Vet school debt while newly married and newborn?

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knockedupvet

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Hi everyone,
I have been reading through the posts about the debt incurred by students in vet school and the responses by a few unhappy vet school graduates. I read through the threads and tried to find someone in my situation, but could not really find anyone. I have been accepted to vet school and deferred admission for a year because I am having a baby in November. When the vet school took MONTHS to "decide" if it was worth letting me start with the next year, I started looking into other options for a career. I spent most of my life debating between vet and med school, but now I am realizing that neither careers are great for family life.

I started looking into becoming a physicians assistant. A career that I think I would be happy doing. I would only go to school for 2 years so I would not have NEARLY as much debt to pay off. And not to mention I would make 30k+ than most starting vets. Although, I love the idea of being a vet, I don't have the choice to "live like a college student" for 10 years to pay off my debt. I have a baby to raise and a husband with the plan to go back to school now too. I am really struggling with the idea of dropping everything I worked for and starting over to become a PA. Anyone in a similar situation who worked through it and went to vet school? Thanks!
 
Sorry I can't speak to any of this b/c I am not in this situation but your name "knockedupvet" sounds so derogatory and negative perhaps something more positive. 🙂 I have a hard time addressing someone as "knocked-up" no matter how stressful/difficult/etc/etc their situation may be with the addition of a baby.
 
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Its actually meant as a joke. I guess my sarcasm does not carry over well on the internet. When I made this account was when my vet school was judging me for having a child while starting a vet education. I could change my name to "Iloveponies" if that is more appropriate for your tastes.
 
Also I have never described my situation as "stressful/difficult" etc as a result of my baby. So I don't appreciate you putting words in my mouth. 🙂
 
My apologies. Please disregard as I am sure I misunderstood; do and say as you like. Take care.
 
knockedupvet said:
I am really struggling with the idea of dropping everything I worked for and starting over to become a PA. Anyone in a similar situation who worked through it and went to vet school? Thanks!
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Hey there knockedup! I'm doing my post-bac prereqs right now and there are a lot of pre-PAs in my classes, so it seems like they have many of the same requirements as vet school requires. point being, you're not really dropping everything and starting over. The things you worked hard on to get into vet school can help you get into PA school too if that's the path you want to take.

I'm a non-traditional student (early 30s) and am also struggling with the idea of starting a family while in school plus the amount of debt once done, so you're not alone.

And I love your handle btw, I think it's hilarious (and have no idea how anyone would think it's derogatory - how can you be derogatory to yourself???). It's too bad you were immediately confronted with a wall of snark to your post.
 
Are you going to an in-state school or an out-of-state school?

This is just my opinion, but I wouldn't be willing to start a family and take on the burden of out-of-state tuition. If it's in-state/if your spouse makes good $$$ and is cool with it, I'd go.

I realize my situation is probably one of the worst - but - vet school has taken a giant steaming crap all over my (and my spouse's) life. Tuition increases are out of control, I'll have $250k in debt when it's all over. For the next 14 years I'll be largely unable to contribute to our financial well-being. Heck, when I'm done with school our combined debt-to-ratio will be so bad we won't qualify for a conventional mortgage. If you were to do the math, I *already* owe her somewhere in the area of $20k, just from her financial support and letting me live rent free in her house for the last coupe of years while I tried to get into vet school.

I can just barely justify my actions if I don't think about it too hard. If I had a child to worry about too, I couldn't do it.
 
knockedupvet said:
I started looking into becoming a physicians assistant. A career that I think I would be happy doing. I would only go to school for 2 years so I would not have NEARLY as much debt to pay off. And not to mention I would make 30k+ than most starting vets. Although, I love the idea of being a vet, I don't have the choice to "live like a college student" for 10 years to pay off my debt. I have a baby to raise and a husband with the plan to go back to school now too. I am really struggling with the idea of dropping everything I worked for and starting over to become a PA. Anyone in a similar situation who worked through it and went to vet school? Thanks!
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Hm. I'm not quite in that situation (for starters, I'm a guy), but... I do have an 8-week old (our third kid), and I am starting school this fall, and our lifestyle will take a dramatic hit for the next four years.

