Success Stories - A Physician’s Story - Part 3
He explained that he had approached a banking institution and had applied for a student loan and within the next month, he had been granted the requested sum with which he was able to pay tuition, books and even boarding and living expenses for the rest of the duration of his orthopedic career. My eyes glowed with hope and so did my brothers’, he told us that there were little requisites that we had to provide the banking institution to be able to apply for the loan but that he did not see any reason why I would be denied.
He also said that I must not run out the door and apply on the first student loan institution I could find. That it was of the utmost importance to be sure, as to which student loan company was best for my financial resources and me. That my brother was not going to be able to walk for around 4 months but that I, as a medical student, knew (and I did) that his recovery was going to take longer than that and that the medical bills were just starting to show up.
“but do not get discouraged” he said “you might loose this year, but not the entire career. There is always an appropriate student loan company that can help you, if not private, then federal and if not, then alternative. Keep looking and comment it all amongst yourselves; everyone needs to be involved since you will be needing your whole family”
I remember his words because they have been with me along my entire career and they have saved me many times after that day.
Therefore, after my parents returned two of my brothers and I went to see the student loan companies to see where I would apply. I did all the things that the doctor had suggested and resigned myself to loose that year, which I did despite my parent’s best efforts to prevent this from happening; but with my brother’s sickness we all had to pitch in.
Eventually, almost every single student loan company rejected me because of my family’s medical expenses, I did qualify for a student loan, but the amount was too low for me to even consider it as a possibility since it would only cover tuition expenses, forget books, boarding and living expenses. I was distraught, but then a window of opportunity opened.
In the same loan company that offered me that small amount, a private and unknown company they suggested me to change to a medical school close to home, that way I would only need tuition and book money. Still I could not cover it. Books are necessary when you are studying medicine; yet, I thought, if I changed to the best public school available I would not spend that much in tuition and the rest I could use in books.
My medical school was open to the change and I was able to keep in touch with my former teacher so I could make up for the lack of academic structure in the community college by myself. The loan I needed turned out to be even lower than what I qualified for and, in the end I was able to take on a specialty with another student loan, now at a better school and mostly paid by my own pocket.
That is what I did. Now I am a cardiologist.