Crappity crap

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Mistress S

Mistress S

Don't mess with the S
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So the good news is, I made it to fourth year AND have finished my two most demanding rotations (ICU and sub-I), meaning no more overnight call until residency- which is unbelievably sweet. The vague fear that I may finally flame out of medical school in some fantastic way that will serve only as a warning to future generations of students seems increasingly unlikely to happen, although still not out of the realm of possibility. The bad news is, all those loans which previously existed soley as an abstraction in my mind to explain how money peridically appeared in my bank account are suddenly seeming a lot less abstract. I'm actually going to have to pay these people back...****. I knew it all along, but actually facing it in less than a year blows. Like many of you, I've gotten through 8 years of higher education by not thinking too much about this, and technically I can get through residency without worrying about it too much (although I'll probably have to start paying on one of my loans). But now that I'm finally almost done adding to my debt, the harsh reality is starting to hit, and it's scary. I'm grateful to have had the opportunity to do this when neither I nor my family could possibly have paid for it. I'll admit, I shouldn't even complain that much- my debt's not excessive, what with scholarships and all, and honestly I've borrowed more than I needed to live somewhat comfortably and travel. But given the fact that I'm going into peds, it's not like paying it back is going to be a breeze. I know it's par for the course, but it still sucks. And does it all have to be so complicated? Consolidations, deferments, forbearance, weighted interest percentages...christ. Anyone else a little freaked out by coming to terms with the fact that you are basically graduating from school with a small mortgage over your head?
 
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Not really. It's just money. I'm single, no kids, and I'll be making six figures in 5 years.

Now...if I was married to a stay at home mom with kids (in private school) and had a mortgage on a house I really couldn't afford and loans on two cars I really couldn't afford...then I might be a little worried. However, in that case I'd sell the cars for old clunkers and we'd eat red beans and rice every other day until the money started to roll in.

Live on a budget. Have a financial plan.
 
I haven't seen or heard from my dad since I was 5, and my mom has borrowed money from me on more than one occasion since I've been in med school, so I don't think the mommy and daddy option is going to work for me...for some people, probably a viable alternative.

I'm single too, and sure, I'll be able to pay it back someday. It's still scary to be staring at a 6 figure debt. I don't have kids or a mortgage yet, but I'd like to have those things relatively soon. I'm not scared in the sense that I'm going to end up hobbling around the street in rags, it's more just that looking at those cold hard numbers freaked me out when I've spent the past 8 years regarding my debt as monopoly money so as to not have to deal with the crushing reality. I know I'll manage it, just like essentially everyone else- that doesn't mean it's not okay to acknowledge that it sucks, does it?

On my last rotation, we had an irish med student in her final year visiting. Medical education is entirely paid for there; some students take out small loans, but most have no more than 20-40,000 euros in debt when they graduate- plus they get paid immediately out of med school during the equivalent of their residency (and not crappy pay like we get here, but a full physician's salary- according to her, 60-70,000 euros). Sure, salaries aren't quite as high there as they are here, but I'd trade places in a heartbeat to graduate without debt. I doubt we'll ever implement a system lke that here though.
 
Off to Financial Aid, the forum for discussion about educational costs, loans etc.
 
dear mistress
been there, done that
You don't say how big your loans are.
I found that my financial aid/student aid office at my med school was VERY helpful. You should go talk with them if you are stressed. They probably aren't worrying about you guys yet...for a couple of months. They will start talking with you closer to your graduation time. Don't worry...you will pay off your loans.
Here is my case for comparison.

Graduated in 2004 with 132k in debt, which I consolidated into 1 big loan at 2.8% interest with stretching out the payments to 30 years. If I left them 10 years I would need to pay $1300/month during residency...so on the 30 year plan it's $540/month. You will probably be required to pay less next year, since Congress passed this graduated loan repayment bill...I think it's 15% of your gross income at max. But I recommend you should make your loan payments if you can. I found it was possible to pay the $540/month during residency almost all the time. Not fun, but possible.

Don't think about what the European docs don't owe, since it'll just make you jealous!
Take care,
dr. B
 
Thanks for the reply, Dr. B. My debt is in your range, and that was reassuring to hear. I do have a couple of smaller private loans, so I don't think I'll be able to consolidate all of my debt together, and probably not at such a low interest rate either. I'm planning to consolidate and defer my federal loans, and hopefully make payments on the interest while in residency. One of my private loans can be deferred for residency and the other can't, so I'll have to make payments on that one; then when I'm finally out in the real world after residency I guess I can consolidate the private loans together. It doesn't look like you can consolidate federal and private loans together anyway- is that the case?
My school's financial aid office is TERRIBLE, their lack of knowledge is amazing and they have given me incorrect advice on several occasions. I don't know how these people got their jobs, but they really seem to have no knowledge about financial aid beyond how to file paperwork. We have not had any formal meetings or presentations by the financial aid office in the greater than 3 years I've been here, so I'm not holding my breath for some helpful information now. Just to find out the above information (about consolidation) took probably an hour of internet research and two phone calls to my lenders. I would probably feel less stressed if I felt like I had a knowledgeable person to guide me through debt management. Any advice about where to turn to for good information? Thanks!
 
I'm generally a fan of stretching out loan payments because student loans are good debts and have all sorts of nice protections, but it's really a personal preference. However, unfortunately the 2.8% type of interest deals aren't around anymore, so right now, there's usually not a big advantage to consolidation. Also, with the fixed interest loans, I don't think you can reduce the interest rate significantly and lock it in like you could with the pre-2006 variable loans.

One thing to really think about right now is loan repayment during residency. You can find lots of info on it here, but lots of students aren't aware that the program that currently lets most residents defer loan payments is going away.
 
The good news is that you as a new doctor will be a much better investment for yourself than that mortgage you are comparing to.

Think of yourself as an appreciating asset.

🙂

Best of luck.
 
I passed your loan amount last year, and I'm only in my third year. Trust me, you will be fine. I will definitely have to worry though :scared:
 
EM2BE said:
I passed your loan amount last year, and I'm only in my third year. Trust me, you will be fine. I will definitely have to worry though :scared:
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LOL. That's like a quadriplegic telling a hemiplegic he'll be fine. You're both paralyzed. We're all skrewed. I'm predicting a sizable portion of young doctors will be defaulting on their student loans or declaring bankruptcy on other debts 5-10 years from now, if that hasn't started happening already (mostly because most docs in residency now have the option of deferring have those nice 2-3% interest rate student loans, not the 7+% medical students are now taking out with no hope of residency deferment).
 
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