I do have just a couple almost tangential thoughts to throw at you, fwiw.

First, my absurdly highly trained sister (MD, specialist, subspecialist, chief of her dept at a well-known hospital) has told me on a number of occasions she wishes she had become an RN. Her argument: same reward, less debt, decent pay, and time enough to have a real life outside work. I can't speak to whether she's right, but I would assume the same arguments would apply to a PA track. [Clarification: I meant that I suspect a PA track would allow you the same things an RN track would. Not that a PA track would leave you wishing you had done something else.]

Second, I think you should clarify (in your mind) whether it's you who can't live like a college student or whether you're doing it for your kids. Because frankly, little kids can live on next to nothing. Culturally we've led ourselves a bit astray with the vast amounts of money we dump into clothing and toys and ...... when what kids really need is our time. (And honestly, that's been the biggest hurdle for me with vet school - not the financial hit, but struggling with whether or not I can be the father I want to be while doing it.) Anyway, I think the decision will become easier if you're clear in your mind about what lifestyle you feel you need and why.

My wife and I agree that we don't need a lavish lifestyle. A minimal house, functional cars (as opposed to $50,000+ "nice" cars), and enough time to enjoy each others' company is good enough for us. But, it took an entire first career for us to figure that out. We're in a position to get me through vet school with little to no debt. In your shoes, if you were trying to get through school WITH kids AND debt AND hesitancy over whether another career would be satisfying .... well, I think the PA option would start to look awfully darn attractive.

I guess I didn't offer any substantial advice. I hope it's something to get you thinking, though.

A good friend of mine is a new mother (her baby was born a week before our baby). She's starting school this fall with me. Her and her husband are, from the sounds of things, in a situation very closely resembling your own. If you'd like me to connect you with her, PM me with your email and I'll ask her if she'd be interested in chatting.

And last, with regard to your username, I personally found it amusing. So.... 🙂
 
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Hi everyone,
Thanks for the responses! I did relatively well in my undergrad requirements, hopefully well enough to get into PA school. Although, my last year of undergrad I struggled with mono my first semester and severe morning sickness my second semester thus my grades completely tanked. Unfortunately, this has left me with a decent overall GPA and a subpar science GPA and now I’m concerned I will not have a good chance at PA school. I don’t know what I would if I gave up my position in vet school just to be denied PA school. Also, I will have to take about a year or two of classes to cover some of the pre-reqs I missed being a microbiology major. Also, many PA schools require that you become a certified EMT/ phlebotomist/nurse’s aide etc and get experience in those fields before you even apply to PA school. (Thus, requiring even more school and money)

2CatMatt, I am glad to hear that there are many non-traditional students who can understand my position. I read these forums and so many people seem to not realistically look at the situation until they are trying to figure out how they are going to have a personal life working 70 hrs a week to make 60k a year and pay off 150-250k debt.

Robdude, I am going to an in-state school so the tuition is not terrible. My husband does not make good money as a paramedic and actually does not really like his job anymore. He plans on going back to school as soon as he can and the degree he wants isn’t exactly a money making career choice either unless your exceptionally lucky. I feel so bad because he is working at this job that he can barely stand anymore just to support the baby and I long enough for me to get done with school. I can’t even estimate how much money he spends taking care of us while I am trying to figure out what to do.

LetItSnow, you make really good points about being a PA and what kids need to be happy. I figured if I could be a PA in a doctors office or clinic I wouldn’t be completely drained by the hours as many DVM/MD’s are. I agree that kids need their parents time more than they need expensive things. I guess I just keep reading about formula, diapers, daycare, insurance and my brain implodes thinking about the amount of money were going to need to make. I guess I finally understand why my mom always jokes, “if you sit down and figure out how much it will cost to have children you will never have them”. I do not consider myself a person who needs a lavish lifestyle, on the otherhand I am the first to admit I have never been a frugal person. Haha.

Sorry for the length of the response. I am a bit verbose at times. 🙂
 
I know nothing about these options but I think I can read YOU pretty well.

