Med School Loans
- Thread starter DOtally great
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federal loans are NOT based on credit. But you can only get up to around 189K for all of them combined (UG and graduate). Private loans are based on credit. Which you will probably need if you go to a private institution where you will be 200K in debt. Hope that helps. If your still worried you probably get a private loan with a cosigner but expect high intrest rates.
I borrow substantially through private loans...and with interest, you end up owing about double what you borrow privately (ouch), so these guys who borrow 25K to buy a car their first year (which some get to do) end up paying 50K for it, unless they start making payments during med school/residency.
don't worry about it too much.....good credit/bad credit/no credit....you will still get loans. the private loans with good credit will have lower interest rates though. with no credit the interest rate should be around prime.....bad credit will be above prime....
and yes.....a co-signer with bring down your interest rate....even if you have perfect credit, having a co-signer will drop your rate often times below prime.
and yes.....a co-signer with bring down your interest rate....even if you have perfect credit, having a co-signer will drop your rate often times below prime.
and with poor credit, you will have to have a co-signer
thanx a lot guys 4 ur time and help.... 
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I just wanted to throw in another idea. If you are concerned about money, there always is the military route. They pay for everything plus get a stipend for monthly living. I personally am not enlisted but a lot of my classmates are. There is also something else you can consider and that is the National Health Service Corps. But for this you have to be committed to primary care (Family Med, General Internal, Pediatrics, OB). They pay for everything as well and then you work in a rural/underserved area of the country for four years or however many years they pay for your school. But the kicker is that if you back out, you have to pay back 300%!!!!!!
So you better make sure you want to do primary care if you consider this option.
Chris
So you better make sure you want to do primary care if you consider this option.
Chris
Does anyone think they will eventually consider Emergency Medicine primary care. Being that there is a huge increase in the number of patients receiving primary care there due to the lack of providers actually taking various insurances, this incentive would be much appreciated. And for many individuals the ED is considered some peoples on access to healthcare. Just curious.
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I know that some states do consider EM as primary care. Kansas for one does. But as far as others I am not aware of this.
Chris
Chris
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Yeah but I don't think EM counts for the NHSC grants in any of the states. Unless there was a way an EM speciality could do traditional primary care. Hmmmmm I wonder if a IM/EM residency or a peds/EM residency could count toward that though.
Don't think so... especially with the recent EMTALA revisions... and the fact that many hospitals, HMO systems, and insurance companies are now requiring ABEM certified physicians in the ED, I don't think it will be considered primary care. Granted, the majority of what we do is *considered* primary care, but there is more than enough of the critically ill that sets us apart from the other specialties... and ACEP has only grown stronger recently.
Q, DO
