SO much money

[jmillski]

So I only just now did the math for two schools I am looking at. To go to my state school, its about 10,000/yr and its a top 20 school. my other choice is also a top 20 school at about 40000/yr. thats a total of 30*4- 120000 difference over the course of my med education. to those of you who have made a decision like this before or currently are- are there any justifications to go to the private school that are worth $120,000? Thats a small HOUSE.

All money aside, i would pick the private institution- Manhattan, community opportunities, student satisfaction, curriculum, and it goes on. but still- 120,000!

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[RoadRunner17]

Is there anything wrong with your state school?

 

[drizzt3117]

So I only just now did the math for two schools I am looking at. To go to my state school, its about 10,000/yr and its a top 20 school. my other choice is also a top 20 school at about 40000/yr. thats a total of 30*4- 120000 difference over the course of my med education. to those of you who have made a decision like this before or currently are- are there any justifications to go to the private school that are worth $120,000? Thats a small HOUSE.

All money aside, i would pick the private institution- Manhattan, community opportunities, student satisfaction, curriculum, and it goes on. but still- 120,000!

did you get into both schools? if not, it doesn't matter. If yes, then get financial aid packages then decide, they might be closer than you think.

 

[235009]

i dont know why you made this thread since there is already another thread called UNC vs. Cornell.....

i think you are GROSSLY underestimating the difference in cost of attendance.... manhattan (especially the upper east side where cornell is) is extremely expensive ....i've never been to north carolina but i'm almost certain that manhattan rent will be almost twice as much. not to mention everything from food to drinks (at bars) are much more expensive.

i think this comes down to where you want to practice. if you want to live in NYC and get a residency there you should strongly consider cornell ...if you want to live anywhere else then go to UNC and don't look back.

 

[jmillski]

haha no that actually wasn't me. its not cornell- this school provides fairly cheap rent.

i have been accepted to my state school and am praying i am accepted to the other (waitlisted).

there is absolutely nothing wrong with my state school on paper, but i just didn't fall in love with it like i did the private school.

**Additionally, I meant for this to be less of a x vs y thread and more of a: when do you think the higher price is worth it? This was meant to be a very opinionated and subjective thread.

 

[MedStudentWanna]

It's not $120,000 difference as you think. It's actually a $300,000 difference. Unless you're paying your tuition in cash, you have to consider the interest. No school is worth an extra $300,000.

 

[235009]

haha no that actually wasn't me. its not cornell- this school provides fairly cheap rent.

i have been accepted to my state school and am praying i am accepted to the other (waitlisted).

there is absolutely nothing wrong with my state school on paper, but i just didn't fall in love with it like i did the private school.

**Additionally, I meant for this to be less of a x vs y thread and more of a: when do you think the higher price is worth it? This was meant to be a very opinionated and subjective thread.

yea, sorry i didn't notice that you weren't the OP of that thread....we must be talking about columbia then ....yes they do offer relatively cheap rent but then you'll have to live in Washington Heights ....if you don't want to live there (there are so many reasons not to) then your rent will be much higher

i think in general you should pick the private school over your state school if it opens more doors. in this case the biggest difference would be whether you want to do residency, practice and live in NYC. if you don't want to then you will get basically the same experience at your state school.

It's not $120,000 difference as you think. It's actually a $300,000 difference. Unless you're paying your tuition in cash, you have to consider the interest. No school is worth an extra $300,000.

good point

 

[ChubbyChaser]

120K would buy me happiness...especially since they are both good schools, and you will find good friends at each school.

 

[drizzt3117]

If you think you will be more happy in NYC, I'd go.

Yes, money can be an issue, but you can figure out ways to make it work if you want to.

 

[flip26]

So I only just now did the math for two schools I am looking at. To go to my state school, its about 10,000/yr and its a top 20 school. my other choice is also a top 20 school at about 40000/yr. thats a total of 30*4- 120000 difference over the course of my med education. to those of you who have made a decision like this before or currently are- are there any justifications to go to the private school that are worth $120,000? Thats a small HOUSE.

All money aside, i would pick the private institution- Manhattan, community opportunities, student satisfaction, curriculum, and it goes on. but still- 120,000!

Must be talking about Baylor (Top 20, $10k tuition).

I would save the $$$. Aim for residency in NYC when they pay you, not the other way around...I might be willing to take on some additional debt, but $120k plus accrued interest is a LOT of extra $$$.

 

[circulus vitios]

Save the $120,000 and use it to pay off your loans. Manhattan is an overcrowded dump anyways. $1500/month for a single bedroom studio apartment? No thanks.

 

[seelee]

Must be talking about Baylor (Top 20, $10k tuition).

