hicamproject Posted January 22, 2007 Report Share Posted January 22, 2007 My family isn't rich so I'm wondering how I would be able to afford an american medical education which costs a lot more than Canada. Just wondering how any of those out there afford it? Student Loans from where? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kuantum Posted January 22, 2007 Report Share Posted January 22, 2007 Line-of-Credit...a really big one Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hippie Posted January 22, 2007 Report Share Posted January 22, 2007 I have the same worries as yours as I can't count on my family for any financial assistance, but from the posts here, it seems very feasible to get loans. My advice, concentrate all your energy on being accepted first and then worry about money. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jochi1543 Posted January 23, 2007 Report Share Posted January 23, 2007 Line-of-Credit...a really big one Isn't it limited to $150,000 though? (which in US dollars might turn into $120,000, which might not even be enough for 4 years' tuition, let alone living expenses) Or can you get more if you are going to the US? I'm lucky in that my father is wealthy, so I was expecting to get the $150 grand in loans and ask him to pay my living expenses, but I honestly have no idea how you'd come up with some 200K USD without parents' help. Unless maybe if you get your $150K in Canada and then apply for loans in the US as well, from a bank or non-government org? I bet it would be feasible....I know my US credit history (which is AWFUL) has no bearing on my Canadian credit history (which is good), so I imagine that having a giant loan in Canada wouldn't be an obstacle to getting another loan in the US. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sonyvaio2700 Posted January 23, 2007 Report Share Posted January 23, 2007 Isn't it limited to $150,000 though? (which in US dollars might turn into $120,000, which might not even be enough for 4 years' tuition, let alone living expenses) Or can you get more if you are going to the US? I'm lucky in that my father is wealthy, so I was expecting to get the $150 grand in loans and ask him to pay my living expenses, but I honestly have no idea how you'd come up with some 200K USD without parents' help. Unless maybe if you get your $150K in Canada and then apply for loans in the US as well, from a bank or non-government org? I bet it would be feasible....I know my US credit history (which is AWFUL) has no bearing on my Canadian credit history (which is good), so I imagine that having a giant loan in Canada wouldn't be an obstacle to getting another loan in the US. You can take out 2 lines of credit. You probably have to do this if your school wants money upfront (eschew). I was told RBC can increase your line of credit to $200K if you have good credit history and you have a co-signer... Like the poster said worry about getting in first then the loans. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jochi1543 Posted January 23, 2007 Report Share Posted January 23, 2007 You can take out 2 lines of credit. You probably have to do this if your school wants money upfront (eschew). I was told RBC can increase your line of credit to $200K if you have good credit history and you have a co-signer... Like the poster said worry about getting in first then the loans. Great, I don't have a cosigner (who resides in the US/Canada, anyway). Oh well. I guess I'll be one of those 30-y'olds who still get money from their 'rents. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gesuchtish Posted January 26, 2007 Report Share Posted January 26, 2007 I heard it usually takes a new doc 5 years after residency to pay back all his loans +interests. Well, I guess we can't enjoy life until after we're 35 years old Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sonyvaio2700 Posted January 26, 2007 Report Share Posted January 26, 2007 I heard it usually takes a new doc 5 years after residency to pay back all his loans +interests. Well, I guess we can't enjoy life until after we're 35 years old depends what type of speciality you choose to do and the lifestyle you choose to lead... if you choose General Surgeon, you would get min around 200K US. At the most your loan payments will be around 50K a year. You can live quite comfortably with 150K a year...unless by "enjoy life" you mean you have to own a porshe and/or a million dollar house and/or a high maintaince trophy husband/wife . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tarzi Posted January 30, 2007 Report Share Posted January 30, 2007 I heard it usually takes a new doc 5 years after residency to pay back all his loans +interests. Well, I guess we can't enjoy life until after we're 35 years old wow that's amazing. but happens if you have a $260K loan, with interest to pay back. And that would be about $300K CDN, plus interest. I thought this takes about 20-30 years to pay back? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sonyvaio2700 Posted January 30, 2007 Report Share Posted January 30, 2007 wow that's amazing. but happens if you have a $260K loan, with interest to pay back. And that would be about $300K CDN, plus interest. I thought this takes about 20-30 years to pay back? I didnt think this was a secret...but doctors, especially specialists, can earn lots of money. do a google search on salaries. I am surprised you didnt know this already. arent we all in it for the money? jokin' Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jochi1543 Posted January 30, 2007 Report Share Posted January 30, 2007 There's also no interest when you are in residency/fellowship training....you don't make humongous amounts of money with that, but if you are making 40-50K a year, you can easily afford to chip 10K a year towards those loans while there is still no interest, especially if you don't have children to take care of. Couple of years in residency, and by the time your interest kicks in, the owing amount will have decreased enough to make a difference on the interest. It's not worth it when you are talking about a $3,000 undergrad loan (I'm waiting for mine to kick in before I start paying, because the difference in interest is not significant enough), but with hundreds of thousands of dollars at stake, it's worth it to pass on the Benz and start working on decreasing your principal while you still don't have interest. Also, I would take into consideration grace periods after you're done with your training....I don't know what they are for med LOCs, but with undergrad they are usually 6 months....so if you are done with your residency, get a position that pays you $10,000 a month, you can also do a lot of damage to that loan during the grace period. I think 20-30 years is only if you 1) have poor financial management skills 2) make poor financial choices (e.g. focusing on charity programs before you are done paying off your loans) 3) have extra financial responsibilities, such as the support of a child/personal medical bills. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ssc427 Posted January 30, 2007 Report Share Posted January 30, 2007 Interest on your LOC does accrue throughout your MD and residency. It won’t on Canadian government loans, but this is just through the MD. And Canadian govt loans account for maybe 80K of your 300K debt, so the interest is huge. When I was accepted to an American school the financial package I got indicated that we could expect to pay back 2$ for every 1$ borrowed. So after it’s all said and done you’re looking at a good ½ mil (if you don’t have family support). 