Working while in Medical School

[deleted1023831]

I'm applying for medical school in the coming 2021-2022 application cycle. I want to prepare myself financially for the cost burden of medical school + residency. As such, I wanted to know whether it is feasible to work part-time (15-20 hours/week) while attending medical school?

In particular, my major is in computer science and I have relevant computer science experience so I plan on doing part-time software consulting. I currently attend a school known for computer science (Berkeley) and it seems that it is not too difficult to make ~30k/year through part-time consulting.

I just REALLY hate the idea of having to take out loans or depend on my parents for paying my tuition. I REALLY don't ever want to be in debt to anyone.

Financial freedom is what I think of as the best gift I can give myself (if you haven't guessed it by now, my favorite class in high school was econ, not bio).

But will I just burn out if I try doing medical school and part-time consulting at the same time?

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[gyngyn]

It is unlikely you would be able to do 15-20 hours/week in the first semester (or two).
Many schools restrict outside work without the permission of the Student Affairs Dean. Check the Student Handbook.
Repeating a year would be way more costly than taking out loans.

 

[deleted1023831]

It is unlikely you would be able to do 15-20 hours/week in the first semester (or two).
Many schools restrict outside work without the permission of the Student Affairs Dean. Check the Student Handbook.
Repeating a year would be way more costly than taking out loans.

So what other options are there to attend medical school without taking out loans then?

 

[gyngyn]

So what other options are there to attend medical school without taking out loans then?

Very few.
There is paying back with service (NHSC, military...). These are not for everybody. For the right person, they are amazing.

 

[KnightDoc]

So what other options are there to attend medical school without taking out loans then?

If you can't work, that leaves parents, scholarships, savings and Powerball.

Seriously, if you are THAT hung up on doing this debt free and don't want to impose on your parents, you can use your UC Berkeley CS degree to work full time for a few years, live at home, and save enough money to pay for school. Taking a few gap years is not the end of the world. A lot of people do it for a lot of different reasons. Yours is as good as any.

Committing to several years of military service post graduation in return for Uncle Sam paying for you to go to school is another option, although the personal sacrifice involved makes this a poor choice if your only reason is debt avoidance, as opposed to an honest desire to serve.

 

[longhaul3]

I doubt the opportunity cost of taking gap years to build savings to pay for med school in cash is worth the corresponding attending salary you would lose out on on the back end. Most med students have loans and are still able to live very comfortably as attending physicians while in repayment.

PS if you ever buy a house you will be in debt to the bank unless you pay cash. Credit is a valuable tool when used appropriately.

 

[xffan624]

Very few.
There is paying back with service (NHSC, military...). These are not for everybody. For the right person, they are amazing.

You can also serve first in the military and use VA benefits to pay for school. The same caveats apply, of course.

 

[KnightDoc]

I doubt the opportunity cost of taking gap years to build savings to pay for med school in cash is worth the corresponding attending salary you would lose out on on the back end. Most med students have loans and are still able to live very comfortably as attending physicians while in repayment.

PS if you ever buy a house you will be in debt to the bank unless you pay cash. Credit is a valuable tool when used appropriately.

Totally agree with this. Some people just do not like the idea of debt, opportunity costs notwithstanding.

It is a philosophy of life rather than the result of an economic cost/benefit analysis. In fact, this a major reason scholarship money is more widely available to low SES candidates than everyone else -- not because they don't have the same ability to service debt after graduation as everyone else. It's just that multiple studies have shown that people coming from low SES backgrounds are more reluctant to take on debt, and that has historically been a huge barrier to entry for them.

 

[BlueRocket]

I’m an M1 at an MD school I know of a few classmates who have part-time jobs and I have one as well. However, I’m still taking out loans to cover tuition and COA. The job is mostly for spending money

 

[HockeyAndBanjos73]

I agree with what others are saying. Debt is an unfortunate part of the path. If you’re concerned about financial stuff and how it relates to being a physician, I would check out whitecoatinvestor.com . They have good sound advice and tips on how to minimize your debt as much as possible. Hope it helps!

 

[Moko]

So what other options are there to attend medical school without taking out loans then?

I treated Tinder like a part-time job and ended up with a decent catch. On an hourly basis, easily the highest earnings I'll ever make. Not to mention the free snuggles. YMMV. Just avoid the catfishes.

 

[Goro]

I'm applying for medical school in the coming 2021-2022 application cycle. I want to prepare myself financially for the cost burden of medical school + residency. As such, I wanted to know whether it is feasible to work part-time (15-20 hours/week) while attending medical school?

In particular, my major is in computer science and I have relevant computer science experience so I plan on doing part-time software consulting. I currently attend a school known for computer science (Berkeley) and it seems that it is not too difficult to make ~30k/year through part-time consulting.

I just REALLY hate the idea of having to take out loans or depend on my parents for paying my tuition. I REALLY don't ever want to be in debt to anyone.

Financial freedom is what I think of as the best gift I can give myself (if you haven't guessed it by now, my favorite class in high school was econ, not bio).

But will I just burn out if I try doing medical school and part-time consulting at the same time?

Recipe for disaster unless you are a true wizard of time mgt.

