How important is debt?

[PhilzCoffeeAddict]

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Foreword: I'm fortunate to have parents that will be paying for medical school. I know how lucky I am to be in this position and I am NOT taking it for granted.

Anyways, how important is it? I can pick a school where tuition would basically be null. I would just pay cost of living (UNLV, new school) for the most part. Or go to CU where tuition is insanely high (64k per year). Is it worth putting all this money into attending CU (my #1 choice)? If not, my parents would use the money to invest. They don't mind putting out the money for school but I feel guilty for choosing the more expensive option. I'm worried about UNLV because they won't have cadavers for dissection (I'm interested in surgery, and I have had A LOT of surgery experience in my past). I'm torn and would appreciate any input. =] Thank you!

P.S. I was also accepted at VTC, but I'm not really feeling it. This could be a cheaper option compared to CU but a little bit more established than UNLV?

 

[curbsideconsult]

You are one lucky duck.

If you feel that badly, couldn't you just pay your parents back after residency? Or tell them they can leave you out of their will? 😛

 

[PhilzCoffeeAddict]

I will pay them back but through my mom's dream. She wants to save enough money so her grandchildren can attend college without taking loans. The money they spend on me will be paid back with a college fund for all her grandchildren. My future wife is going to kill me... haha.

 

[curbsideconsult]

I think the best thing to do would be to try to put yourself in the position of a parent. If this were your kid, and you wanted the best for them so you told them you'd pay for med school tuition, what would you do?

For me personally, if I said I'd pay for my kid's tuition, I wouldn't want them to feel guilty about choosing the school that works for them even if it were more expensive. Honestly, I'd probably be pissed if they chose a place that didn't work for them just because they wanted to save me a few bucks. I would be very happy that I raised a conscientious, kind person, but I would want them to have the best educational experience they could have even if it's a little more expensive. If I were going to be mad about the cost of tuition, I would put a cap on it and say I'll pay for up to $30k/yr or whatever.

 

[21Rush12]

IDK how important it is but these people who keep calling me seem to think it’s a big deal

 

[DrRiker]

Talk to your parents about it? Express that you feel badly for choosing a more expensive school, but that it would also be the better choice due to location, established school, etc. Offer to split the cost with loans. If they still say they will give you a full ride to CU, then you shouldn't feel bad.

 

[PhilzCoffeeAddict]

IDK how important it is but these people who keep calling me seem to think it’s a big deal

I feel like this is a message from Yoda. o_0

 

[IlDestriero]

Debt is very important, having said that, choose the school that’s best for you.
Either they have the money or they don’t. If you’re going to lose sleep over it, cover the difference with a loan. You’ll still graduate with only a fraction of the average debt.
I was impressed to see that the estimated cost of attendance is ~90k a year where I went to school. 20 years ago the average total debt was only about 100k for all 4 years.
And people complained about it back then as well because 20 years earlier it was 1/2 that, or less.


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Il Destriero

 

[LoveBeingHuman:)]

I just wanna say how glad I am that there are still people in this world who understand and appreciate the role of their parents in their lives and accordingly hold themselves accountable for their parents’ sacrifices. Good on you OP!!!!

 

[ekmf27050]

IDK how important it is but these people who keep calling me seem to think it’s a big deal

DEAD

"Apparently kneecaps can be exchanged for debt forgiveness...?"