Posts filed under 'paying for college'
My sweetie and I have found the entire medical school admissions process so far to be both fascinating and terrifying, especially when it comes to working out the numbers. There’s really no way around it: medical school is crazy expensive.
The Numbers
Just to give you a brief picture, I want to share some numbers from AspiringDocs.org, a website created by the Association of American Medical Colleges (also called the AAMC; they’re the ones who put on the beloved MCAT).
Average 1st Year In-State Public Medical School Tuition: $22,199
or Average 1st Year In-State Private Medical School Tuition: $39,964
Average Other Expenses (Living, etc.): $18,000
Yikes, right? That is a grand total of between $40,199 and $57,964 per year. I’ll let you go ahead and multiply that by four yourself if you want to think about how big that number is. I certainly don’t.
Considering Military Scholarships
Looking at that grand total four-year number took our breath away. We both still have some student loans from undergrad to pay off, and adding a potential $200,000 plus to those was absolutely unthinkable.
We had both known about the military medical scholarships, but it had never seemed appealing before. However, we decided to do a little research, just to see what it was all about. My husband ended up pursuing a scholarship with the Air Force, but it took a lot of consideration. Let me break down all that the scholarship entails for you.
The Air Force Health Professions Scholarship Program
First, fancy disclaimer: I am not a member of the Air Force, paid by the Air Force to endorse this program, or any kind of expert on military scholarship programs. We’ve simply gone through the process and done a lot of research, so don’t bank on me as your only source, and I apologize if I got anything wrong. If you’re considering these, you need to make sure you get all the facts for yourself. Okay. That’s it.
Okay, so the basics of the Air Force Health Professions Scholarship Program (HPSP) are as follows:
You Give:
- 45 days of active-duty service per year (usually during summer break), for which you get paid a salary and entitlements,
- One year of post-residency service as a doctor for every year of school the HPSP paid for (so if you got a four-year scholarship, you serve for four years).
You have to be fully qualified to get all the perks of the HPSP, but if you are eligible…
During School You Get:
- Fully paid
- Tuition (in-state or out-of-state, public or private school),
- Fees,
- Books, and
- Various other educational expenses, as approved by the program,
- A stipend for monthly living expenses during the school year,
- Payment for your annual 45 days of service, and
- Insurance coverage (as approved),
- A substantial signing bonus the first year (three and four-year scholarships only, as approved).
After School and Residency You Get:
- A job as an Air Force doctor (any time you’re guaranteed a job is good!),
- The option to list your top choices for service locations (potential to work abroad as a doctor could be cool!),
- A salary (Obviously. And salary range varies by specialty),
- Paid housing,
- Insurance,
- Etc.
You also have the option of going into civilian practice after your service commitment is up, or staying in the Air Force and retiring, with a pension, after about 25 years of service–not bad.
It is definitely a personal decision however, so if you want to learn more you can contact an Air Force recruiter, or look in to the other HPSPs offered by different military branches.
photo: onatos
August 4th, 2009
Our sister site, the Pay for College Blog, is usually meant for parents but there have been several posts recently that I thought you might want to take a look at.
It belongs to college industry expert, Deborah Fox (she’s been featured in all kinds of newspapers and TV news reports as a source for information about how to pay for college), and actually might be a good stop for your ‘rents–so send them over and teach them how to subscribe via RSS!
Meanwhile, here are five of Deborah’s best recent posts for the college-aged crowd:
3 Things Students Should Know About Student Loans. Did you know that your parents are NOT at all liable for your student loan debt, even if they’ve agreed to pay it off for you? Find out what else you didn’t know. Yikes!
Cut Costs By Renting Books. Deborah has a play-by-play of BookRenter.com, a website that lets you rent books instead of buying them. Apparently it costs about half as much! She also shares a discount code for 5% off summer book rentals.
States Cut Financial Aid. While states deliberate their new budgets, student wait to see if they may be getting their aid cut. Some states are even considering to retracting offers of aid they have already made!
Ways for Students to Spend Time Wisely this summer. If you want to get ahead of the game, Deborah has some thoughts about how to use up the time between sleeping in and heading to the beach.
And finally, thoughts about Choosing a College Major. Quite some time ago I wrote an article about choosing your major, but Deborah’s article might be a great tool if you’re having trouble reconciling your major choice with yourself–or your parents. You might be surprised that a college expert–and financial planner–believes that following your passion might actually save you money in the long run! Hear that, mom and dad? 
