Paying for US Med School

[DrHorrible]

Hi Everyone,

 

I would really like to apply to several US med schools for 2012 admission, but I am somewhat intimidated by the tuition amounts for most of them.

 

I was wondering how most of you plan to finance/have financed going to US med schools (assuming you arent rich enough to pay it up front ). What is the scholarship/financial aid situation for Canadian citizens? or is it possible to take out a LOC that will cover the majority of the expenses required?

 

Thanks in advance for your help!

[Shady99]

I believe the main options are family support and loans from American banks, though you'd need an American to cosign on the loan. Not sure how willing Canadian banks are to give loans to students going abroad.

 

There are a few schools that offer financial aid/scholarships to Canadians, but I think most of them are the Ivies.

[deathvvv]

++

 

Try Canadian banks first. If it is an US MD school, a bank should give you a 200,000 dollar loc. Unfortunately, that is pretty much the max regardless of which bank you sign up with. Usually, Us med schools costs around 300-350k for four years with tuition and living expenses. You need to find another source for the rest of the costs unfortunately.

 

Note: As a Canadian, unless you have really super good stats, forget about scholarships. No aid either.

[Mashmetoo]

Hi Everyone,

 

I would really like to apply to several US med schools for 2012 admission, but I am somewhat intimidated by the tuition amounts for most of them.

 

I was wondering how most of you plan to finance/have financed going to US med schools (assuming you arent rich enough to pay it up front ). What is the scholarship/financial aid situation for Canadian citizens? or is it possible to take out a LOC that will cover the majority of the expenses required?

 

Thanks in advance for your help!

 

OSAP, provincial loans, Canadian Line of Credit (works for both USMD/DO schools), remortgage your house, family support, some US schools are nice enough to offer loans, but you'd need a US co-signer. For example, my school initially offered 10% of the costs for first year, and for second year, offered 100% of cost (living and tuition). But, again, you'd need a US co-signer.. or it can't be done unfortunately.

 

Depending on how well you know your bank, can negotiate the interest rates.

[keith_015]

Hi Everyone,

 

I would really like to apply to several US med schools for 2012 admission, but I am somewhat intimidated by the tuition amounts for most of them.

 

I was wondering how most of you plan to finance/have financed going to US med schools (assuming you arent rich enough to pay it up front ). What is the scholarship/financial aid situation for Canadian citizens? or is it possible to take out a LOC that will cover the majority of the expenses required?

 

Thanks in advance for your help!

 

I covered this topic fairly well in the past. You may just have to find it. Cdns are pretty much on their own. Do not expect any help from the schools (~95% of schools restrict scholarships/funding to US residents), US gov't (no financing for foreigners) or US banks. Canadians can get US LOC's but require a US cosigner with the interest rate pegged on their credit rating - the interest rate can range broadly from around 3-13% at the current rate. Cdn LOC is available, but will require a Cdn cosigner as liability for you being out of country. I dealt with RBC and they were willing to give me >$200k credit line, but at that amount, collateral has to come into play against the loan. Cdn gov't student loans are a drop in the bucket and won't give you near enough to fund your education.

 

Bottom line, you will need help from others who are in a good financial position, are willing to put their credit line to the test and essentially are not in need of borrowing themselves in the next 10-15yrs.

[lonelion87]

Do not expect any help from the schools (~95% of schools restrict scholarships/funding to US residents), US gov't (no financing for foreigners) or US banks

 

Fortunately for those thinking of heading down south, it isn't as clear cut as this. The school I attend is VERY generous with financial aid for Canadians/foreigners. I didn't enter with a 4.0, and I didn't write "cured cancer" on my app. My school is 'need-blind' with financial admissions, as a number of other schools in the U.S. are.

 

I would not say don't expect help. I would say it is a case-by-case basis, with no rhyme or reason to explain the variation between schools on this issue. You won't know unless you ask them directly!

[deathvvv]

What school is this? If you dont mind me asking?

 

Most schools that are generous can afford to do so because they have large private endowments. For most Canadian friendly schools that are somewhat easier to get into (Wayne, Suny etc) receive most of their funding from federal sources so they wont be showing you any love since Fed money is from American citizens only. While it is not completely hopeless and you should definitely check with the school, I would say that 9/10 times you wont be able to get anything from US schools.

[DrHorrible]

Thanks for the advice so far everyone!

 

I haven't finalized exactly what schools id like to apply to, my stats are fairly strong though so I'm probably looking at mostly middle and upper tier schools, possibly including a few ivy league ones. From what I can gather these schools seem to be more generous with money, but on the flip side I assume the caliber of students getting their scholarships are probably even higher than the average student at these schools...