The AMA is an excellent starting point in your search for financial aid information and resources. There are a number of other sources that are valuable in providing medical students with information and resources. Here, we present some of these sources, arranged according to the three major ways by which medical education is most often financed: Loans, Scholarships, and Service Commitments.
Please use this information in conjunction with the assistance of a financial aid officer or with the guidance of a trained financial aid professional. And please note that this page, by no means, represents a comprehensive listing of available non-AMA information and resources. If you know of other non-AMA resources that you would like to see here, please contact us .
Disclaimer – The following links will take you off of the AMA Web site and are provided for informational purposes only. Although the linked Web sites have been evaluated and reviewed, the AMA does not assume responsibility for the content of other Web sites.
AAMC's resources for current medical students
Loans
Loans are an inevitable reality of attending medical school. The following links provide information about different types of loans and how to go about securing them.
Public loans:
Loans for Disadvantaged Students (LDS)
The Loans for Disadvantaged Students program provides long-term, low-interest rate loans to full-time, financially needy students from disadvantaged backgrounds, to pursue a degree in allopathic medicine, osteopathic medicine, dentistry, optometry, podiatric medicine, pharmacy, or veterinary medicine.
Private loans:
MEDLOANS
MEDLOANS, sponsored by the Association of American Medical Colleges, offers private loans tailored to meet the needs of medical students.
TERI Loans
The Education Resources Institute (TERI) is the largest nonprofit sponsor of private loans for education.
Access Group
The Access Group is a nonprofit organization dedicated to providing access to education through affordable school loans.
Scholarships
Looking for financial assistance? M any organizations, including the AMA, award scholarships to medical students. Unfortunately, a scholarship can't help pay for medical school if no one knows it exists. The following Web sites contain searchable scholarship databases.
FastWeb
FastWeb offers a free, searchable scholarship database — a very comprehensive and accurate compilation of national, community, and college-specific scholarships available anywhere.
Other Scholarship Search Databases
Compiled by FinAid.org, this Web site lists and describes a wide variety of scholarship search Web sites.
Don't forget, a great place to start looking for scholarships is right in medical schools' financial aid offices. Be sure to ask about scholarships that individual medical schools offer locally.
Service commitments
Looking for a way to alleviate debt? Many programs offer to pay the cost of medical education (either up-front or through loan forgiveness/repayment) in exchange for a service commitment.
AAMC State and Other Loan Repayment/Forgiveness and Scholarship Programs
This site contains a searchable database of U.S. programs that offer financial assistance, in the form of loan repayments, for a commitment to service.
National Health Service Corps
The National Health Service Corps (NHSC) offers a medical school loan repayment program to clinicians in exchange for service in federally-designated health professional shortage areas.
Indian Health Services Loan Repayment Program
In exchange for clinical practice at an Indian Health Services facility or approved Indian health program, the Indian Health Services Loan Repayment Program repays all or a portion of the applicant's eligible health professions educational loans.
Indian Health Service Health Professions Scholarship Program
In exchange for clinical practice at an Indian Health Services facility or approved Indian health program, the Indian Health Services Health Professions Scholarship Program provides financial assistance for American Indian and Alaska Native students enrolled in health professions and allied health professions programs.
Armed Forces Health Professions Scholarship Program
The Armed Forces Health Professions Scholarship Program offers full support to medical students, while in school, in exchange for military service upon graduation. Contact your local recruiter for more information.
Content provided by: Web Site Communications