It seems to me you already believe vet med is not for you. That should be your answer right there. It will be hard to make the sacrifices when you don't really believe what you are doing is right.

If you are already deferring then taking some more classes for a PA shouldn't be too much of a sacrifice. And the quicker you are out of school, the happier your husband will be, so being a husband, I support that.

Having said that, I do believe you have a misconception about vet med. Not everyone out of school is working 60 hour weeks. There are a lot of areas you can go into that have more normal hours outside of working in clinics. Whether you are interested in those areas is another story.

BTW, I too found your username amusing.
 
Startingovervet,
I concede to your point that I may not be whole-heartedly into this career choice anymore. It is not that I don’t understand that there are other options, but I am realistic about the statistics. The numerous vets I worked for varied in salary and jobs: lab animal, research, small animal, and equine. Unless you go through a residency, it seems pretty difficult to make as much as an MD/PA/NP. Compounded by the fact that residencies do not pay well and I could be wrong, but I do not think you can defer your loans during residency. Not to mention the fact that residencies such as surgery are VERY competitive and I want to spend time with my baby and husband while I am in school so I probably won’t be top 10 in my class. I love science and animals. But I also love having free time and a life outside of work. I know too many vets who struggle with work life balance. That is why I have decided to look outside of vetmed. I love science to know that is what I want to do, but no I probably do not love vetmed more than human medicine. So logically I should become a PA. Unfortunately, it is hard for me to just drop vetmed in my heart because that is what I have wanted to do most of my life. I don’t want to be doing rotations in PA school and then want to go to vet school. So many people act as if you should just “know” you want to be a vet and if you don’t than you are just terrible and shouldn’t waste spots for people who do “know”. Maybe I am an anomaly, who knows.
 
knockedupvet said:
Startingovervet,
I concede to your point that I may not be whole-heartedly into this career choice anymore. It is not that I don't understand that there are other options, but I am realistic about the statistics. The numerous vets I worked for varied in salary and jobs: lab animal, research, small animal, and equine. Unless you go through a residency, it seems pretty difficult to make as much as an MD/PA/NP. Compounded by the fact that residencies do not pay well and I could be wrong, but I do not think you can defer your loans during residency. Not to mention the fact that residencies such as surgery are VERY competitive and I want to spend time with my baby and husband while I am in school so I probably won't be top 10 in my class. I love science and animals. But I also love having free time and a life outside of work. I know too many vets who struggle with work life balance. That is why I have decided to look outside of vetmed. I love science to know that is what I want to do, but no I probably do not love vetmed more than human medicine. So logically I should become a PA. Unfortunately, it is hard for me to just drop vetmed in my heart because that is what I have wanted to do most of my life. I don't want to be doing rotations in PA school and then want to go to vet school. So many people act as if you should just "know" you want to be a vet and if you don't than you are just terrible and shouldn't waste spots for people who do "know". Maybe I am an anomaly, who knows.
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I know five residents who have deferred paying back their loans. Of course, the interest gets compounded on the principal, so you can calculate how much you are adding to your debt each year by deferring.

From what I have seen, interns and residents do not have a life (as you probably already know). That means, if you specialize, you will not have much family time for the next 8-9 years assuming that you only need 1 internship before your residency. (4 years vet school, 1 year general internship, 3-4 years residency) I don't know anything about PA school, but I assume that it will be an intense 4 years too. Any internships after that? Either way, it may help to compare by adding all the years of "low family time".

Personally, I would recommend going for an RN (2-3 years unless you want a 4 year BSN). [anecdote warning] If you move up the ranks (after perhaps a decade of experience), I have heard of six figure salaries at large hospitals. [end anecdote] The bureau of labor statistics would give you a more accurate picture. Less debt and more family time is a fact though.

Good luck to you! I am not a father, but I can say that, as as son, I grew up without much family time and have a fine relationship with my parents. This may rub people the wrong way, but kids can deal with it. They are not made of glass or snowflakes. In my opinion, sometimes the pampered children grow up to be the most fragile adults.
 
