What does need-based aid look like in medical school?

[Toffey]

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Hey guys,

So here's the deal, throughout undergrad, I've gotten a lot of need based aid due to my parents making well below the poverty line. I would get the Pell Grant, Federal Education Grants, and institutional need based grants, plus the regular Perkins and Stafford loans.

Would I be able to get any need based grants/free money in medical school? I haven't been able to find any info on this except for really vague websites of individual schools.

I realize most of the cost will still be loans, I was just wondering if I can expect anything else.

Also, would I still be reporting parent income at that point/would it be relevant? What if I was married?

I live in California btw 🙂

 

[TheLionheart]

This answer is difficult. Need based aid is virtually nonexistent at some schools and plentiful at others. Reporting your parents incomes also varies. These are all institutional policies.

For example, when I interviewed at Georgetown, there was no mention of need based aid. At Dartmouth, we spent a good chunk of the financial aid presentation talking about how our need based amount would be calculated.

 

[xffan624]

This answer is difficult. Need based aid is virtually nonexistent at some schools and plentiful at others. Reporting your parents incomes also varies. These are all institutional policies.

For example, when I interviewed at Georgetown, there was no mention of need based aid. At Dartmouth, we spent a good chunk of the financial aid presentation talking about how our need based amount would be calculated.

The majority of schools require you to report it to receive need based school aid (if they have it available, which is definitely available). I was 29 when I applied, living independently and completely self-sufficient, and I was still required to report parental income to get school based need aid (which reporting would pretty much have precluded me from receiving any because my grandparents had a large estate that despite my parents having no direct access to still have to report it on their income taxes).

 

[godawg300]

From my experience, higher ranked schools have need based aid. The top ones usually have something called a unit loan which is the minimum amount you have to borrow in order to get scholarships. So after factoring in parent contribution and unit loan, the rest is scholarships. I don't really know too much about lower ranked schools but this is what I have heard at most of my interviews.

As an example.

CoA = $65,000
Parent contribution = $4000
Unit Loan = $35,000

So then you take $65,000-$39,000= $26,000 in scholarships and grants.

I know some schools don't have any need based aid and it will be all loans. You will usually learn about this when you go to the interview.

 

[Toffey]

From my experience, higher ranked schools have need based aid. The top ones usually have something called a unit loan which is the minimum amount you have to borrow in order to get scholarships. So after factoring in parent contribution and unit loan, the rest is scholarships. I don't really know too much about lower ranked schools but this is what I have heard at most of my interviews.

As an example.

CoA = $65,000
Parent contribution = $4000
Unit Loan = $35,000

So then you take $65,000-$39,000= $26,000 in scholarships and grants.

I know some schools don't have any need based aid and it will be all loans. You will usually learn about this when you go to the interview.

Never heard of this before, interesting. By top schools, do you mean top 20? Almost all the schools in California are pretty high up...

 

[Toffey]

Thanks for replying, guys 🙂

 

[godawg300]

Never heard of this before, interesting. By top schools, do you mean top 20? Almost all the schools in California are pretty high up...

Yes, top 20. For private schools. Public schools including California schools do things a little differently.

 

[TheLionheart]

Never heard of this before, interesting. By top schools, do you mean top 20? Almost all the schools in California are pretty high up...

That's exactly the description we got at Dartmouth actually, it was a pleasant change of pace to the devastating debt presentations you get elsewhere! But I haven't interviewed at any of the Top 20, but I'd imagine those schools (and similar) can do that because they're likely to be more well funded.

 

[godawg300]

That's exactly the description we got at Dartmouth actually, it was a pleasant change of pace to the devastating debt presentations you get elsewhere! But I haven't interviewed at any of the Top 20, but I'd imagine those schools (and similar) can do that because they're likely to be more well funded.

Yep, Dartmouth does It like that too. The loan unit varies though. Some can be as low as 20k and others 35k-40k. I think it really helps students from low SES families.

 

[Toffey]

Thanks. Anyone know what to expect from state schools? I'm applying to both public and private

 

[OscarWao]

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[wowsers]

Never heard of this before, interesting. By top schools, do you mean top 20? Almost all the schools in California are pretty high up...

Top private schools basically all do that. Most public schools do not have the funds to the same, hence the foreignness of the concept to you in CA.

 

[OscarWao]

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[wowsers]

But UCSF and UCLA have excellent funds and they definitely give out as much if not more need based financial aid. I don't know about UCSD or UCI

"Most public schools"

I am sure some UCs run their funds well or have larger allocations from the endowment to do this.