June 29th, 2009
Many of you have probably popped over to our sister site, the Pay for College Blog, which is hosted by college funding expert Deborah Fox (of Fox College Funding –they actually won an award last year for financial planning excellence).
Though Ms. Fox’s site is mostly targeted to parents (you might want to teach yours about feed readers so they can subscribe) there are some great articles that are relevant to students, too. I like to help my readers stay in-the-know, so I thought I’d highlight a few of my favorites for you.
1. Creative Ways to Pay for College by Thinking “Outside the Box.” College is expensive, and a lot of us don’t have our parents footing the bill. I love the new and different ways students have come up with to cover their costs, and Ms. Fox’s reminders and tips about the basics.
2. Life 101: What Your Student Needs to Know Now. This is a great list of things you need to know how to do once you’re out on your own. You can ask the ‘rents, or check out articles around here, like this Ultimate College How-To Guide.
3. How to Pay LESS for Textbooks. Who else gets tired of spending hundreds of dollars on books you (sort-of) use for a few weeks? Ms. Fox shares some tips about how to cut costs on textbooks.
4. What You Need to Know About How to File the FAFSA. I hate government forms. They are complicated and confusing. On the other hand, I like the opportunities that come out of filing them, like student loan offers or tax refunds. This is a great, simple prep guide for that dear, dear FAFSA we all love filing out every year.
5. 5 More Easy and Unexpected Ways to Find College Money. Did you know you can ask for a discount on some of your bills? Find out more tips to stretch your dollar in Ms. Fox’s article, and in my 50 Ways to Save Money in College.
Anybody have a favorite article to share with the class?
January 21st, 2009
New Year’s Day is close at hand, and while you’re busy making goals to burn off all the goodies you munched over the holiday break, why not add one goal to help you pay for college?
The Free Application for Federal Student Aid (a.k.a. the FAFSA)
I’m almost absolutely positive that you DON’T WANT to file the FAFSA–who wants to spend a perfectly good afternoon filling out tedious forms? But according to our paying-for-college guru Deborah Fox, spending a few short hours on the FAFSA could potentially mean getting some free money.
What Kind of Money Can I Get?
The FAFSA helps the government determine who is eligible for government grants (free money), work-study (jobs that help pay for school), AND federal student loans (which have to be paid back).
In fact, it is the only way for you to apply for federal student loans, which tend to have lower interest rates (so less to pay back) and better protections of your rights as a borrower than private student loans (like the ones you see advertised on TV).
What does that mean? Well basically, no matter how much you or your parents make, you should DEFINITELY apply for the FAFSA!
Also many schools determine who is eligible for their own private grants and scholarships based on the FAFSA, so it is a great tool to open yourself up to lots of financial aid possibilities.
What Do I Need to Know to Prepare?
Okay, so if you don’t think you’ll be likely to file the FAFSA yourself, you might want to pass this info on to your parents. Here are a few things you need to know about filing the FAFSA:
- File as Soon after January 1st as possible. The earlier you file, the more likely you are to receive grants (the free money).
- File even if you are…
- A high school senior (you’re filing for your first year of college which will start in Fall)
- A college student (unless you are in your last year and won’t be doing grad school)
- A grad or med student (you may not get grants but will be eligible for loans)
- Check out this top five list from the Pay for College Blog: What You Need to Know About How to File the FAFSA
This can make a huge difference in your college budget this year, so make sure you or your parents file it ASAP!!!
December 26th, 2008
So, you want to win a scholarship, huh? But maybe you think you can’t win because you don’t have a 4.0, you don’t have enough community service hours, or your essay-writing skills are less than stellar.
Lucky for you, you don’t need any of those things to potentially win a scholarship-you just need to be able to find scholarships that fit you. Even luckier-I work for Deborah Fox, author of the Pay for College Blog, and that means I get to share some of her tips with you!
Location, Location… Local Location
Deborah says that it is much, much easier to potentially win a local scholarship than a national one. The reason why is simple-local competitions have a way smaller applicant pool than national ones, and that means you have less competition.