I would save the $$$. Aim for residency in NYC when they pay you, not the other way around...I might be willing to take on some additional debt, but $120k plus accrued interest is a LOT of extra $$$.

Baylor is not a state school. Could be UT southwestern.

One way to think about it is this.

300 K investment. Average earning potential 200k * 30 years = 6 million. That is a 20-fold return on your investment. Better than you would get in any mutual fund.

 

[drizzt3117]

Baylor is not a state school. Could be UT southwestern.

One way to think about it is this.

300 K investment. Average earning potential 200k * 30 years = 6 million. That is a 20-fold return on your investment. Better than you would get in any mutual fund.

Right, but they're talking about the difference between med schools, so it's unlikely (especially with schools of about the same level of national reputation) that there's going to be a significant difference in income earned. Also, you aren't taking into account the time value of money in your calculation.

 

[jmillski]

Baylor is not a state school. Could be UT southwestern.

One way to think about it is this.

300 K investment. Average earning potential 200k * 30 years = 6 million. That is a 20-fold return on your investment. Better than you would get in any mutual fund.

eh i dont mind spilling- its UNC. Well. This is true, but I'd still prefer a 100K investment PUTTING ASIDE all other aspects

 

[ChubbyChaser]

eh i dont mind spilling- its UNC. Well. This is true, but I'd still prefer a 100K investment PUTTING ASIDE all other aspects

Did you geta scholarship?..cause last I checked Tuition was over 13K at unc.

 

[GeraldMonroe]

It's not $120,000 difference as you think. It's actually a $300,000 difference. Unless you're paying your tuition in cash, you have to consider the interest. No school is worth an extra $300,000.

Actually, from one perspective, it's more like a $600,000 difference. If you successfully become a specialist physician making $250,000 a year, you're going to be paying a great deal of taxes on that quarter mil. Federal taxes, state taxes, medicare/social security, and so on. I think it's reasonable to estimate that taxes in 10 years will total about 50% of income for someone making 250k. You get no tax deduction for student loan interest : it all has to be paid with after tax income.

So you'd have to be paid about $600,000 to pay a student loan balance of $300,000 which in turn was for loans totalling a difference of $120,000.

Or about 2.3 years of working as a specialist physician, following 10+ years of medical training.

Remember, much of that $120,000 extra will come from Grad PLUS loans, which have an interest rate of 8.5%.

 

[Bacchus]

I don't understand why this is a question. People would kill to get into UNC.

 

[ChubbyChaser]

I don't understand why this is a question. People would kill to get into UNC.

Just go to the UNC secondary thread...it has been pretty fiery lately.

 

[Gut Shot]

Actually, from one perspective, it's more like a $600,000 difference. If you successfully become a specialist physician making $250,000 a year, you're going to be paying a great deal of taxes on that quarter mil. Federal taxes, state taxes, medicare/social security, and so on. I think it's reasonable to estimate that taxes in 10 years will total about 50% of income for someone making 250k. You get no tax deduction for student loan interest : it all has to be paid with after tax income.

So you'd have to be paid about $600,000 to pay a student loan balance of $300,000 which in turn was for loans totalling a difference of $120,000.

An excellent point, one also made by Andrew Tobias (his book should be read by every medical student at least once). As he put it, a penny saved is two pennies earned.

 

[drizzt3117]

Are you comparing UNC and Mt Sinai?

 

[235009]

Are you comparing UNC and Mt Sinai?

are you dense? i already established that it was UNC vs. Columbia from deductive reasoning ....there are only 2 "top 20" schools in manhattan and sinai isn't one of them and OP said it wasn't cornell

 

[drizzt3117]

are you dense? i already established that it was UNC vs. Columbia from deductive reasoning ....there are only 2 "top 20" schools in manhattan and sinai isn't one of them and OP said it wasn't cornell

The OP also said that the tuition was 40k, and Columbia is closer to 50k while Mt Sinai was 39k.

 

[BlondeDocteur]

So I only just now did the math for two schools I am looking at. To go to my state school, its about 10,000/yr and its a top 20 school. my other choice is also a top 20 school at about 40000/yr. thats a total of 30*4- 120000 difference over the course of my med education. to those of you who have made a decision like this before or currently are- are there any justifications to go to the private school that are worth $120,000? Thats a small HOUSE.

All money aside, i would pick the private institution- Manhattan, community opportunities, student satisfaction, curriculum, and it goes on. but still- 120,000!

Will you be taking loans? If yes, then NO. Under NO circumstances. I don't care what your dreams are (to be chairman of an Ivy rad-onc department by 45)-- it is NOT worth the debt.

If your parents can afford the difference easily, then you can make a case.

Heavily indebted doctors = bitter, cynical, depressed doctors. You will resent medicine heavily by the time you're a resident.