The current Canada Bank Interest Rate for a medical student line of credit is at a low 3.5% which is also the current Canadian prime rate.  However, obtaining a medical student line of credit from any bank in Canada is quite difficult if you intend on studying abroad.  In the current economic crisis the banks are trying to protect themselves by tightening credit making it harder for students who are studying overseas to get the necessary funding.  It is very risky to lend to students who aren’t staying in the country to study even though the students themselves will be studying medicine.

Now more than ever students intending to study in the Caribbean, Australia, Europe, etc. will require a very strong co-signer.  The co-signer needs to be in the country, have very little debt, and a reasonable amount of income.  However, even then there is no guarantee that you will get the loan.

Awhile back I remember that RBC was giving out their $150,000 medical student line of credit to almost everybody even those studying outside of Canada without requiring a co-signer.  Now in some extreme cases you might require to have two co-signers if your initial co-signer isn’t strong enough.  These are tough times.  Once you get that coveted acceptance letter to medical school start planning how you’re going to pay for it immediately.

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I’m officially a third year medical student. Man it seems like I woke up one day and here I am. Honestly the last couple of years have gone by incredibly fast. Oh I’m still as incompetent as before, but the difference now is that I’m able to hide it in front of patients a little bit better. When you don’t know what the eff is going on all you have to do is nod, smile, and wink.. you know.. Sarah Palin style. If you don’t know how to wink then may I suggest turning your head slightly carefully showing only one eye to the target and then blink forcefully. It gives the illusion that you’re winking at the other person.

Second year medicine was OK. I still managed to get through it without missing an episode of my favourite shows, i.e. America’s Next Top Model, The Janice Dickinson Modeling Agency, The Real Housewives of Atlanta, Top Chef, and then a slew of medically related shows - the list goes on and on and on. I find that watching tv while studying helps. It allows me to multi-task, which is a pretty important skill to have when you become a doctor. It allows me to time manage - keeping all the shows in order is a huge task and quite time consuming if not done correctly. And most importantly watching tv while studying keeps me occupied enough so that I don’t rub sea salt in my eyes while learning useless histology.

Now that I’m hitting middle age - well you know, mid 20s - I’m starting to worry that I’m never going to find anybody that would put up with my crap long enough to produce me a little mini-me. You would think that being a medical student will get you a lot of, let’s be frank.. sex, but that’s not the case. I think the main reason is that we don’t have a lot of time to spare and sometimes a hand does the trickjust nicely. It could also be my pungent body odour - the economy is forcing me to save as much money as possible and deodorant was near the top of the list of things to get rid of - so back off!

Like most medical students, I spend a hell of a lot of time on YouTube. Thank god I don’t have Facebook because I would surely flunk out of med school if I did. Anyway, I love amazingly talented people along with pop. So why not combine the two in a Pop Medley? Enjoy. Oh and if you don’t know any of these songs then you’re way old. Sorry there’s no nice way of saying it.

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New Zealand is over-supplied with foreign doctors.  Roughly 4,000 have entered since 1992, and the country as a whole requires only 6,000 doctors to meet its demand.  These foreign doctors got in because a loose immigration policy did not check whether a person’s overseas qualification was recognised locally.  Many of these doctors are now sitting exams to register or are unemployed.  Legislation is tightening quickly.  You should therefore have a job offer before leaving for New Zealand and should have your contract checked by the Association of Salaried Medical Specialists (P.O. Box 5251, Wellington - Telephone Number: +64 4 499 1271 and Fax Number: +64 4 499 4500).

You will need to register (or gain temporary registration) with the Medical Council of New Zealand.  Visiting doctors can stay for up the 3 years for educational reasons or to supply an area of need.  However, it is only on the understanding that they will return home.  If attempting to gain full registration, you may well need to sit the New Zealand Registration Exams (NZREX) or enter vocational training.  The NZREX exam consists of Steps I and II of the USMLE exams, an English language test and clinical examination.  This provides provisional registration which leads to a 12 month probationary period.

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It is a fact that most medical students will leave medical school with some form of debt.  In addition to medical school debt, some students also have loans from their undergraduate days.  It is not uncommon to have $100,000+ worth of debt by the time you graduate from medical school and some students studying in the Caribbean will have accumulated a massive $300,000 debt for their medical education.  Scary isn’t it?

Luckily there are ways to leave medical school debt free!  I was watching an episode of “Private Practice” the other day (yes I watch that crap..) about a pre-medical student whoring herself out for some extra cash for medical school.  She wasn’t your typical Izzy Stevens (yes I watch that crap too…) who did “modeling” to help pay for her medical schooling.  First of all this girl hadn’t even heard of the MCAT and throughout the whole episode she was under the impression that if she had the money to pay for school they would let her in… Well maybe in the Caribbean… but not a US or a Canadian medical school.  I didn’t realise that being an “escort” was so glamourous.  She even got to go on an all expenses paid trip to Dubai with her “clients.”  Needless to say she got her ass kicked by one of her clients at the end and yet she still convinced herself that prostitution was the solution to her financial problems… ok where the hell am I going with this?

I know that a lot of you have thought about prostituting yourself to pay for things, well myself included, and I got to tell ya.. it doesn’t always work out the way you planned it.  So if you’re one of those people who are in lots of debt when you graduate, remember that at least you were able to borrow money to finance your education.  Some people aren’t so lucky despite being reallly bright and thus have to give up their seat in medical school.  I’ll be in debt when I graduate, but at least I’ll be in a secure profession virtually untouchable even during a recession.  Times are hard now, but there are thousands of people in far worse situations than you.

