Well, the wisest and correct decision financially is to never pay more for school than you would make in a year. But we all know that is basically impossible this day in age (due to so many factors that could be a whole forum on it's own), so I'd say 2:1 ratio should be the ceiling. So, 200K in total debt on an average ~100K Pharmacist salary. Keep in mind that after taxes that ~100K is more like ~60-70K...which is why I think 200K should really be the max and is technically not even 2:1 on net pay. I'm sure many on this forum would even argue that 200K is too high, and I couldn't necessarily disagree with them.
The way health care is going especially pharmacy I would not pay out more than half my first years salary for my education. Any more than that is crazy and setting yourself up for failure. If it is not possible to go to pharmacy school for four years for 50k to 60 k then there is a big problem.
For our class the rule of thumb was to borrow 1 year worth of salary...our expected salary was 60k and I borrowed 50k.
I still agree with this rule of thumb. Actually, I see several reasons and trends that should compel one to borrow LESS than the expected salary.
- High student loan interest rates (6.8%)
- Questionable quality of education at some schools
- Possible unemployment, especially immediately after graduation
- No more sign on bonuses
- Reduced hourly rate, reduced hours
- Greater participation in residencies (lower earnings, and the following point: )
- Graduating at an older age due to Bachelors degree + PharmD
Borrowing more than the expected salary would require sacrifices later on, or some creative, yet sound, financial planning. So, if you are borrowing more than 1 year's salary, what is your financial plan? If you're going to say PSLF, then what's your plan if it doesn't work out?
Also, if you borrowed more than 1 year's salary and have already paid it off, perhaps you would like to share how you did it.