How to make money while in medical school

[steo55]

Hello everyone,

I'm a low-income MD student in the Caribbean - my parents are not able to help pay for food, housing, tuition, miscellaneous costs, etc. so that's out of the question. I accepted federal loans to help me get through my medical school education but I'm struggling to pay for basic necessities, using the money I earned from scribing for a year which isn't much. I was wondering if anyone has advice on how to make money while in medical school. Tutoring at my school can get you a max of $10 per tutoring session, which isn't enough to be quite honest. Serious advice would be much appreciated. 🙂

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[frosted2]

Hello everyone,

I'm a low-income MD student in the Caribbean - my parents are not able to help pay for food, housing, tuition, miscellaneous costs, etc. so that's out of the question. I accepted federal loans to help me get through my medical school education but I'm struggling to pay for basic necessities, using the money I earned from scribing for a year which isn't much. I was wondering if anyone has advice on how to make money while in medical school. Tutoring at my school can get you a max of $10 per tutoring session, which isn't enough to be quite honest. Serious advice would be much appreciated. 🙂

Cost of living loans.

EDIT: Seriously. Not trying to be an arse. But everyone gets COL loans... I've even gotten them for my MS.

 

[Medic741]

Hello everyone,

I'm a low-income MD student in the Caribbean - my parents are not able to help pay for food, housing, tuition, miscellaneous costs, etc. so that's out of the question. I accepted federal loans to help me get through my medical school education but I'm struggling to pay for basic necessities, using the money I earned from scribing for a year which isn't much. I was wondering if anyone has advice on how to make money while in medical school. Tutoring at my school can get you a max of $10 per tutoring session, which isn't enough to be quite honest. Serious advice would be much appreciated. 🙂

COL loans. You’re already at risk going to the Caribbean, I wouldn’t do anything to put that shot at risk... esp for $10/h. Short answer is... you don’t make money during school

 

[nimbus]

I decided to day trade full time after I graduated medical school.

 

[deleted707454]

teach english to ESL kids. vipkid

 

[steo55]

I appreciate the advice so far everyone. I wish there was something more I could do not only for staying afloat and paying for my expenses but to pay for my parents too. I feel a bit useless because my peers who didn't go into the medical field are already financially stable and able to support their parents, whereas I'm not in the position to be able to do that. I really hope it all works out though. Just have to keep at it. I would be grateful for any more advice on different ways to earn while in school.

 

[mistafab]

I would highly suggest you do not attempt to make money during school.

You already face an uphill battle going carib. Adding the burden of making money (TRIVIAL SUMS) at the cost of your one shot at becoming a doc is not a good idea. In the long run, an extra 1k a month is not worth the risk of sabotaging your currently at-risk, lifelong career. Better to tighten the belt and budget on the loans you have than to take on extra responsibilities.

Not the advice you wanted, but its the advice you needed.

I appreciate the advice so far everyone. I wish there was something more I could do not only for staying afloat and paying for my expenses but to pay for my parents too. I feel a bit useless because my peers who didn't go into the medical field are already financially stable and able to support their parents, whereas I'm not in the position to be able to do that. I really hope it all works out though. Just have to keep at it. I would be grateful for any more advice on different ways to earn while in school.

 

[shemer77]

If you just google making money online you get a plethora of resources. I would try to avoid thinking about money in medical school because its hard enough but a lot of my friends had success with online tutoring and used sites like School Solver to get some side cash.

 

[atomi]

I made about 100k/year during med school using prior tech skills I had from my engineering career on the side about 20-25 hours per week.

And this was still barely worth it, my grades and social life suffered. And probably my mental and physical health.

For making 5k-10k /year on the side?
Forget about it. Not even close to worth it.

 

[frosted2]

I made about 100k/year during med school using prior tech skills I had from my engineering career on the side about 20-25 hours per week.

And this was still barely worth it, my grades and social life suffered. And probably my mental and physical health.

For making 5k-10k /year on the side?
Forget about it. Not even close to worth it.

:O Way to kill it!

 

[deleted707454]

I recall someone on here saying they drove semi trucks on the weekends during school. Listened to lectures on the open road.

 

[Planes2Doc]

Any money you make now will be pocket change compared to future earnings. Those extra few dollars can cost hundreds of thousands in the future. During medical school, I was lucky to have any time for myself and friends.

 

[CharlieBillings]

.

 

[MedicineN'Jazz]

I made about 100k/year during med school using prior tech skills I had from my engineering career on the side about 20-25 hours per week.

And this was still barely worth it, my grades and social life suffered. And probably my mental and physical health.

For making 5k-10k /year on the side?
Forget about it. Not even close to worth it.

20-25 hours per week? Jesus Christ. I honestly can’t even imagine this

 

[GoSpursGo]

I appreciate the advice so far everyone. I wish there was something more I could do not only for staying afloat and paying for my expenses but to pay for my parents too. I feel a bit useless because my peers who didn't go into the medical field are already financially stable and able to support their parents, whereas I'm not in the position to be able to do that. I really hope it all works out though. Just have to keep at it. I would be grateful for any more advice on different ways to earn while in school.

I'm sure it's weighing hard on your heart that you can't help your parents... but isn't this the decision you made by going to med school in the first place? You could have entered the workforce, but decided that you needed to pursue your dream to go to med school. Don't ruin your chances by trying to do it half-way.

You have ONE shot to do well, pass the USMLEs, match to a US residency and become a doctor. If you can pull that off, you will be able to help your parents far more than a couple thousand dollars now would ever help. But if you fail out and are saddled with the debt... what are you going to be able to do then?

 

[atomi]

20-25 hours per week? Jesus Christ. I honestly can’t even imagine this

Med school was manageable, I did it during intern year too. Internal medicine prelim. That was rough. I made about $150k that year on the side but was getting about 3-4 hours sleep 6 nights a week. I’m not much older now, but I don’t there’s anyway I can do it again. Somehow my relationaship, physical, and emotional health survived.

Regardless, I wouldn’t recommend it even at those income levels. Busting your butt on the side for <$20/hr. Forget about it. This is being penny wise and pound foolish. Your investment in good Med school performance will pay off a thousandfold more.

If it’s that big of a deal, match into a residency that allows you to moonlight.