How to pay for medical school admission process?

[WhiteCoatSyndrome]

Advertisement - Members don't see this ad

I had kind of an odd question and you can respond to it however you see fit. I understand that the application process for medical schools is expensive, especially if you have to travel to multiple interviews that are long distance. So my question is how would you suggest to finance the application process (application fees, travel expenses, etc.) when you are a poor college student and your parents are of limited help? Would you suggest just saving up over time with a college job? Feel free to respond from personal experience.

 

[circulus vitios]

I won't be doing much working this summer because I'm study for and taking the MCAT by the end of August. But next summer I'll work my ass off and save up as much as I can for applications in the following fall. If that's still not enough, my parents might help me. I know you said your parents are of limited help, but what about grandparents? Or, I think you can get application fees waived if you're considered disadvantaged.

edit: I also plan on applying to schools mostly in my state. It kind of sucks because I HATE the weather in the north east, but I simply don't have enough money to drop thousands of dollars on plane tickets, hotels, meals, etc.

 

[DrYoda]

I used savings, which is the best way to do it without having someone else bankroll you. I know a few people who used credit cards, which you should avoid if possible.

There are also ways to lower costs like applying mostly to places that don't require flying (granted, that's not a possibility for everyone). Also, stay with student hosts instead of at a hotel.

 

[rhesuspieces]

Overall, most people do one of the following:

1) Have parents fund the whole thing.
2) Use credit cards/student loan $$
3) Only apply to schools within driving distance

There's also the option of applying for a fee waiver, which will take the burden of application fees off your shoulders. You're still responsible for interview costs though. To minimize those, you can stay with student hosts, get a credit card that accumulates frequent flier miles and use those for travel, or buy a suit from goodwill.

There's also the option of sending in the area e-mails to schools when you're interviewing at another school nearby. This doesn't always work...for example, I ended up with two interviews in NYC within three weeks of each other, even though I requested a date that would allow me to visit both in one trip.

 

[WhiteCoatSyndrome]

These ideas help. It's just the fact that I am a little bit economically disadvantaged. I have always been able to get by with smaller expenses on my own through working a small job, but with large costs it is more difficult. I already know that I will probably rely on loans to cover medical school tuition as well as living expenses during medical school as I won't have any other help to pay for car insurance etc. and I doubt I could work much during medical school.

 

[WhiteCoatSyndrome]

rhesus what is included in "interview costs" other than travel expenses and hotels?

 

[rafflecopter]

rhesus what is included in "interview costs" other than travel expenses and hotels?

Food, suits/clothing. Other than that, you have bus/taxi/subway/airplane fairs and lodging costs. Not much else, really. Unless you want to buy toiletries, but typically that is already factored into your budget.

 

[WhiteCoatSyndrome]

Ok this is all helping. I am unsure about credit cards because don't you have to start making payments immediately unlike student loans where you can start payments after you graduate and are working?

 

[Ursa]

These ideas help. It's just the fact that I am a little bit economically disadvantaged. I have always been able to get by with smaller expenses on my own through working a small job, but with large costs it is more difficult. I already know that I will probably rely on loans to cover medical school tuition as well as living expenses during medical school as I won't have any other help to pay for car insurance etc. and I doubt I could work much during medical school.

If you are as disadvantaged as you say you are then you will have no problem getting approved for the Fee Assistance Program through the AAMC. It takes care of all primary and most secondary costs. But you still have to worry about traveling and hotels, which is why I had to turn down an interview far far away. But I had no problem getting approved for the FAP.

 

[rhesuspieces]

rhesus what is included in "interview costs" other than travel expenses and hotels?

Well, your suit is going to be the big expense. There are also things like a good carry-on suitcase--you don't want to check luggage, and you also want something that you can easily take on subways, etc. and store away in a closet in the admissions office. Besides that, you'll find yourself shelling out for public transportation, meals, endless pairs of pantyhose if you're a girl, books and magazines to keep yourself from going crazy on the flight and during layovers, and all sorts of other odds and ends, like the overpriced contact lens solution that you have to buy at the airport when you realize you forgot yours. Really, you can expect to spend money on the things you normally spend money on when you go on a trip.

 

[Asyouwereatrio]

Ok this is all helping. I am unsure about credit cards because don't you have to start making payments immediately unlike student loans where you can start payments after you graduate and are working?

DO NOT go with the credit card option unless absolutely necessary. There are those "zero interest for 12 month gimmicks", but I'd only RISK going with that IF you can guarantee you can pay the whole thing off within that time span. You don't want to drown in the crazy interest rates of credit cards. Sorry if I sound a bit angry, but it's something I'm very adamant/passionate about--I'm vehemently opposed to carrying a balance on a credit card from month to month.

That being said, I would suggest you try to get a job to accumulate enough savings to pay it off or use student loan money (assuming you have extra) to pay for your expenses. If you're not economically disadvantaged to the point of qualifying for a fee waiver, but not economically well off to the point where you can pay for all of these costs with the money you do have, it can be very tough to pay for the transportation, clothing, food, and living costs associated with an interview for medical school.