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I'm not in a place to add anything of value, but I just wanted to comment on the really well thought out responses people have given. Bravo!

Good luck with your decision. 🙂
 
I just wanted to add as a plug for nursing: I too was STRONGLY considering alternative pathways and nursing was one of them. Nurse practitioners can easily make in the six figures and beyond. Just look up listings in LA County alone, for instance, and you'll be surprised what you see. RN's are just as capable of netting a very high salary. We had a client at the animal hospital I used to work at who made $150K a year as an RN working under a cardiology specialist! JUST AN RN!! And, what's more, a licensed nurse practitioner can operate his/her own practice if they so desire where a PA cannot. They have greater freedom than PA's in other ways too from what I understand. Either way you choose, though, you'll have a secure, high paying career with just as much opportunity for growth and professional development as anything in vet medicine. Don't get me wrong, I chose vet med in the end for numerous reasons of my own, but I definitely put much thought into the alternatives. You're NOT crazy at all (at least, not in my opinion)! Thinking about the options makes you intelligent and sensible both as a wife and a mother-to-be. Good luck with your decision!
 
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JSpitz said:
I am not a father, but I can say that, as as son, I grew up without much family time and have a fine relationship with my parents. This may rub people the wrong way, but kids can deal with it. They are not made of glass or snowflakes. In my opinion, sometimes the pampered children grow up to be the most fragile adults.
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Absolute nonsense. Spending time with your kids is not "pampering" them. You can pamper your kids as an absent parent, and you can pamper them as an ever-present parent. The two are completely unrelated.
 
StartingoverVet said:
BTW, I too found your username amusing.
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I have never had to and never will have to deal with the issue of pregnancy/children and work in vet med, so I don't have much to say on this entire topic.

But just wanted to say I also like your attitude and thought your username was funny. 😀
 
LetItSnow said:
Absolute nonsense. Spending time with your kids is not "pampering" them. You can pamper your kids as an absent parent, and you can pamper them as an ever-present parent. The two are completely unrelated.
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Popping in to agree with LIS. You can be a good parent even if you work long hours- it just depends on what you are willing to put up with and the things you may have to miss. My dad is the president of a large company and his work requires him to travel as well. He spends a lot of time with us when he's home and I have never felt like our relationship has suffered. We are very close and I love him very much. So it can be done if you want to but I just wanted to say I think you're great for weighing the needs of your family so heavily before making a decision. Good luck!🙂
 
knockedupvet said:
So many people act as if you should just “know” you want to be a vet and if you don’t than you are just terrible and shouldn’t waste spots for people who do “know”. Maybe I am an anomaly, who knows.
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If you are an anomaly, it would be because you're very smart, mature, and selfless, not because there's something wrong with you.

Good luck with whatever you choose, but I have to say I really admire your mindset and your commitment to your husband and the baby in your belly.
 
knockedupvet said:
Startingovervet,
So many people act as if you should just “know” you want to be a vet and if you don’t than you are just terrible and shouldn’t waste spots for people who do “know”. Maybe I am an anomaly, who knows.
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No, it's more like...if you don't really love vet med, you might want to rethink it for your own sake. If you just like medicine in general, but aren't necessarily married to vet med, you could definitely get a higher paying job in another field. You have to, for whatever reason, like vet med enough to make up for the pay difference against all those other jobs everyone was talking about in this thread.

That being said, it seems there are plenty of people who make it work, so if it is something you really want you can probably figure out a way. I was a young kid when my dad was in Vet School and it really wasn't a big deal. Yeah, he was real busy during the year, but we had 24/7 to hang out during the summer and that made up for it.
 
goldnretrivrgrl said:
Popping in to agree with LIS. You can be a good parent even if you work long hours- it just depends on what you are willing to put up with and the things you may have to miss. My dad is the president of a large company and his work requires him to travel as well. He spends a lot of time with us when he's home and I have never felt like our relationship has suffered. We are very close and I love him very much. So it can be done if you want to but I just wanted to say I think you're great for weighing the needs of your family so heavily before making a decision. Good luck!🙂
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Totally agree with this. My father lives 5 hours away and has since I was five years old. Never once did I ever feel neglected, or like I wasn't loved by him. And I can tell you it wasn't because he sent me all sorts of expensive toys. It's really not too hard to take five minutes out of your day to make sure your children know you love them, even when you're not physically around to do so.
 
