Anonymous
Post 05/05/2026 22:03     Subject: How do middle class kids afford med school?

Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:Join the military to have the US govt pay for your med school.
You would be surprised by the number of sickly medical students who wouldn’t qualify for military service. Maybe it makes sense that poor family health inspired their interest in the field.


The military suggestion always makes me shake my head. Some people literally cannot get in. I’d never be able to join, due to a hidden disability.
Anonymous
Post 05/05/2026 18:07     Subject: How do middle class kids afford med school?

Anonymous wrote:My daughter got a scholarship to attend JHU med school. Otherwise I would have had to sell my primary residence because medical school in this country is very expensive.

I think the vast majority of kids in the US who go to medical school likely come from affluent families. In my country of birth medical school starts after high school and it's fully funded by the government.


The US does has a tiny number of direct-admission (i.e., directly from HS) medical schools. MCV/VCU is a local example, although even that has a larger cohort that apply after a 4-yr degree than gain direct admission. We should switch the whole country to that direct admission model.
Anonymous
Post 05/04/2026 13:00     Subject: How do middle class kids afford med school?

My daughter got a scholarship to attend JHU med school. Otherwise I would have had to sell my primary residence because medical school in this country is very expensive.

I think the vast majority of kids in the US who go to medical school likely come from affluent families. In my country of birth medical school starts after high school and it's fully funded by the government.
Anonymous
Post 04/29/2026 22:15     Subject: How do middle class kids afford med school?

Anonymous wrote:Join the military to have the US govt pay for your med school.
You would be surprised by the number of sickly medical students who wouldn’t qualify for military service. Maybe it makes sense that poor family health inspired their interest in the field.
Anonymous
Post 04/29/2026 05:39     Subject: How do middle class kids afford med school?

In my or DH’s family they went into the military for med school. DC has many choices for pre-med but choosing in-state and will pay 15,000 instead of 70,000+ dollars tuition per year for 4 years. They would prefer one of the private schools they were accepted to, but going into debt doesn’t make any sense.
Anonymous
Post 04/22/2026 00:55     Subject: How do middle class kids afford med school?

We have a great business model of having to beg for money. It's the American way.
Anonymous
Post 04/21/2026 03:50     Subject: How do middle class kids afford med school?

Anonymous
Post 04/20/2026 12:12     Subject: How do middle class kids afford med school?

You mean the poor redneck deplorable Eastern Shore magas have some sort of socialism. Ironic.
Anonymous
Post 04/20/2026 07:28     Subject: How do middle class kids afford med school?

You can also have your medical school loans waived if you go and work in Salisbury for several years. (Poor underserved area.) All of the gyn/obstetricians in Salisbury are on this program. Otherwise there would be no one to deliver babies on the lower Eastern Shore.
Anonymous
Post 04/20/2026 07:24     Subject: How do middle class kids afford med school?

Join the military to have the US govt pay for your med school.
Anonymous
Post 04/20/2026 07:23     Subject: How do middle class kids afford med school?

America doesn't need doctors because Americans don't need healthcare. We have superior fast food induced epigenetic health. We don't need education either because we are already the smartest people in the world. Come to think of it we don't really need food or shelter either because we are just such super humans.
Anonymous
Post 04/19/2026 14:45     Subject: How do middle class kids afford med school?

Anonymous wrote:The only way we are affording it is intentionally choosing undergrad that gave the most scholarships, work study, working as RA to get reduced housing, etc to make amount due as low as possible. This allowed 529 to cover housing and 1/3 of med school tuition. The other 2/3 borrowed from family, tax free gift if paid directly. If family flakes out, then can take stafford loans. It won’t reach cap because it’s only 2/3. But it’s really close to cap.
Other option is to go into family medicine or peds or internal medicine, there are several schools that give free or reduced tuition if you agree to serve rural population for a number of years.


Really? Ask your family for tax free loans for your adult kid's medical school? I don't think I can allow myself to ask.
Anonymous
Post 04/19/2026 13:41     Subject: How do middle class kids afford med school?

