Dental School loans

[toothguy1]

Hey guys,

I am beginning school in the fall so I’m looking at my loan options right now. I was wondering whether anyone had experience with private loans and whether the prefer them over loans through the government, or any other opinions regarding which loans are best. Thanks!

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[Kawasaki21]

I don’t have any personal experience but I believe that government loans tend to have a lower interest rate

 

[AEZDent]

I don’t have any personal experience but I believe that government loans tend to have a lower interest rate

This is not always true. There are some private loans that have a lower interest rate but it all depends on your credit score, if you have a co-signer, plan on paying off interest as you go, ect. Personally I'm still working on getting all of that figured out but if I had to guess I will probably be taking out a mixture of both. I'd also appreciate the input from anyone else who has experience with this.

 

[dPseh]

I only had federal loans for my 4 years. Interest rates varied from 5-7.3%. The higher interest rates were from GradPLUS loans and I made sure to borrow as little as possible. Majority of my loans are unsub Stafford loans with interest rates around 5.3-6.2%.

I didn't even bother looking into private loans as I always assumed their interest rates were higher but would recommend that you shop around as AEZDent is right - some private loans may have lower interest rates pending credit score.

If your parents' gross income is low enough, you may qualify for the Health Professions Loan through your school. Max $20k/year at subsidized 5% interest rate. 12 month grace period after graduation which is also nice.

 

[Cthuluhoop]

I only had federal loans for my 4 years. Interest rates varied from 5-7.3%. The higher interest rates were from GradPLUS loans and I made sure to borrow as little as possible. Majority of my loans are unsub Stafford loans with interest rates around 5.3-6.2%.

I didn't even bother looking into private loans as I always assumed their interest rates were higher but would recommend that you shop around as AEZDent is right - some private loans may have lower interest rates pending credit score.

If your parents' gross income is low enough, you may qualify for the Health Professions Loan through your school. Max $20k/year at subsidized 5% interest rate. 12 month grace period after graduation which is also nice.

Your first year loan's interest rate was at 5.3%, and fourth year was at 6.2%?

 

[Cold Front]

Interest rates for student loans are expected to go up again in May for loans being dispersed this summer and beyond.

 

[dPseh]

Your first year loan's interest rate was at 5.3%, and fourth year was at 6.2%?

Yes. It always went up every year. I’m not sure what the current rate is going for, and how much it’s expected to increase throughout the next 4 years.

 

[Cthuluhoop]

Yes. It always went up every year. I’m not sure what the current rate is going for, and how much it’s expected to increase throughout the next 4 years.

Gotcha, thanks for the response. I was always wondering what a real student's percent increase was.

It's currently 7.565%, and I'm sure it'll be pretty close to 8 come summer of this year

 

[321931]

Gotcha, thanks for the response. I was always wondering what a real student's percent increase was.

It's currently 7.565%, and I'm sure it'll be pretty close to 8 come summer of this year

Holy crap 8%?!!!!! jeez. Good luck buddies. If politicians look into universal "dental" care and your fillings all become 50$... you would be better off working as a wal mart greeter.

 

[Cold Front]

Gotcha, thanks for the response. I was always wondering what a real student's percent increase was.

It's currently 7.565%, and I'm sure it'll be pretty close to 8 come summer of this year

It will be at least 8%. Origination fees for loans are about 5%. Tuitions are also expected to go up this fall by 5% for most dental schools, some more.

All these numbers will be on REPEAT all over again next year, and the year after, and the year after that... something very few dental students can comprehend, and most will live to regret for the rest of their lives.

 

[321931]

It will be at least 8%. Origination fees for loans are about 5%. Tuitions are also expected to go up this fall by 5% for most dental schools, some more.

All these numbers will be on REPEAT all over again next year, and the year after, and the year after that... something very few dental students can comprehend, and most will live to regret for the rest of their lives.

My bet that in my lifetime... student debt bubble goes poof. Reforms in some sort of way where gov limits loans and or subsidized by the gov which means raising taxes on yes - you- the middle class who will also have to fund the broke pensions and social security of the boomers... and then the cherry on top is universal dental care where gov gives you 50$ a filing. All the while carrying the burden of student loans that will not be forgiven

That’s the worst case scenario. It prob won’t happen but something in the middle might which would be still bad for dentistry in general. My vote is for insurance companies winning... ironic right? Here we complain about insurance companies but in reality insurance companies really funds the dental private economy. It’s a shame the political parties can’t meet in the middle. Left is becoming extreme and so is the right.

 

[toothguy1]

It will be at least 8%. Origination fees for loans are about 5%. Tuitions are also expected to go up this fall by 5% for most dental schools, some more.

All these numbers will be on REPEAT all over again next year, and the year after, and the year after that... something very few dental students can comprehend, and most will live to regret for the rest of their lives.

Origination fees are currently at 1.06%, and fees are going up around 3% a year which matches inflation. Nothing unexpected.

