Financial Advice for a prospective Med Student...

[Bernoull]

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Hi Guys,

I'm hoping to matriculate into an MD school next year. I'm very concerned about med school finances. FYI: I'm going to rely almost exclusively on loans. I've worked hard to clean up my credit (its excellent now), I paid off my credit cards and put a little bit of money aside and I own my car. For Med School, I don't foresee any significant recurring bills, besides living expenses. I intend to defer my 18K in grad school loans (which should double by next summer).

I'll appreciate advice on what to expect, financially, when I start Med School.
1. How much loan money can one expect for monthly living expenses?
2. I'm not high maintenance, but I'm wondering if loans will be able to cover reasonable living expenses and the occasional date night (without resorting to credit cards)?
3. Is there anything else I can do to better prepare, financially, for Med School?

Any advice/suggestions will be great!!

Thanks!!

 

[whoknows2012]

1)Monthly living expenses are highly variable among individuals. For me I've set aside $500 a month for food, travel, and misc costs such as going to a movie going out at night etc. Rent for housing is also highly variable and is dependent on location...for me, on campus housing comes out to $7500 a year, so in total living expenses are roughly $12,500 a yr (500x10 +7500)

2)Yes other than federal stafford loans most if not all schools help you find some sort of loan (usually gradplus) to fund the rest of your living expenses. I was offered $20,000 for this yr but turned down almost half of it because I didn't need that much...again it varies depending on whether or not you need new health insurance (+$3500 a yr, etc) or have it through a parent already.

3)Unless you're working some kind of full time job or a part time job that pays amazingly there really isn't much that can be done...I had about $5000 saved so that definitely helped.

 

[TMP-SMX]

Stop worrying as everyone is in the same boat as you.

 

[Bernoull]

1)Monthly living expenses are highly variable among individuals. For me I've set aside $500 a month for food, travel, and misc costs such as going to a movie going out at night etc. Rent for housing is also highly variable and is dependent on location...for me, on campus housing comes out to $7500 a year, so in total living expenses are roughly $12,500 a yr (500x10 +7500)

2)Yes other than federal stafford loans most if not all schools help you find some sort of loan (usually gradplus) to fund the rest of your living expenses. I was offered $20,000 for this yr but turned down almost half of it because I didn't need that much...again it varies depending on whether or not you need new health insurance (+$3500 a yr, etc) or have it through a parent already.

3)Unless you're working some kind of full time job or a part time job that pays amazingly there really isn't much that can be done...I had about $5000 saved so that definitely helped.

whoknows2012:

Thanks a lot for posting all that great info. It gives me some sense of what to expect. I guess like realtors say, its all about location, location, location!! I'll definitely factor "location/cost of living" more heavily in my med school selection (if I'm fortunate enough to reach that stage).

I have a good job; so I'll put more money aside and suspend 401K contributions, this way I'll have more cash saved for med school.

Once again thanks a lot. I appreciate it.

 

[Bernoull]

Stop worrying as everyone is in the same boat as you.

I guess there's nothing like being over-prepared when it comes to Med School finances. Granted, I'm somewhat worried but more importantly I want to be prepared for this undertaking.