Financial Problems in Dental Schools

[Orthoexpert]

I was just wondering if there's any dental student who is married and has a kid. How do you guys support your families in D School? I'm married and I have a kid. I wanted to know if it is possible for you and your family to live solely on your student loan coz my wife will not be able to work with my 9 month old girl. Plus we have a car payment. I'm very concerned about the financial problems that I might have to face. Any advice or experience will be greatly appreciated.

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[polarmolar]

This is a great question. I plan to get married upon entering so I want to know if its feasible as well.

 

[Dentgirl09]

I was just wondering if there's any dental student who is married and has a kid. How do you guys support your families in D School? I'm married and I have a kid. I wanted to know if it is possible for you and your family to live solely on your student loan coz my wife will not be able to work with my 9 month old girl. Plus we have a car payment. I'm very concerned about the financial problems that I might have to face. Any advice or experience will be greatly appreciated.

I am not really sure of the answer but just wanted to wish you luck.

 

[RAK1987]

I was just wondering if there's any dental student who is married and has a kid. How do you guys support your families in D School? I'm married and I have a kid. I wanted to know if it is possible for you and your family to live solely on your student loan coz my wife will not be able to work with my 9 month old girl. Plus we have a car payment. I'm very concerned about the financial problems that I might have to face. Any advice or experience will be greatly appreciated.

ok so i am not married (will be soon!!) - nor do i have children... BUT my dat tutor that i had last year is a med student at my school. he is married and has a baby girl. i know that his wife doesnt work. they DO successfully live off his loans. i think he does some private tutoring and teaches for kaplan on the side - - but that's not really much. i know that it was possible for them to do it - - you just have to live VERY frugally. good luck.

 

[NyCzPeter]

I was just wondering if there's any dental student who is married and has a kid. How do you guys support your families in D School? I'm married and I have a kid. I wanted to know if it is possible for you and your family to live solely on your student loan coz my wife will not be able to work with my 9 month old girl. Plus we have a car payment. I'm very concerned about the financial problems that I might have to face. Any advice or experience will be greatly appreciated.

Guys like you give me inspiration man. I'm young and single, and I'm sitting here worrying about debt.

I can't give you any advice but I know that if you have a family, your financial aid can help you out a bit if you put that into your fafsa. I think the amount of loans you can take out will be raised up if you tell them you have a family.

Best of Luck

 

[Jake8]

All I know is that you better learn to live off rice beans. Seriously being frugal with my food prices knocked a good $300 off my monthly credit card bill. Your wife could work part time or on the weekends if you can watch the kid. Just suggestions being single and young my perspective is quite limited.

 

[mamelons]

I know there are a few people in my class in a similar situation, and I know a couple of them were able to get food stamps for groceries and what not, which ultimately saved them from using a lot of the loan money they have. They were also able to get in-state tuition. You might look into things like that and see if it is possible.

 

[eventualOMFS]

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[Simiam]

Apply for Food Stamps. Live frugally. Have your wife work weekends/nights when you can be home. Usually the amount you can borrow will not change with or without family. You will just have to take out the max, live cheap, and if you are lucky have some family help... Good luck. It is totally possible, lots of people do it. Call your school's financial aid counselor, too.

 

[Orthoexpert]

Thank you so much for all your supports and advices. I appreciate them very much.

 

[DrSmiles12]

I am married and have two children. I initially was just going to do it all on loans but have recently taken the Army scholarship. PM any specific questions.

 

[bleech]

i'm planning on getting married during D1, I had a similar question
http://forums.studentdoctor.net/showthread.php?p=7338553

 

[aegdboy]

I have a friend that is married with two kids. One is 5 months old the other 2 years old. Wife doesn't work.

He is on medicaid and the state takes care of him. He gets free health care and food stamps to cover whatever his student loans don't

Use the system while you can, because when you graduate you'll be paying into it. Atleast this way you got some use for your money!