 

[toothguy1]

I’ve heard varying opinions. Many people say to stick with federal due to the other perks not offered by private (diff grace periods etc.) but I’ve seen many private loans with int rates less than 7%. Just wondering if it was worth the trade off

 

[Big Time Hoosier]

Origination fees are currently at 1.06%, and fees are going up around 3% a year which matches inflation. Nothing unexpected.

Yes, for Direct Subsidized Loans and Direct Unsubsidized Loans it’s 1.06%, but Direct PLUS Loans are 4.25%.

https://studentaid.ed.gov/sa/types/loans/interest-rates#fees

And, inflation is not 3%. The average over the past decade is below 2%.

Current US Inflation Rates: 2009-2019

Big Hoss

 

[Likkriue]

Lol 8% interest for my last two years. Damn that’s gonna hurt. But let’s go to the more expensive school cause “I like it more” right?

 

[Big Time Hoosier]

“A year or so ago, I asked the question, ‘What would tuition be at American universities today if it grew at the rate after 1978 equal to the tuition growth prior to that date?’ Before 1978, federal aid programs were largely non-existent or quantitatively much smaller than today. Tuition fees today would be over 40 percent lower if pre 1978 fee growth had been maintained.”

https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.fo...1/the-bennett-hypothesis-confirmed-again/amp/

Why the year 1978 in the above? Well...the US Department of Education was born in 1979. If market forces don’t reign in higher education, it’s gonna get pretty ugly. It’s time to get the government out of the student loan game. I think we can now safely call the Bennett Hypothesis the Bennet Law.

“The nine most terrifying words in the English language are ‘I'm from the government, and I'm here to help.’”
- Ronald Reagan

Big Hoss

 

[AEZDent]

I’ve heard varying opinions. Many people say to stick with federal due to the other perks not offered by private (diff grace periods etc.) but I’ve seen many private loans with int rates less than 7%. Just wondering if it was worth the trade off

As far as I know with private loans the biggest draw back is that you would loose the ability to participate in government repayment/loan forgiveness plans.

 

[toothguy1]

“A year or so ago, I asked the question, ‘What would tuition be at American universities today if it grew at the rate after 1978 equal to the tuition growth prior to that date?’ Before 1978, federal aid programs were largely non-existent or quantitatively much smaller than today. Tuition fees today would be over 40 percent lower if pre 1978 fee growth had been maintained.”

https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.fo...1/the-bennett-hypothesis-confirmed-again/amp/

Why the year 1978 in the above? Well...the US Department of Education was born in 1979. If market forces don’t reign in higher education, it’s gonna get pretty ugly. It’s time to get the government out of the student loan game. I think we can now safely call the Bennett Hypothesis the Bennet Law.

“The nine most terrifying words in the English language are ‘I'm from the government, and I'm here to help.’”
- Ronald Reagan

Big Hoss

Thanks for the reply. So I take it you’re a fan of private loans?

 

[Big Time Hoosier]

Thanks for the reply. So I take it you’re a fan of private loans?

No, I am a fan of the HPSP.

That said, privatizing student loans would force some common sense into academia, something that’s hard to come by in their ivory towers. What private lender would give some 18 year old $150,000 to get a degree in French poetry at a fancy pants liberal arts college, all to ultimately take a job starting at $45,000/year. Answer: they wouldn’t. Universities would be forced to cut costs or close their doors.

Big Hoss

 

[Cold Front]

“A year or so ago, I asked the question, ‘What would tuition be at American universities today if it grew at the rate after 1978 equal to the tuition growth prior to that date?’ Before 1978, federal aid programs were largely non-existent or quantitatively much smaller than today. Tuition fees today would be over 40 percent lower if pre 1978 fee growth had been maintained.”

Why the year 1978 in the above?

Big Hoss

The GI bill covered everything for pre-1978 students. After WW2, the government passed the GI bill to prevent a lot of people who served in the military, and there were a lot, from ending up a liability to the nation, and just send them to school for free. A big lesson from what happened in WW1... where veterans were neglected and their communities were shocked that going to a war and serving your country would be a very bad decision. The GI bill was the “Thank You For Your Service” commitment from the government when you finished your duty.

 

[allantois]

“A year or so ago, I asked the question, ‘What would tuition be at American universities today if it grew at the rate after 1978 equal to the tuition growth prior to that date?’ Before 1978, federal aid programs were largely non-existent or quantitatively much smaller than today. Tuition fees today would be over 40 percent lower if pre 1978 fee growth had been maintained.”

https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.fo...1/the-bennett-hypothesis-confirmed-again/amp/

Why the year 1978 in the above? Well...the US Department of Education was born in 1979. If market forces don’t reign in higher education, it’s gonna get pretty ugly. It’s time to get the government out of the student loan game. I think we can now safely call the Bennett Hypothesis the Bennet Law.

“The nine most terrifying words in the English language are ‘I'm from the government, and I'm here to help.’”
- Ronald Reagan

Big Hoss

Universities have to do their part in not charging outrageous amounts in tuition. Most public universities meet that goal just fine. My private school hasn’t raised the cost of tuition in years. Then there are predatory institutions like Midwestern and NYU