services to support students
The Students’ Union offers services to our members that support our advocacy goals of making post-secondary more affordable and accessible for students at Vancouver Island University.
Bursaries, Awards + Grocery Vouchers
We offer a variety of bursaries and endowment awards which can be applied for through your student record (deadline Oct 31 and Mar 31 each year). Thousands of dollars in grocery vouchers are also available at Financial Aid, funded by VIUSU each year.
Discounted Transit Passes
The Students’ Union sells monthly and semester transit passes as well as individual tickets. Students can pick up their passes in the VIUSU office.
Semester passes are sold for $170 in September, January, and May and are valid for 4 months. Monthly passes are usually available by the last week of the previous month and are sold for $50.
There are also individual tickets available for $2.25 each or a sheet of 10 for $22.50.
Handbook + Dayplanner
By working with other members of the BCFS, who collectively print thousands of books every year, we are able to get the best deal possible, to ethically produce the handbook and dayplanner for our members at VIU.
The Good Food Box
We’ve partnered with Nanaimo Foodshare to bring affordable nutritious food to campus every week through the Good Food Box Program. Nanaimo Foodshare reduces the cost of healthy food by buying direct from farms and wholesalers and having an awesome team of volunteers pack and distribute hundreds of Good Food Boxes each week! The VIU Students’ Union serves as a pick-up location for your order. The Good Food Box is available to all students and community members. Learn more by watching this video.
The Breakfast Bar
Stop by our office for a bowl of cereal and coffee or tea for free. We know that being a student comes with many costs so this breakfast program was launched to help with food security on campus. Available during our office hours from 9:30am-3:30pm.
Student Discount Program
A discount program designed to help students save money on services and experiences. The Deals App is managed in partnership with student unions across BC through the BCFS and is a benefit of membership. Download now.➚
Copying + Faxing
The Students’ Union provides photocopying and faxing services for students a discounted rate. Students can also receive faxes at the Students’ Union Building for FREE. Colour photocopying is also available.
Consignment Bookswap
Update to service announcement:
Effective immediately, the VIU Students’ Union will no longer be accepting consignment textbooks; all current contracts will be honoured until the end of their term. We will continue to run and promote the service until all remaining textbooks have been sold or contracts have expired.
Why have we made this decision? In the last several years, we’ve had fewer students selling their textbooks with us. Our once over-flowing bookshelves are now reduced to a tiny percent of what it once was. The decline in use has brought us to the decision to pause the intake of new books while we wind down the program and establish new services such as the breakfast bar and student grants program.
We now recommend selling used textbooks on the VIUSU app or the VIU TEXTBOOKS: BUY/SELL/TRADE Facebook page - both currently active and valuable services. Anyone with a current contract is welcome to retrieve their books from the program by visiting us in person or calling us at 250-754-8866.
Please do not hesitate to contact us if you have feedback or would like more information, please contact the Students’ Union office by phone or email (info@viusu.ca).
Jessica Wilde Conference Participation Fund
VIUSU is proud to provide funding for students who are presenting at academic conferences through this Fund. If you are presenting at a conference you should apply through VIU's Research and Scholarly Activity Office.
Project 529 Bike Registration
You never want to think about what would happen if your bike were stolen, but by registering your bike with Project 529➚ you'll help law enforcement across BC know it's your bike when it is located. You’ll also have access to all of the information needed for a police or insurance report.
Portable Jumper Cables
The Students’ Union provides a free jump-start service on the Nanaimo Campus. Just bring your ID to the Students’ Union Building (193) and you can borrow our jump-start kit. This could save you as much as $50 for a tow truck to do the same.