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For some people getting into medical school was the easy part. In the current economy, getting a loan to finance your education overseas can sometimes be even more difficult than getting into medical school. So if you’re a Canadian citizen and planning on studying medicine in Australia, Caribbean, UK, Ireland, or anywhere else in the world you’re going to need a pretty strong co-signer. This is because the banks don’t want you to run away with the money when you graduate. They need somebody in the country to be held responsible if that’s the case.

One of the banks that I deal with to finance my education in Australia is TD Canada Trust. The bank representative that I dealt with is very nice and overall the people at the bank are very nice and helpful. I was lucky to get a really good co-signer with virtually no debt. At the time of the professional student line of credit application they asked about my co-signer’s financial details. In addition to your co-signer’s debt, assets, and other investments, your financial details are factored into the equation. However, your debt shouldn’t matter as much because the application is made based on the strength of your co-signer. The representative told me that you want to aim to have a ratio of less than 40% (debt, equity, assets, investments, etc.) in order to have a strong application and increase the likelihood of it going through.

The professional student line of credit at TD Canada Trust allows medical students to take out a maximum of $150,000 total, but can be increased depending on the co-signer’s income and debt. The downfall of a line of credit is that you still have to make interest payments every month and this could get costly as you borrow and use more money. However, the current interest rate is set at prime and it’s 3.5% which is really good at the moment. Other banks offer the same line of credit and you’re probably more likely to get the approval if you’re already a customer of the bank in which you are applying for a line of credit.

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Unlike most student loans you get at the bank, OSAP does not require a co-signer. The maximum amount given to a student studying outside of Ontario or overseas is $210 a week. Therefore, if your study period is longer then you’re eligible for more funding. The trick to getting the maximum amount is to have your financial advisor approve you for more weeks than your study period. A good relationship with your financial advisor can get you a couple thousand a year that’s interest free until you graduate.

OSAP requires you to start paying back your student loan six months after you graduate at a pretty high OSAP interest rate of prime + 2.5%. Believe me it will add up. So getting more money than you need for school might not be the best idea.

As for me, I have both OSAP loans and also a line of credit from one of the Canadian banks. I would like to not be in debt but I know a medical degree will pay for itself later on. It’s not like I’m doing arts or something…

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How to contact Columbia Presbyterian Medical Center to set up you medical student electives:

Columbia Presbyterian Medical Center

710 West 168th Street, New York, NY 10032

Well known for its transplant program and its neurology department.  There is a busy ER.  It is a level 2 trauma center which can be upgraded to level 1 if necessary, but tends to concentrate on acute medical emergencies.  St. Luke’s Roosevelt and Harlem hospitals are the level 1 trauma centers.

Many people in the are speak only Spanish so a knowledge of this language is a great help.

At the time of writing, Columbia University did not cover for malpractice insurance, hence hands on experience has been limited for some.  However, the teaching is excellent with the opportunity to do research.  The ER has long 12-hour shifts and students get to clerk their own patients.  They are pretty flexible though about when you work.  The center also has an Urban Medicine and Immigrant Health Care program.  They run medical clinics for the homeless and provide palliative care.  Write to the Dean (Office of Student Affairs, College of Physicians and Surgeons, 630 West 168th Street, New York, NY 10032) if you’re interested.

For Accommodation contact the accommodation Office (Health Sciences Block, 50 Haven Avenue, New York, NY).  The Bard Hall is a hall for science students and is pretty basic.  You need to bring your own sheets.  It costs between $270-$500 a month.  There’s a gym on site and a phone in your room.  It’s not the nicest area of town, but you’ll be close to the subway.

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How to contact Mayo Medical School to set up your medical student electives:

Mayo Medical School

200 First Street, SW Rochester, Minnesota 55905

Telephone Number: +1 507 284 3671

Fax Number: +1 507 284 2634

The Mayo Foundation and Mayo Clinic is the world’s largest group practice and the the medical school is an important part of it.  The clinics are in three locations: Rochester (Minnesota), Jacksonville (Florida), and Scottsdale (Arizona).  Four hospitals (St. Mary’s Rochester, Rochester Methodist, St. Luke’s Jacksonville and Mayo Clinic Hospital Scottsdale are linked for tuition and the referral of patients.  All offer very high tech subspecialties.  There are also rural health centres.  There are great research opportunities with Mayo and because of the small class size one-on-one teaching is common.

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How to apply for medical electives or externships at Mount Sinai School of Medicine:

Mount Sinai School of Medicine of the City University of New York

Annenberg Building, One Gustave L. Levy Place

Box 1002, New York, NY

10029-6574

Telephone Number: +1 212 241 6696

Fax Number: +1 212 828 4135

Privately endowed and non-denominational, the school was founded in 1968. The medical centre has the Mount Sinai Hospital which has around 1300 beds and research laboratories. Additional clinical sites are located throughout New York City, New Jersey, Westchester County and Long Island. Many institutions, including centres for gene therapy, Jewish genetic disease, the neurobiology of ageing, transplantation and cardiovascular disease are associated.

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The University of Medicine and Dentistry medical school moved to Newark in 1977 to be part of a huge centre containing preclinical buildings, the University Hospital, an ambulatory care centre and a community health centre. East Orange VA, Hackensack University Medical Center, Morristown Memorial Hospital, the Children’s Hospital of New Jersey, the Kessler Institute and Bergen Pines Hospital are also used.

UMDNJ Robert Wood Johnson Medical School

675 Hoes Lane, Piscataway, NJ

08854-5635

Telephone Number: +1 732 235 4576

Fax Number: +1 732 235 5078

The Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital is the major teaching facility. The Cooper Hospital and the University Medical Center in Camden also provide training. There are also the Institutes of Mental Health, Environmental and Occupational Health Science.

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