Just looking for advice from the younger med students. I'm graduating from undergrad this spring and I feel so overwhelmed by the entry into the "real world" from dormlife. Rent, utilities, food... it seems like its gonna take more money than I have. How did you all cope with the change from undergrad into med school?
Life after Undergrad
- Thread starter BradMcC17
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Who was paying your bills as an undergrad? I'm not trying to patronize you but want to know more of what's going on.... not many people have someone else taking care of them their entire undergrad w/no worries....
In the end, you are dealt with cards that you will be able to handle. Just remember that a part of growing up is owing up to your responsibilities.... Life in the real world is full of choices. Chose wisely and think before you act.
Good luck to you, I'm sure you'll do fine as long as you know how much you have, how much you can afford and how much goes in and out of your bank account.... Balance is the key....
Later,
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One could say that, but one would certainly be unhelpful to do so. One could say that someone who said that was speaking rather ignorantly.
There are some universities that have a vibrant dorm life throughout all four years. And even if someone stays in dorms for no better reason than being "really into school," I'm not quite sure that qualifies as having relatively less maturity than an off-campus student who by your definition isn't as interested in school.
Brad, I wouldn't worry about it too much. If anything, medical school will be less "real-worldish" for you, at least for the first few years. Studying is obviously going to be the overriding priority. Of course, all the other things do require lots of money, but that's what crippling loans are for! Take comfort in the fact that countless many have done the same thing with too little sense to worry and have ended up fine.
Glorytaker: Yes, I stayed in all four years of college in a dorm. Not because I wanted to, but because the small, private college I go to pretty much condones off campus living. In their words, and also proven in the atmosphere of the school, it provides a greater sense of community. Yeah, a lot of us would have liked to live in apartments off campus just to get away and to throw great parties. You can say its a lack of maturity, but is that correct? Even if I could live off campus I don't really think I would decide that knowing that I could save money by remaining in a dorm and hold off on the added expenses until my graduate years. I don't think that would have been an immature decision.
Popoy: Like a lot of college students, I'd say half of all college students that I know, our parents are the ones paying the bills, along with the help of a bunch of loans. Let me rephrase that, my parents are the ones paying the bills right now, but I will be paying off the 95% rest of the total bill from my loans later on. And like I said before remaining on campus saved on the added living expenses by just paying a tuition with the food added onto it so the loans pay for it.
lukealfredwhite: Thanks for the advice.
Thanks for the responses, but to put my question in another way: How did you all deal with paying the rent, etc. every month with money that you probably didn't have? How does someone go about getting loans for housing?
Popoy: Like a lot of college students, I'd say half of all college students that I know, our parents are the ones paying the bills, along with the help of a bunch of loans. Let me rephrase that, my parents are the ones paying the bills right now, but I will be paying off the 95% rest of the total bill from my loans later on. And like I said before remaining on campus saved on the added living expenses by just paying a tuition with the food added onto it so the loans pay for it.
lukealfredwhite: Thanks for the advice.
Thanks for the responses, but to put my question in another way: How did you all deal with paying the rent, etc. every month with money that you probably didn't have? How does someone go about getting loans for housing?
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Brad,
All financial aid is generally arranged through the financial aid office. As a medical student, you can borrow up to $38k or so in federally-guaranteed Stafford loans every year. These loans aren't dependent on credit; you're guaranteed them as long as you haven't defaulted on previous student loans or exceeded your loan cap.
If the financial aid office determines that your total cost of attendance will exceed that, you can arrange for private loans at slightly less favorable terms to cover the balance. If you're going to a public in-state school, though, the Staffords should cover the sum total of what you need.
While there are some categories you can't use the loan money for (credit card payments, car payments, etc) anything that constitutes a reasonable living expense is covered. So you don't really need to worry about navigating between, say, tuition loans and housing loans. They're all lumped together.
Med schools want to make sure that you don't have to worry about just the sort of things you've mentioned. The school I'm matriculating into automatically deducts rent for its on-campus housing from the financial aid package, for example. As long as you remember to pay your bills on time and don't live extravagantly, money isn't really an issue until, of course, you start repaying it!
All financial aid is generally arranged through the financial aid office. As a medical student, you can borrow up to $38k or so in federally-guaranteed Stafford loans every year. These loans aren't dependent on credit; you're guaranteed them as long as you haven't defaulted on previous student loans or exceeded your loan cap.
If the financial aid office determines that your total cost of attendance will exceed that, you can arrange for private loans at slightly less favorable terms to cover the balance. If you're going to a public in-state school, though, the Staffords should cover the sum total of what you need.
While there are some categories you can't use the loan money for (credit card payments, car payments, etc) anything that constitutes a reasonable living expense is covered. So you don't really need to worry about navigating between, say, tuition loans and housing loans. They're all lumped together.
Med schools want to make sure that you don't have to worry about just the sort of things you've mentioned. The school I'm matriculating into automatically deducts rent for its on-campus housing from the financial aid package, for example. As long as you remember to pay your bills on time and don't live extravagantly, money isn't really an issue until, of course, you start repaying it!
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Another suggestion is scholarships....
NHSC (National Health Service Corp) Scholarship Program
or
Armed Forces (Navy, Army, AirForce) HPSP (Health Professional Scholarship Program)
These two pay for your way through medical school....
There are also other academic based scholarships that you can apply for while in medical school which will help in payin' the bills.
NHSC (National Health Service Corp) Scholarship Program
or
Armed Forces (Navy, Army, AirForce) HPSP (Health Professional Scholarship Program)
These two pay for your way through medical school....
There are also other academic based scholarships that you can apply for while in medical school which will help in payin' the bills.
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Brad,
I am in the same boat as you are. I went to school on a full athletic scholarship, and had to live on campus. I also feel that it is a bit presumptuous to judge a persons maturity on the fact that they made a wise financial decision and decided to stay in dorms for the four years of undergrad.
I definitely have an overwhelming feeling of insecurity as I will be getting married and moving halfway across the country only two months after I graduate form college. But as everybody before us has done, I will be able to figure it out and live in the real world. It will just take a few overdrafts and some weeks filled with Ramen noodles!!!!
Good luck in your career, and I hope you figure out where to drop off your electric bill so that you aren't studying by candlelight!!
Vanessa
I am in the same boat as you are. I went to school on a full athletic scholarship, and had to live on campus. I also feel that it is a bit presumptuous to judge a persons maturity on the fact that they made a wise financial decision and decided to stay in dorms for the four years of undergrad.
I definitely have an overwhelming feeling of insecurity as I will be getting married and moving halfway across the country only two months after I graduate form college. But as everybody before us has done, I will be able to figure it out and live in the real world. It will just take a few overdrafts and some weeks filled with Ramen noodles!!!!
Good luck in your career, and I hope you figure out where to drop off your electric bill so that you aren't studying by candlelight!!
Vanessa
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