Also, another contact for you, if you want to send me your email, I'll see if I can hook you two up. One of my class mates was pregnant when she got accepted, deferred a year, and had her son in November of that year (started the next August). I don't know about her financial situation, but she could definitely give you a perspective on raising a child during vet school and dealing with the debt levels.
 
Again, knockedupvet, I am so very very sorry for saying your name seemed derogatory and negative...that is the way it sounded to me. I was not trying to be negative or snarky myself. I am quite a laid back fun person. Again, my apologies to have offended anyone or all. It sounds like you are getting a lot of good advice. Kudos to you!!!! 🙂 🙂 It sounds like you are a level headed stellar person and you know exactly what you want. Good luck!!!!!!!!!!!
 
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Thirty years paying back a $200K student loan, not making enough money maybe to save for your own retirement/kid's education/modest home of your own, still living like a student for many years after graduation; all for the "dream" of saving animal's lives for owners who will place their financial well being ahead of their pet's life (sometimes for very sound reasons)....It is so . . . priceless.

So come join us in veterinary medicine where making a living really is not important if you are following the "The Dream" .

Unfortunately, the reality is much different from what the veterinary schools and the AVMA have portrayed. Just say no to the koolade they are offering. Your financial future and security are very important and will become more important as you become older. Dreams will change. The reality of having to pay back loans while not being able to use that money for other things like homes or a comfortable retirement when the dream of healing animals is not enough to pull you out of bed every morning but you have to work because you cannot retire on social security (if it is still solvent) are things that will you will not be able to deny then.
 
Hi K9Dane, I really do appreciate what you have written, it has been very informative. I am "nervous" at the age of 39 years old embarking on this primarily b/c of the debt (I will be attending Glasgow starting Sept '11). However, I feel that it is something I can't NOT see through with perserverance. And if does not go well then I will return to my financial analyst job building huge pretty financial spreadsheets, telling customers when the their funds will run out and what the program profit is, etc.... for +$90K salary. 😉
 
K9DANE said:
Do you want to know how many people I take care of that literally rot in their $1500/day ICU bed because their families are at home collecting their disability/SS/retirement checks?
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Say what? $1500/day? Good grief, we had to pay more than that for the postpartum room they gave my wife. Well. Our insurance carrier did, anyway.

Er. Sorry. Didn't mean to derail the general angst about jobs. 🙂
 
I just read all these posts .... now I am depressed! 🙁
 
K9DANE said:
Medicine itself isn't pretty. People are even uglier. I am to the point that I don't even want to know the socioeconomic status of our patients. I get that and I expect similar instances within vet med as well. One difference? At least for some of my patients I'll be able to offer humanity, and dignity in end of life decisions....even if I don't agree with the clients reasons. A dignified death is better than rotting in a bed or being tied to a tree & left to starve.

I already have a home, I already have one child already through school and only one more to go. If my salary is not comfortable as a DVM, then I will use my nursing license to supplement my income for a while. I'm pushing 40 so you can believe that I'm not entering into this lightly, nor without a plan.
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Sounds like a DVM would work well for where you are in life.

For me (no kids or a mortgage), it appears that nursing pays better and offers better work life balance compared to vet med. As you stated, both sides probably share similar issues with patient care and quality of life. I understand that it may make a big difference for you that euthanasia in an option and would lower the patient care issues significantly. I have never been through human med for a significant amount of time, so I wouldn't know if I would share your feelings.

Regarding your bad experiences, I think that it depends on the type of nursing or facility that you work at, no? For example, if you work at dermatology (DVM or RN), then I don't think patient care would be that bad for either side. Can you transfer to a less "intense" field of nursing?
 