5 years is VERY ambitious. American friends of mine who have done their MDs are thinking 10-15 years is realistic. This is off of high paying specialties like derm. Beware of the results which come out of google searches for US salaries. They often don’t account for malpractice insurance etc… which can take up to 200K off of your salary/year. Basically don’t let the debt scare you away from your dream, but don’t expect to be living in a million dollar home and driving a nifty new lexus for a long long time…. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sonyvaio2700 Posted January 30, 2007 Report Share Posted January 30, 2007 5 years is VERY ambitious. American friends of mine who have done their MDs are thinking 10-15 years is realistic. This is off of high paying specialties like derm. Beware of the results which come out of google searches for US salaries. They often don’t account for malpractice insurance etc… which can take up to 200K off of your salary/year. I didnt think derm was a high paying speciality. I thought ppl went into derm for other reasons. Also the only malpractice insurance for a speciality that high I ever heard of was for OB/GYN doctors. FP usually its under 50K. around 80-120K for surgeons. Again this depends on the district you live, etc, etc. Either way you are right...large portion of your salary will not go necessarily towards paying off your loans. and will take a MUCH longer time if you are starting a family, and this could easily take 10-15 years as you mentioned. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jochi1543 Posted January 31, 2007 Report Share Posted January 31, 2007 I don't know how it works in Canada, but in the US you also get major tax deductions for paying off educational loans. Which reminds me, I need to get to work on my US tax refund from last year. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bear1056 Posted January 31, 2007 Report Share Posted January 31, 2007 Hey, I am graduating from a US med school this year. The way I funded tuition (and it was about $50K/year USD) was with the CanHELP program (teri loan). They cover up to 45k/year. On top of that, I have the RBC LOC. Interest accrues during med school on both, but you can differ interest payments on the teri loan until 4 years after graduation (as long as you are in residency). The interest then capitalizes (ach!). To sum it up, I owe ~325k canadian for my US md degree (and am now applying to canadian residencies). I expect it to take about 10 years after residency to pay it back. PM me if you have more questions. Bear Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jochi1543 Posted January 31, 2007 Report Share Posted January 31, 2007 To sum it up, I owe ~325k canadian for my US md degree (and am now applying to canadian residencies). I expect it to take about 10 years after residency to pay it back. PM me if you have more questions. Bear Yeah, can you please state your name so I know not to waste my breath on you when I'm looking for a rich doctor to marry? JK:p Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Law Posted January 31, 2007 Report Share Posted January 31, 2007 To sum it up, I owe ~325k canadian for my US md degree (and am now applying to canadian residencies). I expect it to take about 10 years after residency to pay it back. PM me if you have more questions. Bear So interest starts hitting in post-MD? or post-residency? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bear1056 Posted January 31, 2007 Report Share Posted January 31, 2007 Sorry, already married, suckered someone in before I took on all that debt! as for the interest, it starts the day you borrow, your paying it back starts post residency for the teri loan. Bear Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jochi1543 Posted February 1, 2007 Report Share Posted February 1, 2007 That's ridiculous. Is this a traditional Canadian policy? (I assume all your loans are originating from Canada) I'm just wondering because there's no interest on my US student loans while I'm in school/during the 6-month grace period after school, the interest only kicks in once the payments start; but on my Canada Student Loans for undergrad, the interest started accumulating the second the semester finished even though the first payment isn't due till April. It would make a bit more sense if I had a private loan from a bank - after all, they are in there to make as much money as possible - but I don't understand why such policy is the case with govt loans. Also, my US loans are from a private institution (not a bank, but a private foundation), but I think the repayment/interest policy is identical to Stafford and Perkins. I'd expect things to be the other way around, if anything, with Canadian loans (esp govt ones) to be more lenient than American. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hippie Posted February 1, 2007 Report Share Posted February 1, 2007 Jochi? what kind of institutions give loans to non americans ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jochi1543 Posted February 1, 2007 Report Share Posted February 1, 2007 Jochi? what kind of institutions give loans to non americans ? I think your best bet is to call your university..... I spoke to my fin-aid advisor when I realized I was short on cash, and he suggested a particular loan that is only applicable to undergrad, and therefore is useless for med school. It was not huge, either - $2500 a semester. The loan specialist/financial aid director is familiar with a wide variety of scholarships and loans and might be able to suggest one for medical school. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tarzi Posted February 2, 2007 Report Share Posted February 2, 2007 Interest on your LOC does accrue throughout your MD and residency. It won’t on Canadian government loans, but this is just through the MD. And Canadian govt loans account for maybe 80K of your 300K debt, so the interest is huge. When I was accepted to an American school the financial package I got indicated that we could expect to pay back 2$ for every 1$ borrowed. So after it’s all said and done you’re looking at a good ½ mil (if you don’t have family support). 5 years is VERY ambitious. American friends of mine who have done their MDs are thinking 10-15 years is realistic. This is off of high paying specialties like derm. Beware of the results which come out of google searches for US salaries. They often don’t account for malpractice insurance etc… which can take up to 200K off of your salary/year. Basically don’t let the debt scare you away from your dream, but don’t expect to be living in a million dollar home and driving a nifty new lexus for a long long time…. Which school in the US gave you a financial aid package? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ssc427 Posted February 2, 2007 Report Share Posted February 2, 2007 Which school in the US gave you a financial aid package? Columbia - it's one of the few American schools which does offer financial aid to Canadians. The others I know of are Yale and Harvard. WashU and Penn have full scholarships which Canadians can apply for but no 'aid'. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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