Guest MUC1 Posted June 12, 2004 Report Share Posted June 12, 2004 Is a car necessary for first year medicine at the U of A? How about for 2nd, 3rd or 4th? And if so, any advice on how to significantly lower insurance costs (I'm getting quoted at around >5000$ Canadian for a used car)? Thanks. MUC Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest summervirus Posted June 12, 2004 Report Share Posted June 12, 2004 I'm from out of town and I was able to get-by without a car for my first two years. I've only needed to travel away from the UofA hospital a small number of times and I've always been able to get rides from my generous classmates. I think there are quite a number of people like me who don't have cars up to this point. But, having a car in 3rd and 4th year is a really good idea. I know of 2 people in the past who have gone through their clerkship without cars but it was really hard on them. I was going to try getting-by without a car in my clerkship too but I've been strongly advised against it. After all, you'll be traveling all over the city -- sometimes to different hospitals across town within the same day to attend seminars. Having a car is also helpful for your rural med rotation too. In short, car not necessary for 1st/2nd; car necessary for 3rd/4th. In terms of insurance, you can get deals through the Alberta Medical Association where you get lower prices through MD Management (I think it's MD Management...). You get info on how to join sometime in July when they send you your orientation package. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest MUC1 Posted June 12, 2004 Report Share Posted June 12, 2004 Thanks for the reply. I know I'm jumping the gun here, but will deals through the AMA or MD management give me significant savings over other insurance companies? I'm actually really relieved to hear that there's even this type of service available! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest summervirus Posted June 12, 2004 Report Share Posted June 12, 2004 Hmm, I actually don't know! But, I'll be looking into it -- just because I need to get insurance for myself too. I'll let you know what I find out. But, I'm kinda busy right now so I might not be able to actually find out the details for a couple weeks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest summervirus Posted June 12, 2004 Report Share Posted June 12, 2004 Hmmm, okay, I got curious so I started exploring the AMA website. They referred me to the TD Meloche Monnex website: I tried getting a free quote by filling out some of the forms. My insurance still turned out to be quite expensive. You can try and give it a shot too. (Just pretend your an AMA member for now when you fill out the form and answer "yes" to that question). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest summervirus Posted June 12, 2004 Report Share Posted June 12, 2004 Oh wait. I just read your first post again, MUC1. My quote is under $5000... quite a bit lower actually. Here are my stats: single, male, under the age of 25, and no accidents/claims. I pretended to have a new 2004 Honda Civic and my quote I think was under $2500. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest MUC1 Posted June 13, 2004 Report Share Posted June 13, 2004 I went through the whole website and got a slightly better quote. At around 4200$ for a fairly new used car. Funny thing is I have similar stats as you: male, under 25, no tickets, had my license for 3 years. By the way, I tried it with the 2004 Honda Civic (LX 4dr) for comparison and got 4500$. I'm suspecting it could be a slight age difference... EDIT: I've never had any claims or accidents as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest MUC1 Posted June 13, 2004 Report Share Posted June 13, 2004 Ok, I kept everything the same and "made" myself 2 years older (22) and magically my quote came down to around 2100$ (which is so cheap --- relative to 5000$). Talk about price discrimination.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest summervirus Posted June 13, 2004 Report Share Posted June 13, 2004 Yeah. I just turned 22 a few months ago. I think I got the exact same price quote as you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest fox Posted June 13, 2004 Report Share Posted June 13, 2004 If you get your house and car insurance through Monnex then you get a 10% discount, and if you are a member of the Alberta Medical Association you also get a discount. If you are a graduate of university, you get a third discount. When I joined the AMA I got a new policy and saved $150 a year, above the other savings. I have a 2003 Civic and pay about $900 a year. However, I am a girl and am over 25. But they were substantially cheaper than any other company. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest MUC1 Posted July 13, 2004 Report Share Posted July 13, 2004 BUMP -- new related question Sorry to bring this old topic back up, but I just received my registration package. The only thing from MD management is info on loan and other banking services. There isn't anything on car insurance or joining the AMA -- although there is stuff on life insurance (just a bit). So my question is, am I automatically in the AMA now? Is there an application process for the AMA? :\ Thanks so much. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest summervirus Posted July 14, 2004 Report Share Posted July 14, 2004 If I recall correctly, inside my registration package was a form to join the AMA. I think it was something like $88 for a four-year student membership. I handed in the form to the AMA rep in September after classes started. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest mirrille Posted July 14, 2004 Report Share Posted July 14, 2004 You are not automatically in the AMA, but you should be eligible to become a member. You can fill out a form and pay them money sometime in the beginning of the year. If you lost the form they gave you in your registration package, it's ok because I'm sure they'll come around and try to sell you the benefits of becoming a member. Membership is optional. I didn't bother joining. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest MUC1 Posted July 15, 2004 Report Share Posted July 15, 2004 thanks for the reply. I'm sure I didn't get a registration form in my package. Did anybody else from the incoming 2004 class get one? I sort of "need" to join to benefit from the car insurance discount. So, if I join 1 month earlier, I could save ~200-300$/month -- not really pocket change. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Lactic Folly Posted July 15, 2004 Report Share Posted July 15, 2004 Nope, no AMA form here either.. For those of us who are neither new to the U of A, nor were continuing students in the spring when everything was handed out, is there a way to pick up a hard copy of the calendar now? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest MUC1 Posted July 15, 2004 Report Share Posted July 15, 2004 Good good. For a second there I thought I had a incomplete package. You can either use the online calendar: www.registrar.ualberta.ca/calendar/ combined with beartracks OR buy a calendar for 9.30$ at the bookstore. But you have to order online. www.bookstore.ualberta.ca/ (under course books, there's a picture). Maybe the registrar has some free ones!?!? :\ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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