Click here to download Financing Your Health Professions Education (PDF).

Managing Debt

Credit Cards

Managing Debt

• Talk with your family.
• Find out if and how much they can help.
• Look for scholarships thru private, gov’t & school sources (see links).
• Use credit cards sparingly.
• Check your credit history.
• Pay off all consumer debt.
  
  

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What should I know about the process of applying for aid?

• What’s the philosophy of financial aid at the institution?
• What specific grants and loans are available to meet my need?
• Can I meet my full need using those resources?
• Will my parents be expected to provide financial information? Do I have any options if they refuse?
• What should I know about the loans I am offered?
• What are deadlines?
  
  

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What are my options if I can’t finance my education using my own financial resources?

• Federal grant and loan programs
• Service obligated scholarships
• Armed Forces Health Professions
• National Health Service Corps
• New York State Regents Scholarships
• Private scholarship programs
• Private loan programs
  
  

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What can I do to reduce the cost of medical school once I’m there?

• Borrow as little as possible.
• Don’t use those credit cards!
• Make a spending plan and stick to it.
• Find a roommate/s to share expenses.
• Call collect to Mom and Dad.
• Don’t eat out/take your lunch/dinner every day.
• Find receptions/lectures with free food.
  
  

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What can I expect in terms of financing my medical school education?

• Grant and loan assistance programs (Federal student aid programs)
• Service obligated scholarships - Armed Services, National Health Service Corp., etc.
• Private loan programs
• Private scholarship programs
• Work-study
• Relatives!!
  
  

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What should I know about the loans I am offered?

• Loan amount offered and max on loan
• Co-signer requirements, if any
• Interest rate
• Impact on my credit history
• Availability of alternatives
• Repayment terms/grace period
• Deferment options
  
  

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What impact will these loans have on me after medical school?

• Disposable income reduced while in repayment.
• If you default, plan to have difficulty in your practice, your personal financial life, and taxes.
• If you have difficulty paying loans, ask lender about forbearance!! Do not ignore your obligation to repay these loans.
  
  

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Who is responsible for knowing about my loans?

• YOU ARE!!
• Keep records of all information regarding your loan, amt. of loan, lender, repayment schedule, interest rate.
• The lender may sell your loan to another company.  You are responsible whether or not your lender changes.
• Inform all lenders of any address changes.
  
  

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How do I get organized?

• Buy a file cabinet.
• Make files for each individual loan or grant that you receive.
• Weed out dated material on a regular basis.
• Get and stick to a budget.
  
  

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Credit Cards or How to Bankrupt Your Future

What are you actually paying?

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How Can You Save Money?

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Student Loans 

• If you borrow $15,000 per year for college you will have paid for a house by the time the loan is paid off!
  
• $60,000 @ 4.06% OVER 120 months (10 years) = $73,101.00
  
  

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Paying for Your Education

• Scholarships

  • Corporations

  • Federal/State funding

  • Community

  • Private Organizations

• Family

• Service Obligated money

• Loans

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Budgets

Define Goals (Calculate what you need vs. what you want!)

• What do you want to do?  Own home, car, kids in private schools, retirement lifestyle,etc
• What is the philosophy of the financial aid office of each school you wish to attend?  Will they pay for child-care/sibling/parent/spouse?  Will they give additional funds for travel home?
  
  

Collect data and ascertain your costs

• Identify income sources
• Parents
• Relatives
• Savings
• Work-study
• Loans
• Scholarships – no payback required
• Service obligated scholarships
• Analyze cash flow (see budget worksheet below)
• Fixed Expenses
• Variable Expenses
• Outline options
• Compare financial aid packages
• weigh loan rates and maximum amounts you can borrow
• Look at repayment terms/grace periods
• Deferment options
• Pay off consumer debt before you begin school!
• Design budget
• Control your financial actions
• Limit credit card debt!!! See chart of credit card rates
• Get rid of cell phone
• Sell car or don’t buy one
• Get a roommate
• Call home collect
• Don’t eat out a lot
• Do your own nails/hair
• Ask for clothes for gifts at X-mas, birthday, etc.
• Copy someone else’s CDs
• Live with your old computer until it dies
• Find receptions with free food
• Establish and maintain records
• Set-up filing system
• Maintain copies of all correspondence from your financial aid office
• Keep lenders appraised of your address
• Find a financial planner and begin looking at future expenses vs. future earnings.
  
  

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Fixed Expenses
These are usually unavoidable and typically unchanging in their amounts.

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Variable Expenses
If you do not have a good sense of how much you spend in this area, consider keeping a personal diary of all your expenditures for at least a two-week period. At the end of those two weeks you will have a much better sense of just where your money goes. Do your total monthly expenses add up to more than the amount of your school’s budget for you? If so, trim some of those variable expenses!  Even though you have a particular expense, the Financial Aid Office may not be able to include in your budget.

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Live Like No One Else
Will For a Few Years So
That You Can Live Like No One Else
For the Rest of Your Life

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