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newgirl

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I was wondering how others rationalize the med school debt. Is anyone else intimidated by how much they will owe when they graduate? The average residency salary will barely cover my interest.

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SAVING MONEY ?


THIS DEPENDS ON WHAT ANGLE YOU ARE TALKING ABOUT , LIKE SAY " SPENDNG LESS ON FOOD , RENT , BOOKS , ETC........ "

hERE PEOPLE photocopy BOOKS SO THEY SAVE TONS OF CASH . nOW i KNOW THAT THIS IS ILEGAL AND I am not promoting it . But being a third world country ................it?s kind of a semi norm .

Look at making small pre-payments on your student debt loan if allowed . You would be amazed at how much small but frecuent payments can amortisize your debt .
 
I'm scared that's why I'll be penny pinching this year to lessen the loan for the next year.... It's hard, but I heard that when you career kicks in that loan debts shouldn't be a problem....

Some of the books I've read about residency and such always bring up this issue and they've mentioned that loan debts will not be a problem.... just that people worry about them constantly.... Just my two cents.

If anyone has advice in saving money please post up.... I've already done the whole photocopy thing and saving electricity and gas, food... :D
 
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I don't know how easy it is to do in the states, but I used to turn off my electric water heater to save money. Supposedly, it is the most expensive electrical appliance to run. When I wanted a hot shower, I'd just flip the switch about 1 hour ahead of time. (Not much need for hot showers in Belize!)
 
Just a little note...you are NOT required to pay back your loans, even just the interest, while in residency. You can and most do, defer them.

Obviously if you CAN pay them back you should in an effort to lessen the debt load when you're done - but if you match to a place where the rent is $2,000/mo (see Stinky Tofu) there isn't much left over from a $38,000 salary! :eek:
 
2,000/month, you don't have to rent out a room at the Ritz or have a four bedroom place to yourself, jeez.
 
seriously? you don't have your loans or interest while in residence? is it considered deferrment or what? I've been wondering how that works....
 
Yes, newgirl, I'm sure I'm developing an ulcer from worrying about my student loans. They tell you that you need to, and they'll help you to, borrow conservatively but I have zero savings (working a LOW paying research job for 3 1/2yrs) and no parental help b/c they can't. I have to borrow the max and I already owe $20K in undergrad. I'll owe about $190,000 at the end and that's without capitalized interest. For gods sake! I come from a very middle class family. A $2000 student loan payment is much more than any of sisters' or friend's mortgages. :eek:

What are you gonna do though? Can't say never mind now. I've already bought towels and a George Foreman grill. I have to move and go to school. ;)

"Everyone" says it'll be fine (you know them; the people who say these things). I choose to try and blindly believe (or atleast convince myself that I do) that it'll be fine. Just fine.........
 
I think that if you have debt over ~60,000 or some number close to that, you can defer it throughout residency. That means that you never have to make a single payment on it during training, but I'm pretty sure that during the deferral, interest is accruing on you debt, so every year, you have 6-8% more debt to pay off whenever you finish residency. For those people worried about the amount of debt that you will have, I would suggest just trying to spend as little as possible. This could mean finding a roommate, finding a place where you don't need a car and can walk to class and to the grocery store, packing your lunch to school, and cutting down on unneccessary expenses. Even though you might be able to afford it, just remember that for every dollar you spend today can come out you having to pay 2 dollars in the future. It is like a mortgage, and you will eventually pay it off (they have expensive consolidation loans with higher interest but longer times to pay off), but the less you have the better your lifestyle can be after you graduate.
 
By deferring the loan, you're still accumulating interest.... isn't this dangerously making you owe more.... just wondering... thanx
 
I will be trying the HPSP next year and I'm waiting for NHSC this year.... not sure if I'll be taking it....
 
Originally posted by TechMan:
•2,000/month, you don't have to rent out a room at the Ritz or have a four bedroom place to yourself, jeez.•

I'm not talking about myself. Stinky Tofu is renting a TWO bedroom apartment for himself, his wife and their imminent new baby in Connecticut for that price. I'm sure he wasn't being overly extravagant. Rents DO run that high there. Geez.
 
Yes bruinboy and Popoy you can defer your loans during residency. But YES Popoy you do accumulate interest during any deferment period. We all realize that. However, even without paying for a $2,000/month apartment it is difficult to make loan payments of $2,000/mo when that is nearly your net salary.

Even my program admits that they tell incoming residents that unless they have a working spouse or a loan debt load of less than $50,000 you will be UNABLE to pay the loans back during residency, but that if possible you should try and pay the interest only.

Remember kiddies, a salary of $36,000 doesn't mean you bring HOME $3,000 a month and a debt load of > $100,000 (which many residents have) has monthly payments (over the 10 year payback period) of greater than $2,000 a month. Its not desirable to defer but when living expenses and residency related expenses (ie, books not covered by the program, surgical loupes at $1500+, etc.)(and I'm sorry but I'm not willing at age 34 to share a crummy apartment with a roommate) eat up most of your salary it really is difficult to make payments on principal.
 
I will owe around 30K when I finish undergrad, and hopefully not over 125K by the end of med school. My solution to the high loan payments? Live in a trailer park, driving a very old car. I'll have them paid back in no time. ;)
 
Do NOT take the HPSP scholarship for the money without crunching the numbers!!

1. Even with HPSP it is difficult not to borrow money- the average I've seen is $30,000 (more if you live in an area with a high cost of living). You have to eat alot of soup to live off the stipend. That's about $400/mo for 10 yrs to payback.

2. "Specialty Bonuses" for being a physician have not increased for the past 10 yrs(that's a 3% LOSS per year because it's NOT included in any cost of living/inflation pay raises). When you figure this in- most physicians only get a 0.9% payraise per year.
Therefore- LOST at least 12% in pay over the past 5 yrs. :eek:
3. Calculate you salary diffences.........
I probably LOST close to $500,000- even when you figure in the cost of school/loans, etc.
I will make MORE as an Civilain intern with the GI Bill, then I am making after 5 years in the Military. :rolleyes:
**Orthopods close to 1/2 the average salary of thier civilian counterparts!

4. Some states allow group practices or HMOs to pay off $20-30,000 in loans PER YEAR as part of your contract (it's a tax write-off for them). :D Don't forget, you can allow pay off your loans with a home equity loan---this means the interest is TAX DEDUCTABLE !! :) Your Student loan interest is NOT once you make more then $55,000/year.

If you going to take the scholarship-- do it because you like the lifestyle, travel and the people. Money wise- you'll behind at the end. ;)
 
I believe the are repealing the student loan interest cap with the new tax package and you should be able to right off all student loan interest.
 
Actually, in Canada, there is another option for paying off the hefty loans. The government has begun offering large bonuses and debt forgiveness to freshly-minted MD's willing to practice for a few years in an underserviced area. That doesn't even mean up in the tundra or anything, some reasonably-sized cities are now considered underserviced.
 
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