LetItSnow said:
Absolute nonsense. Spending time with your kids is not "pampering" them. You can pamper your kids as an absent parent, and you can pamper them as an ever-present parent. The two are completely unrelated.
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That depends on your definition and perceived connotation of the word.
 
katryn said:
Totally agree with this. My father lives 5 hours away and has since I was five years old. Never once did I ever feel neglected, or like I wasn't loved by him. And I can tell you it wasn't because he sent me all sorts of expensive toys. It's really not too hard to take five minutes out of your day to make sure your children know you love them, even when you're not physically around to do so.
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Now I know how much time I need to spend with my kid! 🙂 just kidding.
 
K9DANE said:
Isn't it funny how negative and biased we can be when we've been in a profession for a respectable amount of time? It took great restraint not to respond to all the posts above urging people to enter the nursing world. I usually tell people to run as well.

I'm sure we could have one heck of a sit-down-over-drinks session discussing the general populus and how they care/don't care for themselves, their family or their animals. Do you want to know how many people I take care of that literally rot in their $1500/day ICU bed because their families are at home collecting their disability/SS/retirement checks? How about the people we implant LVADs or BiVADs in, on an emergent basis, only to have the patient wake up, not have wanted any of it, have no other options available to them, and then have to make the decision themselves months later to turn off their own device, and die? Or how about the patient that's gifted a new heart, a new leash on life, but then is 100% non-compliant with their post transplant regimen and their body goes into complete rejection. How do you think the donor's family would feel about that if they knew what had happened to their loved one's organs? Or how about the mother that just cannot see that her adult child is rotting away, a long and excrutiatingly painful death, kidneys that are gone & on continuos dialysis, lungs that are gone and vent dependent, a gut that's dead that we've removed half of, a heart that's gone that we transplanted, completely septic and in DIC, bleeding from every orifice. But wait...where there's life there's hope..so let's keep going! 🙄

Medicine itself isn't pretty. People are even uglier. I am to the point that I don't even want to know the socioeconomic status of our patients. I get that and I expect similar instances within vet med as well. One difference? At least for some of my patients I'll be able to offer humanity, and dignity in end of life decisions....even if I don't agree with the clients reasons. A dignified death is better than rotting in a bed or being tied to a tree & left to starve.
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Are you my sister?

I heard my sister's voice while reading this thread (when it got on to nursing) when I asked her about nursing and was considering it as an alternate pathway and if not then an alternate career. She told me to run. lol.

Thank you for the 'other side' point of view!! 👍
 
JosephKnechtDVM said:
Thirty years paying back a $200K student loan, not making enough money maybe to save for your own retirement/kid's education/modest home of your own, still living like a student for many years after graduation; all for the "dream" of saving animal's lives for owners who will place their financial well being ahead of their pet's life (sometimes for very sound reasons)....It is so . . . priceless.

So come join us in veterinary medicine where making a living really is not important if you are following the "The Dream" .

Unfortunately, the reality is much different from what the veterinary schools and the AVMA have portrayed. Just say no to the koolade they are offering. Your financial future and security are very important and will become more important as you become older. Dreams will change. The reality of having to pay back loans while not being able to use that money for other things like homes or a comfortable retirement when the dream of healing animals is not enough to pull you out of bed every morning but you have to work because you cannot retire on social security (if it is still solvent) are things that will you will not be able to deny then.
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Dr. Joseph.. Thank you for your input. At 40, I took a 1 year detour to vet school to start and follow the 'dream' and just could not stomach the thought of your scenario, which is what I thought was exactly my future. Not to mention, the industry is quite different today than 30 years ago! I've been fortunate and tasted success with a previous career and therefore, could not see myself living the sacrificed lifestyle at all.

If I were 20? Probably would have jumped in with blinders on. I had to pay back 20k from my undergrad degree and it took me TEN YEARS! It's real money and I don't think many calculate what they have to make *after taxes* to pay back these loans.


To the OP....I admire your thought process and the ability to step back from it all to assess. I just left vet school and am considering going the NP, CRNA and/or DNP route for nursing. The NP and CRNA will most likely be doctorate programs in a few years, but the beauty is that you can get your BSN in one year at an accelerated program, and then work your way through your master's/doctorate while enjoying your family and working some.

