE program, which provides students with a $50 CharlieCard each semester.

But there were also signs the PULSE solution may not be a good fit.

“[PULSE] always chooses stops that are convenient for students to get to, right on the T lines,” said Emily Prucher, MCAS ’28. “But I know the nursing stops aren’t like that, like even mostly hospitals you can’t really get to.”

In the meeting, Prucher said that UGBC will continue to explore options and “reach out to some new contacts.”

Some students believe the University could go further, pointing to existing programs like 4Boston, which covers transportation costs for service placements, including Ubers.

“It would be awesome if BC paid for our transportation,” said Kathleen McGraw, CSON ’28, who volunteers with 4Boston. “With 4Boston, we have a business Uber account, and they totally cover the cost.”

Others suggested alternatives, such as a dedicated shuttle system to clinical sites.

“I’m honestly surprised they don’t have some sort of bus or shuttle,” Elias said. “That could make a big difference.”

Aitsaid echoed that sentiment, adding that despite the relatively small size of the nursing program, students’ needs should not be neglected.

“I understand that the nursing school is small,” she said. “But I feel like we’re just overlooked.”

Despite the challenges, many students say BC’s clinicals come with a lot of benefits, one being the wide selection of hospitals where students can work.

“Across my time, I’ll have gone to six different hospitals,” Lyden said. “We get to go to hospitals that are specialized in our area, which is really interesting.”

But Kiersten Rock-Torcivia, CSON ’27, emphasized that a stronger transportation system would make the program even better.

“I know that a lot of other schools … have a better system to work it out,” Rock-Torcivia said. “I think there is definitely room for improvement.”