questions for med students

[jesse14]

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Hello Med students,

I have a few loan related questions that would really help me see what you guys are doing to keep your heads above water.

1) How much money do you borrow per year and at what rate of interest?

2) What are the "average" interest rates for borowing money from a bank?

3) How much do you pay back in month of interest on the loan you have used? I can't see paying $1000 a month in interest fees while in med school... it just seems like too much.

4) What sort of loan options do you use?

Thank you very much and any answers will be helpful!

 

[wook]

Hello Med students,

I have a few loan related questions that would really help me see what you guys are doing to keep your heads above water.

1) How much money do you borrow per year and at what rate of interest?

2) What are the "average" interest rates for borowing money from a bank?

3) How much do you pay back in month of interest on the loan you have used? I can't see paying $1000 a month in interest fees while in med school... it just seems like too much.

4) What sort of loan options do you use?

Thank you very much and any answers will be helpful!

jesse14:

1) The amount you borrow depends on your school tuition and living expenses. The rate varies from year to year, but most people use the Stafford loan which this year is at (?)4.7%.

2) You generally want to avoid borrowing from a bank to pay for school loans. The stafford loans tend to be at a lower rate than banks. There are two components to the Stafford loan, subsidized (max $8,500/year) and unsubsidized (max was $38,000/year...don't know what it is currently). The government pays the interest on the subsizidized loans while you are in medical school and deferrment. The unsubsidized accumulates interest from day one. With that being said, sometimes you need to borrow more than what the Stafford offers, and that is when you would go to a private lender.

3) The amount paid in interest depends on how much you owe on your loans.

4) If you are from Canada, I'm not sure what your options are and would defer to other posters. Otherwise, see #2.

Hope this helps.

Wook