 

[YCAGA]

No work in medical school is worth it if it isn’t paying at least $50/hr, and that is for pre-clinical years if you are fine with ignoring lectures and using third party resources. Even then, max 10hrs/week if you are efficient with school work.

During M3 working is impossible and trying to work then would be one step below picking up a drug habit in terms of poor decisions. M4 spring might be an okay time I guess, but do you really want to do that before you start residency…I don’t.

Also just take out the loans and stop over-analyzing the situation. I mean honestly you have under-analyzed the math, because if you run the numbers, you can pay off med school loans in 1-5 years as an attending and sail off into the sunset in the top 5 %tile of household income in a rich country.

Most importantly, and the least hot take of anything I could say, if you spend the 10-20 hours a week cranking out publications, gunning for AOA, and preparing to honor every rotation and get a 275 on Step 2CK, you will get a MUCH better return on your investment than from working part-time.

Match ortho and make $700k/yr as an attending. Your loans will be of the smallest line items in your budget in the 8 months they take to pay off. (Ok this is an exageraron but the bolded part stands).

Edit: also $30-40/hr for 1099 comp sci consulting is an absolutely horrible rate. That isn’t worth your time

 

[MD-PhD-NonTrad]

I treated Tinder like a part-time job and ended up with a decent catch. On an hourly basis, easily the highest earnings I'll ever make. Not to mention the free snuggles. YMMV. Just avoid the catfishes.

*Moko’s a mod now*
Takes notes

 

[clumsy.md]

I treated Tinder like a part-time job and ended up with a decent catch. On an hourly basis, easily the highest earnings I'll ever make. Not to mention the free snuggles. YMMV. Just avoid the catfishes.

*Moko's taken now"
Takes notes

 

[TragicalDrFaust]

One of my minor regrets was working through undergrad to pay for it. I felt like I operating at 100% at all times- there wasn’t room for error. With the way that amount of pressure affected my mental health and the consequences on my grades because I couldn’t dedicate as much time to studying (let alone the way being that busy affected my interpersonal relationships), I have a hard time saying if it was worth it to graduate university debt free. I advise you to take a couple years off to work in your field, then use that to minimize your debt load if you’re that concerned about taking on debt.

 

[NickNaylor]

Sounds nice in theory, but the actual situation may be much different than your imagining. Some people do manage to work in medical school, but most find the work more than enough to fill their schedule. If you're going to work, make sure it's something that's financially meaningful.

 

[Nugester]

I'm working part-time as a ms1 and doing well in school. It's miserable. My only saving grace is that my PI is flexible and I can go incognito 🥸 whenever I want. Would I recommend it? No. Should you do it? It's up to you but I would wait after the first block exams to gauge if you have a handle on the pacing of medical school and how to study efficiently.

I go to sleep tied and wake up tired---> why I don't recommend it.

 

[drtribbiani]

Try to gauge your free time after your first block/ system/ whatever your school calls it. I found myself having plenty of free time, and I was thinking of finding a part-time job in a hobby that I thoroughly enjoyed and would've spent time on anyways. I ended up not following through with the idea due to personal circumstances (not related to med school at all). That said, even if I did, it would not have been nearly enough to pay my way through med school. I am still paying mainly through loans. The job would've been more so for interest payments on my loans. However, I would not have taken a part-time job in an activity that I wouldn't have committed time to regardless of med school.

Bottom line is to gauge your free time and time management. If you find yourself having enough that you're satisfied with, maybe look for a part-time job in something that makes you happy (maybe that's CS for you). But if you finish your days at like 8 pm every day and barely have any free time for yourself, then maybe it's not the best idea.

 

[RickyRic]

I'm working part-time as a ms1 and doing well in school. It's miserable. My only saving grace is that my PI is flexible and I can go incognito 🥸 whenever I want. Would I recommend it? No. Should you do it? It's up to you but I would wait after the first block exams to gauge if you have a handle on the pacing of medical school and how to study efficiently.

I go to sleep tied and wake up tired---> why I don't recommend it.

So you are in a paid research position? Can you elaborate more on why you are putting up with it even though you don't recommend it?

 

[YCAGA]

I'm working part-time as a ms1 and doing well in school. It's miserable. My only saving grace is that my PI is flexible and I can go incognito 🥸 whenever I want. Would I recommend it? No. Should you do it? It's up to you but I would wait after the first block exams to gauge if you have a handle on the pacing of medical school and how to study efficiently.

I go to sleep tied and wake up tired---> why I don't recommend it.

If you’re doing research that will get you pubs, that’s not really comparable to doing work for money but does nothing to enhance your residency application.

 

[Nugester]

If you’re doing research that will get you pubs, that’s not really comparable to doing work for money but does nothing to enhance your residency application.

Pubs is a plus. Also for $ as this was my full-time paid position before I started school.

 

[Nugester]

So you are in a paid research position? Can you elaborate more on why you are putting up with it even though you don't recommend it?

Yes, paid at a good rate too. Because I started the project and the only one in the lab that can do it. Also didn't help that early covid put a hiring freeze and I felt bad for the PI as she has been super nice and supportive. I'd honestly wait for a block or two to make sure you can hit your target grades if you are honors/pass/high pass system.