paying debts after med school

[Sharky]

I was wondering if anyone knows how much the typical student is in debt after medical school and how long does it take to pay it off?

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[Forensic Chick]

Some of the docs I work with are still paying back their loans -- a good 10 (or more) years after they graduated. I look at it like the purchase of a house, only without the house

 

[Dr JPH]

Depends.

How much you borrow.
What specialty you choose.
How you live during school.
How you live during residency.
How you live after residency.
Where you live.
Who you marry.

But hey...ya gotta hurt a little to get what you want, sometimes.

best of luck

 

[luckystar]

Originally posted by JPHazelton


Who you marry.

never thought of that one

 

[eschauberger]

From what I've heard several times, plan to pay back $2 for every $1 you borrow. Also, Medical Students that live like doctors will live like medical students when they are doctors. Live in a box if you have to (a nice one :-D)
-Eric

 

[Bevo]

I was told that some states will help pay off your debt if you practice in a rural area, a real rural area.

like so much per year or something. in addition to you're regular income

 

[docslytherin]

there are actually quite a few opportunities for people who know where they want to practice. my DO mentor said that three of his classmates knew where they wanted to live after graduation/residency and set up a contract in their first year at school that they would come to that area to work for a fixed length of time in exchange for paying for med school. it wasn't an organized thing, they just knew what they wanted and found the people to talk to about it. that's another option...

i was really worried about coming out with $200K in debt... one of the docs i work for said that it truly isn't a big deal... right now, grads are coming out of med school locking in interest rates around 3% for 30 years. that's significantly less than what we'll spend on houses... right now, at our present incomes (at least mine) $200K seems like a LOT of money and it is, but the math works out alright....

assume you make $150,000 salary (that's probably a bit low, but easy to demostrate with). after 37% in taxes, your takehome pay is $81,900. That's roughly $7875/month. Assume $200,000 total in debt. At 5% over 30 years, your payments will be less than $1100/month. That leaves $6775. Put a pile in savings/retirement fund and I know I can live off what is left... And the reality is $150.000 is probably a lower salary figure...

Just some bits to think about... It made me feel better.

 

[LINY]

I read somewhere the national avg. (with interest) is $200,000

 

[deleted6669]

I WORK WITH A NUMBER OF DOCS WHO PAID OFF THEIR LOANS WITHIN 2 YEARS. THE SECRET IS TO CONTINUE TO LIVE MODESTLY FOR THE FIRST FEW YEARS WHILE MAKING 150K+/YR. THESE GUYS BOUGHT INEXPENSIVE, BUT NICE, SMALL HOUSES AND DROVE HONDAS INSTEAD OF BMW'S. OF COURSE NOW THAT THEIR LOANS ARE PAID OFF THEY LIVE THE HIGH LIFE.....

 

[Toejam]

I went to podiatry school from 1994-1998 and ended up about 150k in debt. As of now, it's about 170k. I was paying around $1700 a month for a couple of years, but was struggling. I consolidated through Sallie Mae and I now pay about $850 a month. The way it looks, it's going to be for the rest of my life.