The only way we are affording it is intentionally choosing undergrad that gave the most scholarships, work study, working as RA to get reduced housing, etc to make amount due as low as possible. This allowed 529 to cover housing and 1/3 of med school tuition. The other 2/3 borrowed from family, tax free gift if paid directly. If family flakes out, then can take stafford loans. It won’t reach cap because it’s only 2/3. But it’s really close to cap.
Other option is to go into family medicine or peds or internal medicine, there are several schools that give free or reduced tuition if you agree to serve rural population for a number of years.
Anonymous
Post 04/19/2026 13:40     Subject: How do middle class kids afford med school?

Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:In the 1980s, many paid for medical school with massive student loans. It is not a new issue.


These loans are now capped.
We are using what’s left in 529 for housing/tests/fees and paying tuition only with loan. Applying for financial aid, but most schools only offer after 1st year. Will do work study to offset tuition.


Even decades ago, there were caps on Federal student loans. It was not unusual for a medical student to also have some non-Federal loans in addition to Federal loans. Medical students who survive the first year (and most will survive) are a good credit risk.

Again, this is not a new problem.

It’s not a new problem but the loan caps have made it way worse in the last year exacerbated by tuition costs rising above where they were decades ago. We are looking at private schools with a cost of attendance over $100k and loan caps at $50k.
Obviously going to a public in state medical school is fiscally smarter (though we know a lot kids without a choice of medical schools who will go wherever they get in).


There have been caps all along. The caps are higher now than 20 years ago. I am very sorry it is not working well for you, but essentially the same situation existed 50 years ago, 40 years ago, 30 years ago, 20 years, and 10 years ago.


You’re not following along with costs and the new bill. We are at a point where attendance costs will significantly exceed the federal loan caps. You can say it’s always been this way, but the reality is it has changed recently.

https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC12658764/#:~:text=Results,medical%20school%20(Figure%20C).


There have been caps for at least 50 years. Even 10 years ago many had to take out private loans because of Federal caps. The latest tweak really has not changed the fundamental issue.


For grad plus loans, you could borrow up to the total cost of attendance, which includes living expenses. How do you not know this?


Tuition $70,000 and housing $20,000 (that’s low, doesn’t allow for food etc) =$90,000 a yr and that’s considered low. Anyway, x4 yrs and that’s $360,000 which is $110,000 over the cap. If one takes regular loans, they are due the month after loan starts. How can one pay the regular loan while in med school?


There was no cap until this year. Do you know how many lawyers graduated with 300k in Grad Plus Loans??
Anonymous
Post 04/19/2026 13:36     Subject: How do middle class kids afford med school?

Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:In the 1980s, many paid for medical school with massive student loans. It is not a new issue.


These loans are now capped.
We are using what’s left in 529 for housing/tests/fees and paying tuition only with loan. Applying for financial aid, but most schools only offer after 1st year. Will do work study to offset tuition.


Even decades ago, there were caps on Federal student loans. It was not unusual for a medical student to also have some non-Federal loans in addition to Federal loans. Medical students who survive the first year (and most will survive) are a good credit risk.

Again, this is not a new problem.

It’s not a new problem but the loan caps have made it way worse in the last year exacerbated by tuition costs rising above where they were decades ago. We are looking at private schools with a cost of attendance over $100k and loan caps at $50k.
Obviously going to a public in state medical school is fiscally smarter (though we know a lot kids without a choice of medical schools who will go wherever they get in).


There have been caps all along. The caps are higher now than 20 years ago. I am very sorry it is not working well for you, but essentially the same situation existed 50 years ago, 40 years ago, 30 years ago, 20 years, and 10 years ago.


You’re not following along with costs and the new bill. We are at a point where attendance costs will significantly exceed the federal loan caps. You can say it’s always been this way, but the reality is it has changed recently.

https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC12658764/#:~:text=Results,medical%20school%20(Figure%20C).


There have been caps for at least 50 years. Even 10 years ago many had to take out private loans because of Federal caps. The latest tweak really has not changed the fundamental issue.


For grad plus loans, you could borrow up to the total cost of attendance, which includes living expenses. How do you not know this?


Tuition $70,000 and housing $20,000 (that’s low, doesn’t allow for food etc) =$90,000 a yr and that’s considered low. Anyway, x4 yrs and that’s $360,000 which is $110,000 over the cap. If one takes regular loans, they are due the month after loan starts. How can one pay the regular loan while in med school?