How common are scholarships and need based grants from MD schools?

[magician7772222]

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I always hear of people getting scholarships especially at MD schools. I'm wondering how likely this actually is in reality. I don't have the best stats (LM 69) but I do have an SAI of -1500 via fafsa and have always gotten full pell plus additional need-based grants from my undergrad, and AAMC FAP when applying/taking mcat. How likely is it that I get some grants from med schools? Is this more likely with private or public schools?

 

[Mr.Smile12]

You should bank on financing your medical school education with student loans. Medicine is still a well-paying profession, so scholarships may reflect more of your family income/contribution. Your FAFSA calculations and endowment funds will determine your chances at grants/scholarships over loans. But expect loans unless your tuition is fully covered.

Average Medical School Debt [2025]: Student Loan Statistics

Find statistics about the average medical school debt and the total educational debt among public and private medical school alumni.

educationdata.org

There are also mission-fit opportunities where those selected for the track get significant grants/scholarships. See PRIME at the UC schools for examples.

 

[pedneuro6894]

I think it's very school specific. Schools with large endowments/very well funded have the liberties to give a lot of money. Other schools don't. Some schools offer merit based and need-based aid, some schools only offer need-based. All that information should be on the schools financial aid website.

 

[OfMiceAndWomen]

I think there definitely needs to be more transparency regarding need-based financial aid, especially for applicants from a lower income background. From my personal experience (I also received Pell Grants + need-based fin aid in undergrad and qualified for FAP), I got full COA of need-based aid from the T10 schools I got into, and I basically got zero need-based fin aid at any other school.

There are some schools that are well-known for giving substantial merit-based awards, but it's hard to predict if you're going to get that beforehand. In general, the very top schools give generous need-based aid and no merit-based aid. Otherwise, vast majority of people have loans or family support.

 

[NickPetti]

I got some good info by searching around and found a news portal called pedir ayudas that shares updates on grants and financial help, even for med students. Sometimes schools offer more than what shows up in the initial financial aid packet, so I’d recommend checking for external resources too. A few people I know got extra funding this way after first being told they didn’t qualify for much.

 

[LizzyM]

There is a balance... the private schools often have more money to spread around while the public schools don't, but they have a much lower tuition. I think that the MSAR will tell you the proportion of students at a given school who receive some financial aid.