<p>So I am talking to one of my friends about how I want to support my family financially during grad school (MD/PhD). I am thinking about getting another paid job to add up my MD/PhD stipend. My friend replied that I should not work, especially during my PhD period, because it can hurt the potential of my PhD thesis. This is pretty depressing because it means I have to live on less than 3000 dollars a month for six to seven years! So my questions are:
1. How does the typical day of a MD/PhD student look like? Is there like a clear cut start time and end time for most of the days?
2. Do I have to go to the lab during the weekends? At what frequency?
3. Based on your personal experience, do you think it is possible to get a job without hurting any of my academic potential? I want to work 25 hours a week. Do you think this is a feasible amount of hours?
4. What is your guess on the pay for an MD/PhD student in a part time job (related to the degree)?
Thank you so much for your attention. Your answers will definitely contribute to my decision of whether PhD or MD/PhD. It is a tough time now coz I am a junior.</p>
<p>I’d answer your question but I’m still stuck on the ‘hardship’ of a single adult on living on $3000/month…</p>
<p>(BTW, MD/PhD stipends are lower than that. Closer to $2000-$2300/month for 12 months.)</p>
<p>are we talking pre-tax or post tax dollars because certainly post tax dollars (i.e. what actually enters your bank account) will definitely be in the range that WOWMom mentions and that’s for schools with the highest stipends.</p>
<p>It sounds like you’re only asking about the grad school phase? The first 2 years and last 2 years when you’re in medical school (especially the last 2) I find it pretty hard to imagine having any sort of job beyond part time babysitting or tutoring - jobs where your MD/PhD status won’t really matter much other than you’re someone out of college.</p>
<p>Depending on your lab, you may have times that you’re required in lab but it seems like most PIs take the philosophy that as long as the work gets done it doesn’t really matter when it happens. This is nice because it means if you want to be free on any given night you can plan around it (different from medical school) but on the other hand there is ALWAYS work to be done. I write this from my lab on a Saturday afternoon. I could even come in tomorrow too but I’m not going to because I personally have decided after I spent two full weekends in a row in lab that I will always have 1 day that I don’t come in unless there is some major deadline approaching.</p>
<p>25 hours of work on top of everything else you should be doing as an MD/PhD student sounds impossible. The highest paying gig you could reasonably do is probably USMLE step 1 tutoring for a couple students a few hours a week (i.e. single digits). I was offered a job as an MCAT tutor for $50/hour from a high class private tutoring agency but didn’t take it. I could probably tutor Step 1 which I imagine would pay more and be more beneficial to me since I would be forced to stay on top of the med school material.</p>
<p>This is what the research world is. There is always something to be done and you always want to be the first person to publish it. I’m currently trying to figure out the mechanism of action of a drug. As far as we know, no one else is working on this - but we can’t know for sure - and so technically every day longer I take is increasing the odds we get scooped.</p>
<p>So the short answer is that YES, it will affect your PhD. The question is how much exactly and are you and your PI ok with that? (your PI probably isn’t)</p>
<p>Answers based on observation about D1’s roomie, a MD/PhD student, D2’s BF, a current STEM PhD student and my experiences when Dh was doing a STEM PhD.</p>
<p>1) Typical days are long. D1’s roomie’s days are anywhere from 7-15 hours long, 5-6 days/week. Hours include classroom, lab and other typical med school activities. Except for classes and required activities, you can set your own hours if your PI allows you to do so. But generally speaking you will be expected to be there during regular daytime work hours AND evenings/weekends if there are things that you need to get done. </p>
<p>2) You will be expected to be in the lab on weekends whenever there is work that needs to get done. (Which is often.) Experiments often need to be 'babysat" during weekends. </p>
<p>3) No. The research portion of a PhD is pretty time consuming. You really won’t have large chunks of time available to work at a second job. Sixty or more hours/week is not uncommon and at certain stages of a research project those kind of hours are pretty typical. Certainly you won’t have 25 hours a week of free time unless you completely give up on ever sleeping again. </p>
<p>~~~~</p>