Good luck in your decision...I truly understand how difficult it is after following your dream and working so hard to get there. But, if you realize it now, you will be that much better off than 10 years down the road saddled with debt.

That's my .01 worth
 
LetItSnow said:
Say what? $1500/day? Good grief, we had to pay more than that for the postpartum room they gave my wife. Well. Our insurance carrier did, anyway.

Er. Sorry. Didn't mean to derail the general angst about jobs. 🙂
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That figure is from a few years ago & probably not entirely accurate, and it's just to lay in the bed and occupy space in the room. It does not include any care, physicians, nurses, nutrition, labs, testing, medications, etc....nothing, just to lay in the bed and take up space.
 
K9DANE said:
That figure is from a few years ago & probably not entirely accurate, and it's just to lay in the bed and occupy space in the room. It does not include any care, physicians, nurses, nutrition, labs, testing, medications, etc....nothing, just to lay in the bed and take up space.
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Ahhhh, right on, that makes sense. I imagine the cost I saw included the nursing care and miscellany around the whole deal.

I can't remember how much our first few kids cost, but if you went solely by hospital bill alone, this one came to $8,000 and counting (just for the actual "go have the kid part," not the 9 months leading up).

Some of the costs border on criminal, though, in my opinion. I mean, I think the hospital billed my insurer $1,000-ish for nursery care. My kid went to the nursery exactly once. For his first bath. I concede that they have to staff the nursery and keep the lights on regardless of whether we use it, but still.... that just FEELS wrong, ya know?

Anyway. Derailing 'R Us, I guess.
 
Wow. Reading this thread has made me kind of sad. I tend to push those bad thoughts about debt and raising a family to the back of my head...but things just got real.

I just wanted to throw one more tidbit out there about getting a PA degree. I heard recently that LOADS of people are going to school to get this degree when the job market is scant. Make sure there will be a job for you when you get out of school. I assume RN's are needed as much as ever, but who knows. It's tough finding any job these days 🙄.
 
Maybe those of us about to have kids and go to vet school should just go to the European schools. Sounds like the free care would significantly offset tuition. 🙄 (slightly)
 
2CatMatt said:
Maybe those of us about to have kids and go to vet school should just go to the European schools. Sounds like the free care would significantly offset tuition. 🙄 (slightly)
Click to expand...

It'd be nice if it were free 🙄. At 20% VAT (value added tax) on everything you purchase...i.e. sales tax, it is hardly 'free'.

As a matter of fact, in Scotland, i went to go get my 'free' physical before i left the UK. I had paid enough in taxes already, so why not? Well, i was told to get a simple physical (NO blood work), just a mere 'look-over' for a school form, it would cost 300 pounds! That's about $482 USD. WHAT?!?!, I said? I was so disgusted, I actually said aloud at the check-in, "I guess healthcare is really not free here, is it?" This statement was met by blank stares from everyone. I was told that since I would have to be seen by an actual doctor (who had to sign the form which was 12 checkoffs for eyes, ears, nose, extremities...normal or abnormal), that would mean more time and therefore, I'd have to pay.

NOTHING is free.... I'm sure you meant it all in jest, but it is a serious problem in healthcare, nonetheless. Socialized medicine is NOT the way we need to go. You only get seen if you are sick and there is no such thing as preventive care. And don't get me started on my broken wrist story that was misdiagnosed, even after a looong history of the same bone broken with two surgeries. Yes, the xrays and visit to the ER were free. Now, back in the US, I deal with the consequences of an obvious misdiagnosis.

Oh, and I came home without any insurance in the US (because i had been living in UK), went to my physician, got a full physical, a TB test and my form filled out all for under 100 bucks!
 
