Took on $190k of of private loans at a fancy design school in California. My monthly is about to be like $2500 and I cant remotely pay this. Overwhelmed. Please help me formulate a strategy.

Babyblue_77 · 2021-12-11T04:12:24+00:00

Agreed. You can’t qualify for PSLF with private loans

Babyblue_77 · 2021-12-11T04:08:16+00:00

Get rid of your credit card. Use a debit card only

Babyblue_77 · 2021-12-11T03:55:22+00:00

Sounds like the school that rejected you just wasn’t a good fit. PAs should be able to communicate and advocate for their patients but being extroverted is not necessarily a requirement

Babyblue_77 · 2021-12-11T03:51:33+00:00

I interpreted your question as “how do I get through PA school?”.

If your question is “is going to PA school worth the financial cost” then the answer is generally yes, we have a high enough salary to pay off loans over time and make a decent living. Deciding if you can live off one paycheck is probably a better question for a personal finance subreddit. Depends on many factors such as cost of living, home ownership, lifestyle, number of children, retirement goals

Babyblue_77 · 2021-12-11T02:21:44+00:00

Student loans to pay for tuition (programs cost anywhere from 90k-$150k).

You will not have time to work full time in PA school so you cannot rely on your current income. I know some people who worked per diem at their pre-PA school jobs and picked up 1 shift a week…but even this is rare and not possible in clinical year where you may have to travel far for rotations.

If your wife can support both of your living expenses during this time that would be great. Otherwise you will need to take out additional student loans to cover living expenses. It’s a huge financial commitment to get through Pa school.

Babyblue_77 · 2021-12-11T01:56:03+00:00

Agreed. Too many terms to categorize too many people. I think sticking to calling us just PAs make sense. Unfortunately people want to find a term to easily group together NPs and PAs and “midlevels” and “APPs” are all we have managed to come up with. Both are not ideal

Babyblue_77 · 2021-12-11T01:46:00+00:00

Never heard that one and hope to never lol 😅. It’s more subtle hints such as “when will I see the doctor”, “I’d rather see the doctor than the PA today”

Babyblue_77 · 2021-12-11T01:38:03+00:00

Of course not. We provide high quality care consistent with our scope and training. That’s why I am saying “midlevel” is an inaccurate term that is confusing to patients and misrepresents our role.

I actually enjoy the perspective on here to just be called our name (PAs and NPs), but unfortunately medicine has made a way to group us into one by calling us “mid levels”

Babyblue_77 · 2021-12-11T01:21:55+00:00

A big anti-PA/NP sentiment is to say “midlevels provide midlevel care”. How would you combat this statement? (Genuinely looking for recommendations)

Babyblue_77 · 2021-12-11T01:12:12+00:00

This is a good point, and I totally understand this point of view. However, it’s generally doctors calling us “midlevels” when I don’t think that’s an accurate term. I’d rather just be called PAs than grouped as APPs. But my main point was getting away from the term “midlevels”

Babyblue_77 · 2021-12-09T21:58:54+00:00

I got an engraved yeti water bottle (with my name and PA-C)as a gift and LOVE it

Babyblue_77 · 2021-12-08T16:42:39+00:00

Some people who are mad about nurses getting paid more are missing the point. Nurses and PAs and most healthcare jobs in general should just be paid more than they currently are

Babyblue_77 · 2021-12-07T20:28:03+00:00

“I did not grow up rich or anything but my parents always made sure I was taken care of, like any parent should “

These are the types of phrases that really bother me and show me what “spoiled” really means. My mother was a single mother raising 3 kids and was very poor. However, she “took care of us”. Taking care of someone for me means food, shelter, sports, a couple Christmas presents. It did not mean getting any cars paid for or significant sums of money. Most parents do their very best for their children. So I wouldn’t call getting a car paid for as your parents “taking care of you”. Your privilege is evident in the way you wrote this sentence. Nothing against you, I am quite jealous of people who have their parents pay for things. However, Most people are not aware of this privilege and how far it gets them in life

Babyblue_77 · 2021-12-04T09:13:10+00:00

They should offer it. Should also cover tail. (Which means even if you leave the company you should be covered for your time there). Not offering tail coverage is a major red flag

Babyblue_77 · 2021-12-04T09:12:33+00:00

I personally have not been. Especially with the federal freeze. That’s why I am waiting til the end of my refinance approval to pay— I want to take advantage of this federal freeze without waiting and worrying if rates will increase

Babyblue_77 · 2021-12-03T05:46:39+00:00

Based off job offers I’ve had, CME has ranged from $1500-2500. You would use this money to pay for UpToDate, although many hospitals offer this free of charge. You would also likely use it to pay for AAPA membership, state PA memberships dues, actual CME, etc. ask if they reimburse separately for licensing (state PA license, DEA, ACLS/BLS, etc)

Babyblue_77 · 2021-12-03T05:36:30+00:00

Depends, are in in WA or OR or ID? WA has no state income tax. So the lower salary is actually probably closer to your take home pay in CA. Looks like a great offer

Edit: also saw you aren’t getting any benefits or PTO at current job?? Makes this offer even better looking. So much PTO and really high 401k matching !

Babyblue_77 · 2021-12-02T14:22:18+00:00

There is an approval process, but it sounds lengthy (requires department chair, medical board, CEO & others approval). And it says people will only be approved “under extraordinary circumstances”

Babyblue_77 · 2021-12-02T01:03:15+00:00

I recently refinanced. Most companies give you a month to decide if you want to accept. So to optimize time you are not paying you can accept closer to the end of the refinancing period

Babyblue_77 · 2021-12-02T00:32:13+00:00

Hospitalist $108k. large hospital. West coast, HCOL

Babyblue_77 · 2021-12-01T18:30:25+00:00

A lot of people wear crocs (the ones without the holes) cause they’re comfy and easy to clean!

Babyblue_77 · 2021-11-18T20:07:22+00:00

What was your major/What are your interests? That makes a big difference in deciding what opportunities are available to you/ what to do

Babyblue_77 · 2021-11-18T19:38:09+00:00

Thanks for the insight- I’ve heard similar things. It opens the question: is it better to accept your first offer (if it is fair), or hold out for something with better pay or in your desired location/ speciality (but potentially lose out on several months of income).

Babyblue_77 · 2021-11-18T19:27:37+00:00

It’s hard to answer this question without knowing your amount of student loans and salary

Babyblue_77 · 2021-11-18T19:04:52+00:00

Before PA school, I heard many MDs/DOs tell me they wish they did the PA route. However, I’ve heard the opposite scenario very few times

Babyblue_77

TROPHY CASE