 

[aegdboy]

Apply for Food Stamps. Live frugally. Have your wife work weekends/nights when you can be home. Usually the amount you can borrow will not change with or without family. You will just have to take out the max, live cheap, and if you are lucky have some family help... Good luck. It is totally possible, lots of people do it. Call your school's financial aid counselor, too.

careful though. You cannot get gov't aid if the wife works to much. If you are making more than $15k a year, its a no go for medicaid and food stamps in most states.

Some states will even consider student loan living money as income. Go figure!!!

 

[wannagetin09]

Way I look at it anyone going into dent/med school is going to be in a lot of debt when they get out, assuming they aren't trust-fund babies and/or have awesome g-parents. I am not married nor to I plan on marriage or kids until I am out of school and making money. However, my oldest sister is married with 3 kids and a husband that is 31 who recently decided he should go to college for the first time. He is unemployed and the only source of income is my sister. Given her case, my advice would be to apply for as many student loans, financial aid, and any other benefits given by your state, because it seems the gov't will help those with a family to support. DO NOT USE CREDIT CARDS! This was my sisters mistake. CRedit card companies will tax you and tax you with high interest rates unlike student loans which are fairly low. Don't live outside your means now and just stay afloat for the time being and for the first couple years out of school dont live outside your means so you can pay off the student loans before the interest goes up. best advice I can give is to keep the silver lining in your mind that in a short time you will be Dr. John Doe!

 

[umich05]

can I apply for food stamps while in dental school if I dont have a wife/children. can i just say i'm an independent, have no incoming income and have a **** load of expenses (food, housing, school. etc..) What are the requirements and will this come back to bite me in the ass later in life?

 

[wannagetin09]

The problem with not being married and no income is that more than likely you are in the same boat as me. Living off the money mom and dad, and occasional g-parents, give me. So it is pretty tough to say you are an independent. Before applying for the FAFSA they make you fill out a survey to determine if you are "dependent" or "independent" and if you are dependent it makes it difficult to get money from them unless your parents make under a certain amount of money a year. Pretty ridiculous tho b/c who can just fork out upwards of 150,000.

 

[wannagetin09]

umich, I have absolutely no idea how to apply for food stamps and/or how it will effect you later in life. But if you find out post it because i could use some food stamps if I get in to dschool

 

[rewJW]

I have heard that student loans will cover just about everything EXCEPT car payments -- at least this is what I was told at a NJDS presentation last summer (not at my interview, I don't have a car payment so I didn't think to ask about it). Might be worth looking into if this is true.

 

[kamandsam]

So I have 3 babies and am currently in Grad school, my wife doesnt work. I will be applying to dschool this next spring. In grad school i have been fortunate to get a lot of fellowships and other money such that we live reasonable well. That being said I know that the financial aid department will increase your budget to whatever you need,based on your bills and expenses. My budget is nearly 60,000 per year.

My brother is a 3rd year d student and has many classmates that have large families. I asked him how they support their families and he replied that they take out a lot of loans. I would imagine that most dschools, like my brother's, will work with you just as my university has. If you are not averse to loans, than you will not have a problem. you could also consider HPSP.

 

[ou_jay]

You can do it, but you really need to minimize your expenses. I have several classmates with multiple children. They went to their state school, and they live very frugally. Many of them still have to take some private loans.

Find the cheapest housing you can. Consider selling your car and using public transportation if your city has it or buying a cheaper car outright if it doesn't.

Finally, you can apply for foodstamps, TANF, and housing assistance, but to me that is unethical. Your problem is not that you cannot work because of disability or the job market but that you have chosen not to work. You've chosen not to because you are preparing for a very bright future. Your wife has chosen not to work because she wants to be at home with your baby.

It irritates me that my wife works very hard to support us during dental school only to have 33% taken by the government and given back to my some of my classmates who are on welfare because they and their spouses have chosen to not work.