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I just want to chime in to add my $0.02. I think the worst advice to anyone in OP's situation is "If you want it bad enough, you'll find a way to make it happen," because the reality is that $200K in loan repayments aren't just going to "happen." OP, I admire your thoughtful, critical approach to your career and your family's future. To echo what others have said, it really sounds as though you've already made your decision regarding vet med. I think it's noble that you are so focused on the happiness of your family. I'm 31 and married, and struggled with the enormous debt I will be undertaking if admitted to a veterinary program. Ultimately, I decided to pursue vet med, but if I had children I'm 100% positive I would have pursued other options or stayed in my current career.

Have you thought about what aspect of vet med makes you the happiest? Will an RN or a PA position be scientific enough? If so, could you satisfy your desire to work with animals by volunteering at a local shelter or farm a few hours a week? It would be a great way to still "work" with animals and, once your child is older, an excellent activity to do together.

Whatever you choose, good luck!
 
Well, when it comes to what you should do, it is really up to you. I got engaged on Christmas morning my first year of vet school and got married the summer between 2nd and 3rd year. Luckily I had a fiance/husband that supported me emotionally and in many cases financially during school. When we got married he moved in with me in my one bedroom apartment so that I could finish school and he commuted an hour (if traffic was good) to work and back. Between his commute and my school and work schedules (I also worked in the teaching hospital to make some money), we saw each other awake about 10 hours a week. Most of those hours were spent studying. I had a number of classmates that had kids, some were planned, some where not. Some had a partner, some did not. We started with 87 students, we finished with 83 (if I remember correctly). One person left due to illness and eventual death of her spouse, a couple left due to grades, one left to move back with his family when his wife (who lived in another state) threatened to leave him and take his son away (he was able to transfer to another school luckily!), others left for personal reasons. I almost dropped out of school multiple times because of the stress and strain. Luckily the dean wouldn't let me. I am so thankful for that. I love what I do, although I am at one of the few clinics that you work full time and take call at night and on weekends. I don't make a lot, but my husband and I live comfortably in a small, cheap, but well kept apartment. I have paid off two of my three student loans (I am 6 years out of school), but still have 25 years of loans to pay back. Does the debt make it hard? Yes. Am I working where I want to work right now? No. Am I doing it because it is really hard to find a job that is a good fit? Yes. Sometimes, to do what you love you have to do it where you don't love. The advantage is I can work where I don't love and my salary (average for "new" vets) is enough that I can pay off loans and save for the future. If I lived in a big city, my salary probably wouldn't be that much more, but my expenses would be. There are ways to do this, but you may have to make tough choices. I would not recommend a job that has call if you have kids because you have to get up in the middle of the night and leave on a moments notice, if you don't have someone to watch the kids, that is a problem.

Whatever you think will make you happy is what you should do. You can always change in the future, but remember that money is something that can make or break a relationship. My husband and I have "date night" on Saturdays to watch Suze Orman and Til Debt Do Us Part.

Good luck!
 
IslandVet said:
I love what I do, although I am at one of the few clinics that you work full time and take call at night and on weekends. I don't make a lot, but my husband and I live comfortably in a small, cheap, but well kept apartment. I have paid off two of my three student loans (I am 6 years out of school), but still have 25 years of loans to pay back. Does the debt make it hard? Yes. Am I working where I want to work right now? No. Am I doing it because it is really hard to find a job that is a good fit? Yes. Sometimes, to do what you love you have to do it where you don't love. The advantage is I can work where I don't love and my salary (average for "new" vets) is enough that I can pay off loans and save for the future. If I lived in a big city, my salary probably wouldn't be that much more, but my expenses would be. There are ways to do this, but you may have to make tough choices.
Click to expand...

Islandvet, thank-you so much for posting this. There are so many threads about the massive amount of debt we will all be in after finishing school, it's nice to read about someone who still thinks it was all worth it and is doing so realistically, if not ideally. 🙂
 
eringobraugh said:
Islandvet, thank-you so much for posting this. There are so many threads about the massive amount of debt we will all be in after finishing school, it's nice to read about someone who still thinks it was all worth it and is doing so realistically, if not ideally. 🙂
Click to expand...

I second this as well. My husband and I already have our plan for paying off student loan debt, but it is always welcome to hear that it really can be done, even if it's not daisies and roses.
 
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