Thought I would chime in here as someone who has perspectives of veterinary and human medicine, and also has significant knowledge of debt repayment. I am actually a physician, been practicing for over 30 years in various environments (private practice, University). Signed up for this forum because my daughter is applying to vet school this year and Ive been watching her wait anxiously to hear from schools, and about a month ago I thought I would look to see if there was any information out there on the student forums. And I have to admit Ive gotten interested and hopeful for some of you that are applying, so I keep logging in to see who is getting accepted!. I wish all of you the best of luck, and congratulations to all of those who have been accepted.
But regarding the two different careers: my best friend went vet met, I went human med. I think we both had very rewarding careers and loved our jobs (well most of the time anyway). She actually didn't have a lot of loans (vet schools weren't that expensive back then). I owed close to $200,000 when I finished up my fellowship. Medical school is actually the same as vet school, loans get deferred while you are in training, and you pretty much have to complete a residency, so my loans kept accruing and accruing……..(a 4 year residency and a 3 year fellowship). So what didn't look that bad while in school looked terrible when I got out. I had a lot of small loans (which I had to consolidate at a higher interest because I couldn't make the minimum payment) and ended up having to pay every extra cent I had on loan repayment (realize at this point, having completed training, most people want to have children, buy a house, at least get a car that is reliable and functional - I was 34 years old, still driving an eleven year old Honda Civic, had a 1 year old and couldn't pay for diapers never mind childcare).
This really limits your options. It honestly makes life very difficult. I had to take the first job offered and had only 10 days off after the birth of my second child because…well….we really needed the money. The career was rewarding (I hope I helped some people along the way) but financially it was not worth the cost. I did make a very nice salary, but I later figured out it took me over 20 years to catch up financially to my cousin (he was an engineer and started with a good income the day after he graduated with his bachelors). Each of you that is thinking on taking on this amount of debt needs to really think about this before you go forward.
The only reason to take on this commitment and this amount of debt is if you really do not think you will be happy doing anything else (and this applies to both human and animal medicine). It requires a true desire to help animals (or humans). You will work very long hours and often do not hear "thank you". Instead your client (or patient) will be upset (they, or their animal, is sick and hurting and even though they generally know it is not your fault the frustration, anger and pain all come out at you). I do think you can pay the loans back better in many fields of human medicine, compared to vet med, as salaries overall tend to be higher, but there are fields of medicine where the salaries are similar. Many pediatricians and family physicians make salaries in the same range as vet med. Human medicine is highly regulated and there are issues that you have to deal with in human medicine that do not exist (or play less of a role) in vet med. Insurance issues, malpractice, hospital regulations all often serve to decrease physician satisfaction. The rate of burnout is very high. Debt loads for individuals graduating from both vet and med school are substantially higher, and almost overwhelming in vet med by my calculations (and I have done these calculations with my daughter, even with me helping its going to be a rough start).
The financial benefit comes at the end of your career - once you repay those debts you are making a nice salary. And there are physicians, and even some veterinarians, that do make a lot of money. But it is a looooooong haul………
The benefit to a career in human medicine, and vet medicine, is not financial. A career in medicine gives you the ability to help others. It is always interesting, there is always something new to learn. I was never bored, there were always new challenges. I learned a lot about myself and how to interact with people as individuals and as patients. I did clinical care, research, administration, so I had a lot of variety. I feel like I did something worthwhile with my life and hope I helped many people along the way. If this is not your goal (or if you can't hold on to this goal once you begin to practice - I see many young physicians who lose the joy in medicine and the empathy and caring over time) you are going to regret your decision.
Anyway hope this perspective helps - Ive enjoyed eavesdropping on your lives for the last month (and I hope its okay with you all if I keep eavesdropping til April - I want to find out who goes where!!). Its nice to see young people who are excited about what they are doing, where they are going, and who want to make this world a better place for animals. I hope you all get accepted and someone out there wins the Powerball and pays everyones tuition!!
.
