Michigan MSTP stipend

[scdjpc84]

I'm currently a post-bac weighing several MD/PhD offers for this upcoming year, and my first choice right now is Michigan. I have a friend of a friend who is a current MD student at Michigan, and he says that it would be possible to get administrators to increase the stipend offered to me as an incoming MSTP student by playing hardball, i.e. saying that I was "leaning toward other programs" now and getting them to make me a better offer.

I've never heard of this before, and am wondering if this is even remotely true. It seems to me that the folks at UM would just wish me the best elsewhere since they might have other, "more interested" students waitlisted.

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[Doctor&Geek]

I could understand going to a school which gives tens of thousands in tuition breaks per year. But $1-2K per year? And doing so by being disingenous?

 

[Neuronix]

Playing these sorts of games with medical schools is much more common. We're talking about tens of thousands of dollars worth of loans you could potentially save. Also, the programs are large and you're usually dealing with the director of admissions and/or financial aid, who isn't a large factor in the rest of your life.

But I really wouldn't play hardball with a MD/PhD program. The program directors and administrators are going to be your advocates and go-to people for the next 8 years (barring turnover). These are small programs. The last people you want to do is annoy such important people for your life when you first start. That being said, UMaryland was up front in offering me $8,000/year additional for the first 2 years if I went to their program, so these things do happen.

 

[Iamdumb]

In line with this question and Neuronix's post, I was wondering if people have had similar experiences whereby they were offered a larger stipend amounts by various schools and if so, what schools they were.

While the 1-2K per year isn't going to determine where I go to school, it would help me better decide between 2 similarly-ranked schools, mainly because I need to help out with my parents' remortgage and would like to put some money aside from my stipend.

I am looking forward to being happy in medical/graduate school but miserably subsisting on bread and water for the next 8 years or longer, so 1-2K could make my life a little better.

Thanks.