Depending on how many schools you apply to, keep in mind that AMCAS fees and secondary fees will be a couple thousand dollars. My 30 schools cost me nearly $4000 in paperwork alone. Consider that flights will be around 300-400 round trip, hotels will average you about $100/night, and food is about $10/meal. Granted, these are rough estimates that are probably on the higher side, but for the purposes of preventing underestimation of expenses, that's what I wanted to provide.

There are plenty of ways that you can reduce some of these costs--picking extra cheap flights, choosing to take ground transportation, staying with a host instead of a hotel, eating extra cheap food, etc.

Best of luck to you!

 

[WhiteCoatSyndrome]

Ok, Ursa, or anyone for that matter, I looked up how to be eligible for Fee Assistance and on the AAMC website it says that if the applicant's gross family income is 300% or less of the poverty level for the applicant's family size they will be eligible for Fee Assistance. I want to make sure that this is correct; So that means that if I am in a family of 5 and our gross income is approx. 77,000 or less then I am eligible for Fee Assistance? This seems like a generous income level for eligibility....

 

[phosphokinase]

If you are as disadvantaged as you say you are then you will have no problem getting approved for the Fee Assistance Program through the AAMC. It takes care of all primary and most secondary costs. But you still have to worry about traveling and hotels, which is why I had to turn down an interview far far away. But I had no problem getting approved for the FAP.

+1 This is what I did too. I applied and got the AAMC FAP, which paid for all my primaries and secondaries. Also, one of the schools offered to reimburse me for my travel expenses after they offered me an interview 🙂
Definitely save some money for interviews especially if you apply out of state but the FAP will reduce the cost of the whole process by a LOT.

 

[DrYoda]

Ok, Ursa, or anyone for that matter, I looked up how to be eligible for Fee Assistance and on the AAMC website it says that if the applicant's gross family income is 300% or less of the poverty level for the applicant's family size they will be eligible for Fee Assistance. I want to make sure that this is correct; So that means that if I am in a family of 5 and our gross income is approx. 77,000 or less then I am eligible for Fee Assistance? This seems like a generous income level for eligibility....

From just glancing at the aamc site and the 2010 poverty guidelines it looks like below $77,000 for a family of 5 qualifies.

 

[WhiteCoatSyndrome]

From just glancing at the aamc site and the 2010 poverty guidelines it looks like below $77,000 for a family of 5 qualifies.

This just seems surprisingly generous of a cut-off is all. I would definitely qualify.

 

[Kaustikos]

All I can say is that Discover Card loves me after this season

 

[WhiteCoatSyndrome]

So if you qualify for Fee Assistance does that mean that you can apply to as many schools as you want without any application fees?

 

[phosphokinase]

So if you qualify for Fee Assistance does that mean that you can apply to as many schools as you want without any application fees?

You get 14 applications for free.

 

[Ignatius M.D.]

So if you qualify for Fee Assistance does that mean that you can apply to as many schools as you want without any application fees?

Yes, but you will pay the AMCAS fee after 14. Most schools will honor the waiver by waiving their secondary fees as well. I went ahead and e-mailed roughly 20 schools of interest and they all replied similarly.

I think that the 300% mark is quite generous (maybe this is because I am at poverty level), but I'm glad you qualify for some assistance. You need to apply for the calender year that you are applying & taking the MCAT. I was granted approval in December, so I went ahead and signed up for the MCAT for $85, but this week I had to send my information in again so that I will get the fees waived for this summer's applications (since my FAP is not active this calender year). It doesn't go by application cycle as I previously thought. It seems silly since nothing has changed financially since December, but it is a fairly simple process.

 

[WhiteCoatSyndrome]

Ok, so you get 14 applications for free through AMCAS, but are there other school application fees, or are they the same?

Also, does FAP reduce the cost of the MCAT or remove it completely?

 

[stevenboi27]

I would also like to know more about gaining financial assistance with the application process as a low-income student. If we apply to more than 14 schools, do we have to pay for secondaries for the extra schools or can we get that waived with each school individually? Are there any other resources that gives hints/tips to saving money during the application process for low-income students?

 

[LizzyM]

Good advice here. Also:

Choose your schools wisely. That's why I came up with the LizzyM score.

If you are fortunate enough to live in an area with a number of schools within driving distance, limit yourself to those schools.

If you are within a 6 hour drive but don't have a car, consider trains or buses. There are some good deals out there.

If money is really tight, consider thrift shops and consignment shops for suits, coats, luggage and even books and magazines. I've had good luck at shops in affluent areas that raise money for charity. Even if you have to pay for dry cleaning and tailoring, you can come out way ahead.

 

[waterpolo480586]

Some more ideas to save money include:

1) Making sure that you try and schedule your interviews towards the middle of the week (not ideal especially if you are in school, but flights are usually cheapest on Tuesday-Thursday).

2) If you are applying to two or three schools in the same area see if you can get your interviews done on one trip.

3) Try and use mainly one airline for your interview traveling. You can rack up frequent flier miles and at least get one free flight out of it. Also booking hotel and flight at the same time through sites such as expedia can lead to discounts.

4) Booking your flight as far in advance as possible.

5) If you are on a meal plan at your college ask dining services if they can provide you with some bag lunches for the meals you will miss (probably will only saves a couple dollars on each trip). I have gotten tons of bagels, fruit, granola bars, and juice from them when I am traveling off campus.