How does need-based financial aid work in Med School when everybody is poor?

[southernhope1]

I get how it works in undergrad....they look at the finances of your parents and maybe the $3000 or $4000 that student can make and award it that way. But how does it work when many applicants are 2, 3, 4 years out of college (or more) and you're submitting only your own (likely) very low salary and dismal savings? i mean, wouldn't everybody qualify?

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[Dr. Doctor MD]

I get how it works in undergrad....they look at the finances of your parents and maybe the $3000 or $4000 that student can make and award it that way. But how does it work when many applicants are 2, 3, 4 years out of college (or more) and you're submitting only your own (likely) very low salary and dismal savings? i mean, wouldn't everybody qualify?

There's not really any need based financial aid in medical schools, with the exception of everyone gets loans up to COA. Maybe some schools use it as a criteria for distributing some scholarships, but this is the exception rather than the rule. The majority of scholarship money is going to merit and minority scholarships for recruitment. Everyone else just gets loans :/

 

[hang50]

you’ll be surprised how many of your classmates come from multiple physician households

 

[mehc012]

Lol that you think most med students are poor.

That's OK, most med students think they're poor too. It's amusing.

 

[M&L]

Lol that you think most med students are poor.

That's OK, most med students think they're poor too. It's amusing.

Wait what ? (As I am chewing on my ramen from aldi)

 

[ciestar]

Lol that you think most med students are poor.

That's OK, most med students think they're poor too. It's amusing.

Until they need money and they have a parent just give them some.

I overheard a classmate second year literally complain that their mom got a new car and they got her old convertible BMW... but they didnt want a convertible!!!! (This particular person got a Tesla as a graduation present.. guess it worked out)

 

[ciestar]

OP, this is also why many schools will ask for your parental info before any “need-based” aid.

 

[M&L]

yeah as a person who doesnt have ANY family here, i am having a severe eye twitch from this. hahahahah

 

[NickNaylor]

Yes, essentially everyone does qualify since, if you're coming directly from college, you will likely have negligible income to report on FAFSA. My medical school required information about your parents if you didn't report it on FAFSA to get a better sense of your family's financial situation, and I imagine most schools have a similar process if you want to be considered for additional aid beyond federal programs.

But yes, you will likely qualify for the maximal amount of federal "aid" that's available. I put aid in quotes because that "aid" basically is just loans. Medical schools that have more resources often give out merit- and need-based financial aid, but obviously that will vary widely. Unless you have other sources of income, the average student should expect to take out federal loans for the full cost of attendance minus any aid they get from the medical school itself.

 

[calivianya]

The average medical student isn’t poor. Even the ones that claim to be poor usually aren’t poor. Had a good friend who was complaining about money being tight, blah blah blah... went over to her house to say hi before I moved for rotations (she was local) and her house was multiple stories with one three-car garage and a two-car garage on the other side, with a driveway with a central fountain, a fancy foyer with marble flooring and columns and dual staircases, and a large pool with jacuzzi in the back with water views.

I believe no one when they tell me they’re poor now. One of my other “poor” friends was mad that her parents sold the local family vacation home for half a mil+ and didn’t just keep it for her to hang out in on the weekends.

I respect people that are just straight up “I live well” because at least they realize what they have LOL

 

[southernhope1]

Here's what I saw that made me post this...its from the Tufts website:
"Need-based scholarships are available for medical students attending Tufts University School of Medicine. Scholarships are awarded to those with the most financial need, and range in value. Most scholarships are equivalent to 25% of tuition, however, some may be valued as much as 100% of tuition. Students are required to reapply for aid annually and those displaying similar levels of need are likely to receive similar aid packages in future years."

So that truly makes it sound like people with very low incomes will get between 25% to 100% of their tuition covered.

 

[mehc012]

Here's what I saw that made me post this...its from the Tufts website:
"Need-based scholarships are available for medical students attending Tufts University School of Medicine. Scholarships are awarded to those with the most financial need, and range in value. Most scholarships are equivalent to 25% of tuition, however, some may be valued as much as 100% of tuition. Students are required to reapply for aid annually and those displaying similar levels of need are likely to receive similar aid packages in future years."

So that truly makes it sound like people with very low incomes will get between 25% to 100% of their tuition covered.

Everyone has low incomes.
It all comes back to family in the end.

 

[altblue]

The average medical student isn’t poor. Even the ones that claim to be poor usually aren’t poor. Had a good friend who was complaining about money being tight, blah blah blah... went over to her house to say hi before I moved for rotations (she was local) and her house was multiple stories with one three-car garage and a two-car garage on the other side, with a driveway with a central fountain, a fancy foyer with marble flooring and columns and dual staircases, and a large pool with jacuzzi in the back with water views.

I believe no one when they tell me they’re poor now. One of my other “poor” friends was mad that her parents sold the local family vacation home for half a mil+ and didn’t just keep it for her to hang out in on the weekends.

I respect people that are just straight up “I live well” because at least they realize what they have LOL

It's always nice seeing med students going boating, on long vacations and to their parents' cottage on vacation while a few of us without a cushy background entertain working parttime versus taking out more loans for break

I'm in my late 20s and old as **** anyway so I'm used to inequality and living a frugal lifestyle. All I need is a gym membership, a game console and Netflix to be satisfied. But the wealth of the average med student is definitely very noticeable

 

[altblue]

Here's what I saw that made me post this...its from the Tufts website:
"Need-based scholarships are available for medical students attending Tufts University School of Medicine. Scholarships are awarded to those with the most financial need, and range in value. Most scholarships are equivalent to 25% of tuition, however, some may be valued as much as 100% of tuition. Students are required to reapply for aid annually and those displaying similar levels of need are likely to receive similar aid packages in future years."

So that truly makes it sound like people with very low incomes will get between 25% to 100% of their tuition covered.

Which seems like a solid deal until you realize the COL in Boston, lol.

 

[Ho0v-man]

I remember someone I knew who got accepted to med school made a go fund me to help with the costs involved bc it’s such a difficult road.

Dudes family makes >200k/year and he lives rent free with no debt.

 

[Chemist0157]

There's not a lot of poor people at medical school. I felt surrounded by other students that were from well off family, many of them with 1-2 physician parents. I was very much, middle middle class so this was a different world for me. Financial need does not make or break students since loans are so readily available. I got the impression most scholarships were for recruitment reasons or for merit.

 

[altblue]

Since performance in undergrad is also tied with SES I'd assume that wealthier students who tend to have higher MCAT/GPAs would end up concentrated at more prestigious institutions therefore even though ~85% of ALL med students come from wealthy backgrounds, it might be more like 95% at a highly-ranked school but ~65% at a lower-ranked school - which would, in turn, give those students the assumption that "only half of med students are wealthy.

Nope, at a middle-of-the-road program that emphasizes SES in admissions. People are still wealthy lol, albeit not as much so as my old undergrad.

There's something to be said for a comfortable upbringing/education that gives someone the ability to succeed in undergrad science and on the MCAT. Good highly educated parental role-models, reduced family issues, a lessened need to work in college, and a stronger foundation in STEM. There are so, so many students who have this background that it crowds out less wealthy students with lower stats. Admissions pick these higher metric students, as there are plenty, and not the lower SES ones.

 

[Gilakend]

To me poor means you have no money and no access to it. Going my AAMC tables most med students parents make over six figures, with about 1/4 being over 200k few are actually broke.

Equate when most med students saying they're broke to them saying they "bombed" the test they got an 80 on.