What to Look For: Ask around at your high school counseling office or college financial aid office (or check their websites), as well as the local library, for local, regional, or state scholarships. Also, run a Google or Yahoo! search for your city/county/region/state + the word “scholarship.” You should also find out which scholarships are offered ONLY to your college.
Know Thyself… and Thy Hobbies & etc.
Another idea Deborah offered for finding scholarships with smaller applicant pools is to focus on talents, hobbies, abilities, and associations you have that are more unique than the typical “volunteering and strong SAT scores.” (She has a great article about quirky scholarships on her blog.)
What to Look For: A lot of scholarships are NOT based on grades or test scores, so don’t box yourself in! Try searching out scholarships awarded for:
- Your ethnicity, religion, or heritage
- Your talents (music, chess, art, sports, etc.)
- Your hobbies (surfing, knitting, mountain biking, baking, etc.)
- Your or your family’s medical history (history of hemophilia, cancer, etc.)
- Your or your family’s clubs or other associations (employers, on-campus or off-campus clubs/activities like Boy Scouts or 4H, a credit union your parents bank at, etc.)
- Any other thing you feel is unique about you or your family!
Plan Ahead
Deborah’s final tip for today is to plan ahead-even way ahead.
During your scholarship search you’ll probably come across some scholarships that would be perfect for you if you were just one year further in school, or even some that you could be eligible for for several years. Keep a list of all of these so you can reapply to scholarships you’re still eligible for next year, and remember those that you will be eligible for in a while.
What to Look For: Scholarships that will apply to you when you hit certain markers (age, level in school, etc.) or those that will apply to you for multiple years. Remember to reapply to any scholarships you can if you don’t win them the first time around-or if they allow even winners to compete!
Thanks again to Deborah of the Pay for College Blog for all her help (you might want to send your parents over there for pointers on how to pay for college)!
photo: Traveller by asifthebes
August 28th, 2008
The Pay for College Blog just posted an article about how hundreds of students received bad loan checks from their private student loan company, Astrive. This mistake on Astrive’s part has meant lots of students have gone without loan funds to pay for college-AND they’ve had to pay fees for the bounced checks!
This incident got me thinking that since many of you will be taking out loans soon, it would be a good idea to go over the different types you can get. Deborah Fox, founder of the college planning company, Fox College Funding, has provided me with some expert advice on the subject:
Are You Paying Too Much?
Did you know that there is a difference (actually, several differences) between federal student loans and private student loans? Many students don’t get this information, and they end up accidentally skipping out on low-interest options-meaning they end up overpaying at a time when their bank account is still in its adolescent phase. Ouch!
Federal v. Private
Before we even look at the difference between these two types of loans, let’s set the record straight: federal loans (which come from, or are guaranteed by the government) are your best option when it comes to student loans. Private loans - known as “alternative” loans (which come from private lenders or banks that are not guaranteed by the government) should absolutely be your last resort!
Wondering why?
The basic answer shows up in dollars and cents: federal loans generally have lower interest rates than private ones and have a fixed rate rather than variable. This means you will likely pay less for the same loan amount when you pay it back. Nice right? Another reason federal loans are a better option is that they have a lot more built-in protections for you (the borrower) than private loans do. (For example, a check the government sends you is less likely to bounce!)
Borrowing Smart
There are several types of federal student loans-the Subsidized Stafford Loan (you don’t pay or accrue interest while you’re in school), the Unsubsidized Stafford Loan (you do accrue interest in school, but the interest rate is relatively low), and the federal Perkins Loan (reserved for students with the most need and at the most attractive interest rate: 5%) are all intended for students. Your school will let you know which ones you qualify for. It’s best to borrow them in this order (depending on which ones(s) you are able to get access to):
- Perkins Loan
- Subsidized Stafford Loan
- Unsubsidized Stafford Loan
Going Private
If you decide to borrow an alternative loan (one that comes directly from a bank or other lender), be sure you understand the risks and fees associated with it. Check the interest rate and see if it varies, find out if there is a penalty for paying the loan back early, and make certain that you understand all the loan terms. You might want to go over it with a parent or financial advisor to make sure you are getting the best deal.
Questions?
Student loans are pretty darn confusing, so please feel free to ask me questions–I have the luxury of being able to consult an expert! Thanks again to Deborah for sharing her expertise!
photo: Question mark by JoanaCroft
May 27th, 2008
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