Residency question from a soon to be medstudent

[joshua_msu]

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I have narrowed my choices down to two schools. After I graduate, I will roughly 200K in debt from one, and 160K in debt from the other. What is was wondering is if it is true or not that in some certain residencies or positions after residency, the hospital may pay off some or even all of your loans. I have also heard that there are other perks sometimes as well such as free room or board.

 

[Ctrhu]

If you join the military or the Public Health Service, you may have some/all of your loans repaid. But these are now difficult to get. I know a family practitioner whose dad was a town physician. They paid his way and he came back to join his dad.

 

[ckent]

some residency programs do offer subsidized housing, and I have seen ads for a lot of physcian recruiters offereing to pay off parts of student loans in addition to their normal salary (attending level).

 

[Winged Scapula]

Sure - similar to a "signing bonus" may large corporations (ie, Kaiser) will help you pay off your student loans when they hire you. I know my FP has his loans of approximately $60K paid off when he was hired by Kaiser several years ago.

However, don't let this make a difference in your decision about where to attend medical school. There are no guarantees 5+ years from now and the difference between 160K and 200K isn't much in the grand scheme of things.

 

[ckent]

Originally posted by Kimberli Cox

However, don't let this make a difference in your decision about where to attend medical school. There are no guarantees 5+ years from now and the difference between 160K and 200K isn't much in the grand scheme of things.

I beg to differ with that point. A 40K difference will come out to be closer to an 80K difference when you account for all the interest you will be accumulating on the 40K while you are paying off your first 160K. Regardless, 40-80K is a lot of money. Just think of it in terms of would you rather get 2 new BMW's for free and go to the 160K school, or would you rather just go to the 200K school and walk to class (and walk during residency).

 

[The White Coat Investor]

If the deciding factor between the two schools really is money, got to the cheaper one. If there are a number of important reasons why you prefer the more expensive school, go there. Let me tell you the difference. Yes, you will be paying back $80,000 with interest so say you go into Emergency Medicine, where it is normal to make $1000 a shift. You will work 15 shifts a month, so we're talking 6 months work (not counting taxes, so really closer to 9 months work) to pay off the difference in those two schools. You better really like the more expensive one.

 

[Winged Scapula]

Desperado's response is why I answered in the fashion I did. Yes, I realize that with time and interest that the $40K will be more. However, if the OP really prefers the more expensive school and has good reasons to go there, he should not let the difference in price dissuade him. If the difference were $100K over 4 years then it would be a more difficult decision, but I still say that in the long run, it won't make much difference if he'll be happier at the more expensive school.

Which isn't really his question anyway...

 

[smackdaddy]

the difference between 160 and 200 is not something you will feel when you are making payments.
don't worry about that.
if you can go to school for 80, that is a whole nother story.
if you work in rural areas or in a hot specialty you can negotiate your own terms with the hiring practice or hospital. in addition. there may be loan repayment by location available.
you are way too far away to be worried about that
woirry about studying hard and aceing your classes.
the rest will take care of itself

 

[joshua_msu]

bump

 

[EidolonSix]

Go for less debt. Most med schools in the US are homogenized such that there is no reason to pay for a private school education despite what many private school graduates think. You will learn the same stuff and likely get a shot a good residency in whatever you decide to do. Don't be seduced by big names....it will cost you $$$.

 

[handygirl]

Absolutely go for less debt. The only reason to attend a prestigious medical school is for name cachet which might help you in a career as an academic physician. There are excellent, cheaper medical schools out there. I am sick of medical schools telling people that debt is "no big deal"--debt is a huge burden and causes enormous amounts of stress. Believe me, when you finish residency (and if you have the kind of debt you are talking about, you will be living at about the poverty level), you will want to begin your adult life (about 10 years later than your non-medical colleagues)--your debt will interfere with your savings, your ability to have children and raise those children, and your ability to buy a house. There is MUCH more to life than medical school . . .

 

[smackdaddy]

Originally posted by handygirl
Absolutely go for less debt. The only reason to attend a prestigious medical school is for name cachet which might help you in a career as an academic physician. There are excellent, cheaper medical schools out there. I am sick of medical schools telling people that debt is "no big deal"--debt is a huge burden and causes enormous amounts of stress. Believe me, when you finish residency (and if you have the kind of debt you are talking about, you will be living at about the poverty level), you will want to begin your adult life (about 10 years later than your non-medical colleagues)--your debt will interfere with your savings, your ability to have children and raise those children, and your ability to buy a house. There is MUCH more to life than medical school . . .

once you finish residency you will have all the money you need to raise your children and buy a house. you don't even need to have started working, as long as you have a signed contract.
if you go to a rural area, you can even buy a house in residency IF YOU MAKE THE CHOICE to spend your money on the house and not vacations, cars, clothes, fancy meals.
agree that you will want to begin your adult life (spending wise) sooner than you get to, but once you start making the big $$$, you will make sig more than most people in non-medical fields. Many non-medical field people are suffering now too-laid off for too long, having to retrain, etc. don't think that everyone is out there just making money hand over fist while you are slaving away.
certainly the minor difference between 160 and 200 repaid over 30 years will not amount to practical living differences. that said, everyone would recommend being sensible with spending your money. go to the school that you like better. what will make a difference in your life is the quality of your education, which even at the best schools will be largely determined by you.
one of my colleagues just bought a million dollar house for 700,000 from a tech family that overextended during the good times. the wife (of the tech family) was complaining that my colleague was stealing from them. Her husband told her to shut up before the offer was withdrawn and they went into bankruptcy. he's only 6 years out of medical school.

 

[handygirl]

Not all residents finish training and earn 200,000+ per year. 200, 000 in debt is a lot of money and should be taken seriously. And, actually, I'm pretty nervous about my future income--health care reform will be a reality in the near future and we are not going to be any richer for it.

 

[smackdaddy]

Originally posted by handygirl
Not all residents finish training and earn 200,000+ per year. 200, 000 in debt is a lot of money and should be taken seriously. And, actually, I'm pretty nervous about my future income--health care reform will be a reality in the near future and we are not going to be any richer for it.

really? you mean all thoses polls and links where primary care doctors say they earn 120,000 are actually true? i better tell them. many academics will not earn 200,000 either. believe me 120,000 is plenty to make payments on your loans.
you may not like the choices you have wrt cars and homes, but you can certainly service the loan payments with that income.

 

[smackdaddy]

lastly, the question as i read it was not is 200,000 a lot of money. of course it is.
the question was whether the marginal $40,000 in cost should be a significant factor in his decision.
we disagree. that's okay. i think everyone would say if everything else was equal, then go ahead and save 40,000. everything else is rarely equal. there are still private schools that exist in areas with excellent public schools. and people pay for them.

 

[joshua_msu]

I think im going to chose to go to the school i originally wanted to go to, the one that will put me 200,000 in debt. I liked this school in every aspect over the other one except for the price. I dont think price should keep me from going to where my heart desires. I know of a couple of docs, that are both just out of residency in anesthesia, and they are amking 5000 a month payments towards loans, and one just bought a half million dollar home, so his debt cant be hurtin too bad. He said, dont let cost decide where you go. I figure it like this, if I have to work an extra year longer than i was planning to before i retire, in order to pay my debt, that would be worth it. An extra years worth of work would defintely pay most of my loan. Thanks for all your input. If you guys have any more input, I would like to hear it. Thanks again.