Financing US Med School

[Dr.Henderson]

I've searched and searched, and about the best solution I've found was people reporting that they landed a couple 150k$ LOCs by applying at different banks on the same day. Outside of that, no one seems to have a solid answer.

 

I've read a bunch of posts from people like moo, who I agree totally with that the investment to attend in the US ends up working out quite well. I'm just wondering how you actually fund it without having a huge amount of savings or rich parents/relatives:D

 

The costs I'm seeing end up being around 60k$ before even cost of living per year. 240k$ USD in tuition costs alone is already well outside the 150-200k$ CDN LOCs you can get... so how do you do it?

 

Any insight would be great!

[keith_015]

Well I certainly do not come from a wealthy family and I now am looking at my options. My plan of action in order is:

 

1) Apply for whatever Canada Student Loan I can get. Will in the end be a drop in the bucket.

 

2) Get a US loan through an organization like Sallie Mae. This would require me to get a US cosigner which for me is a realistic possibility. From what I've seen, they will loan you the amount for the cost of tuition minus any other federal loans that you get. This would be my preferred largest source of money as in the end I would rather deal strictly in US funds than have to worry about and/or get burned by the exchange rate. Chances are that if I end up going to US Meds, I will probably stay down there so paying back in the end would be USD instead of CAD->USD in 2014 and beyond.

 

3) Apply for Cdn LOC (or 2). Even if Sallie Mae works out, I'd still need cash for the tangibles. I would get 1 Cdn LOC at first and then worry about another in the future, or explore other US avenues while there.

 

4) Its nice that my parents have a few wealthy friends that could help me out. I'd rather not go this avenue, but it may be easier in the end.

 

5) I'm getting to the age in my life where tying the knot may happen soon. She would definitely be a great help. Hopefully there would be a Visa option for her to go South as well to work :S

 

Edit: Before this thread goes to far, maybe this thread should be explored/bumped: http://premed101.com/forums/showthread.php?t=32091

[Dr.Henderson]

Thanks for the insight Keith. I have one, and only one, US relative but I'm not sure if I'd feel comfortable asking her to be a cosigner- I've met her a total of two times when I was a kid kind of thing.

 

I'm actually married, she has a degree and some really good experience under her belt so I guess it'd be a matter of her being able to get a visa and get a job there.

 

I'm just interested in exploring my options, I'm going to try to get in in Canada to begin with, but the next step for me would be trying for the U.S.- I want to stay in North America.

 

The thread you linked is one (of many) that I read from start to finish before posting this. From reading everyone's posts it just doesn't seem to me like there are a lot of viable options for financing. A lot of the people who landed LOCs are saying that they're banking on the bank increasing their LOC so they can finish their last years (yikes).

 

I see a lot of people who have been accepted to U.S. schools and are planning on attending, it'd be great to hear their stories on how they're financing their education.

[rmitch8]

Interesting that this thread should pop up today as I am seeing a financial planner this afternoon to talk about paying for med school! I might be able to provide more insight after the meeting.

 

Anyways, as it stands my plan is to pay mostly through a Line of Credit. I would love to get this from an American bank, so I don't have to deal with currency exchange, but I don't have any US relatives who will cosign, so that probably won't work. I will, therefore, be getting the LOC from a Canadian bank, with my parents as cosigners. I have no idea what kind of interest rates to expect, but I know it's not going to be nearly as peachy as the interest rates we've been pitched in all the financial aid meetings at US schools.

 

I'm also going to try to get as much as I can from OSAP, and apply for every scholarship under the sun that I am eligible for. From what I understand, in going to a private US school, OSAP will only give you 5-10K a year, which is a small fraction of the total cost/year of attending US meds.

[future_doc]

I have one, and only one, US relative but I'm not sure if I'd feel comfortable asking her to be a cosigner

 

And of course, as a cosigner can be forced to pay the entire capital and interest owing, she may understandably be highly uncomfortable to sign for such a large finacial exposure and refuse in any event. If I were her, I would absolutely refuse unless your parents put up ironclad legally binding collateral to me and provided I felt a strong family bond with them.

[keith_015]

I guess one minor option as well which I have thought of is that if you go down to the US with a Canadian LOC for 1 year, there could be the slightest possibility that you could find someone willing to help you out to get US support.

 

Another way which I would hope to finance is to maintain good grades. There are definitely scholarships available during the program which are based on academic achievement.

[wrighm6]

Just got back from meetings with all the major banks in Toronto. My number one choice is Scotia for 2 main reasons. They are the only ones that offer a max of 200k instead of 150k, and they offer prime + 0% and it stays at 0% even after you're a doctor. This is comparing to a bank like RBC which I liked, until they told me that their prime + 0% would definitely increase to at least prime +2% once I start paying off the principle after graduation. Everything else for all the banks were pretty much the same. Of course, most say you need a co-signer for the US.

 

So my plan is to get OSAP, then Scotia, then try for a US federal one like Sallie Mae, and if I can't get one then I'd have to choose between RBC/TD/BMO for another LOC. So much troubles

[moo]

The best way to finance your education is through a LoC as many suggested. I had a combination of Canada Student Loans, BC government loans and a LoC which my parents cosigned (TD bank). The government loans were miniscule compared to the cost of education, but they do cover the cost of living. Every little bit helps.

 

It's very important also that while going through med school you research the specialty you want to do and the pay attached to that specialty. This may sound obvious but is very important. For example, it makes no sense to do primary care pediatrics in the US if you have a 300k+ debt load. One of my American friends just told me that some pediatrics jobs only pay about 69K a year USD. However, if you did FM in Canada, you could easily make a ton more money vs the US (you just have to work very hard) and easily repay your loans. Procedural based specialties are more lucrative in the US. You have to keep this in mind (which residency, which country) when selecting a residency/specialty.

[Dr.Henderson]

Sorry for the late reply to this, I've been busy with the whole Christmas thing as well as thesis writing.

 

I really appreciate the replies. I'm interested in family medicine primarily, so that's good news Moo. From what I've seen though tuition looks like its around 50-60k$... with a LoCs of 150-200k$ that's either not enough, or just barely enough. How did you make it work? or did you get a larger LoC with your parents co-signing? My parents are reasonably well-off (not to the point where they could fund tuition costs unfortunately haha) so could I get a larger LoC with them as co-signers?

[moo]

I had a large LoC which my parents cosigned. This was years ago so tuition was a lot cheaper then (30-35K a year in tuition). However, exchange rate was poor so it probably is about the same as today (it was 0.65 USD to the dollar back then). My parents are not rich by any means (middle class, mom is a bookkeeper, dad a systems analyst). I don't know how things work nowadays... I went to school 2002-2006 so I'm way out of the loop for financing and admissions but generally this is what you need.

[keith_015]

I'm going to RBC today to see what they will offer me and see if its the same as others have been told.

 

As for student loans, I read through one thread where people were unsure about eligibility. Go here: http://www.canlearn.ca/eng/postsec/getloan/elg.shtml .

Then go here: http://www.canlearn.ca/eng/main/designated/ldi.shtml .

Then select international and see if your school is there. If it is, you should qualify, but to what extent they fund...I would guess family contributions and income would help dictate.

 

Edit: on that list, some of the schools specifically mention school of medicine solidifying your option to get gov't student aid.

[keith_015]

So I was looking up what Sallie Mae can really do for you as compared to funding primarily through Cdn LOC.

 

What I found:

1) Interest rate will be based on your credit or co-signer's credit rating. Because there is no standard interest rate like a Cdn LOC, the interest rate will be dependent on the credit rating. Having a really good cosigner would be magical in getting that rate low.

On their examples they show the interest rate to be LIBOR + 4% to LIBOR + 12.5% . If you aren't aware, LIBOR is the rate at which banks lend to each other and right now is at 0.25%. Nonetheless, it is scary to think that they could give you a rate that is skyhigh. Even Cdn LOC at Prime or even Prime +1% could be more attractive (if you watch the exchange rates well).

 

2) Depending on credit rating again, they could slap you with a 0-3% disbursement fee, potentially raising the amount you will owe that much higher.

 

3) Like Cdn LOC, interest must be paid while in school + 6 month separation. Thus any high interest rate they may give you may be scary.

 

Overall though, they should provide you with enough money to pay tuition (when you roll in the Cdn Student Loans), leaving you peace of mind to live off of 1 Cdn LOC instead of multiple.

 

Edit: And you won't have to worry about the fluctuating dollar that much more. Who knows if the dollar will surpass parity or plunge to the 60's again...its a gamble!