<p>If you need extra money during your MD/PhD, you have the option of taking out federal student loans. You can get up to $20,500/year in unsubsidized federal loans. (Feds did away with subsidized loans to grad and professional students last year.) </p>
<p>If you need money beyond that limit, then you can take out Grad Plus loans (But you will have to demonstrate credit-worthiness and additional financial need to be eligible. Supporting dependents is usually grounds for demonstrating additional financial need, but supporting parents or other family members is not.)</p>
<p>First of all, thank you for the quick replies. I have been working on a research project at my college for over two year so it is for sure that I am very passionate about biological research. And, I chose MD/PhD because I want to do medical research and having basic medical knowledge will expend my career choices. But it seems like the years during MD/PhD will be tough on me. Do you guys have any other financial resources like scholarships (if not money from a paid job)? I know this is a personal question so any general answer would be good for me. I really need to figure out.</p>
<p>Yes getting loans is an option for me. I am really curious. Is that the passion that encourage the MD/PhD students to carry on despite the financial burden? On and on, I am continued to be inspired by the decision of MD/PhD students. I am not sure if I will be able to withstand the financial pressure though.</p>
<p>I don’t see how getting a MD/PhD is a financial burden. Your tuition is paid for and you’re receiving a stipend equivalent to what any STEM PhD student is recieving. (Which are the most generous of any PhD field.) </p>
<p>Unless you have exceptional financial obligations, you could graduate from a MD/PhD program with no additional debt beyond your undergrad loans.</p>
<p>I’ve not-quite-jokingly strongly encouraged my younger D (who has an exceptional research profile) to go MD/PhD because it’s so much cheaper for her to do that than to do a straight MD like her sister.</p>
<p>~~~</p>
<p>AFAIK, there are no additional scholarships available to MD/PhD students. Any additional funding comes from 3 sources: a working spouse/life partner; the Bank of Mom & Dad; loans.</p>
<p>if the goal is to be a full time practicing physician, the extra time spent earning the PhD ends up making the MD/PhD process a financial mistake because, as pointed out by the OP, your salary won’t go above 30k until you’re in your 30s. A straight MD in their 30s is most likely a full time attending over $100k even in primary care after being a resident for a few years with a salary twice that of the MD/PhD stipend. MD/PhDs are also not expected to be full time clinicians and research earns less than clinical work.</p>
<p>Everywhere I interviewed mentioned that the stipend was easily enough to live on as a single person or in a dual earning couple. Unless you have kids I can’t think of how you wouldn’t be able to at least subsist for the 8 years unless you just have no interest in living with a budget.</p>
<p>Be careful, many MD/PhD programs have you sign an agreement saying you will not take any outside jobs during your time in the program.</p>
<p>iI want to support my family financially during grad school (MD/PhD</p>
<p>What do you mean by this? Are you married? Do you have children?</p>
<p>Yes, some financially supported grad programs will not allow you to have an outside job. My older son cannot have an outside job - his PhD program won’t allow it.</p>
<p>I cannot think of a worse idea. Beg or borrow but draw the line somewhere before “steal” …or "work ". You will be doing yourself a great dis-service. </p>
<p>Few people have expected standards of living greater than my D ( an only child of peasants) and they are invariably children of the very privileged. If she can make it through a 5 year MD , you can make it 7 or 8.</p>
<p>OP, I have noticed that one way grad students and postdocs supplement their meager incomes is to religiously attend all campus events (no matter how tangentially related to their work) where there is free food. Over a year, this food cost savings can become material.
Good luck. :D</p>
<p>I’m stuck on the comment about “supporting family”.</p>
<p>I’m curious if the student is wanting to help support her immediate family (siblings/parents) rather than supporting spouse/child. </p>
<p>I think we all know that a grad student can live on $3k a month (my older son does with a little less in a pricey city), so the fact that she doesn’t think that’s enough and mentions supporting a family makes me think that she wants her income to be substantial enough to provide for several people.</p>
<p>Frankly, if she’s going to be spending 40-60+ hours a week on her studies while bringing $3k per month, then any non-minor aged family members need to put their heads together to figure out how THEY can bring in a few thou a month as well…even if it means doing yardwork, cleaning homes, or whatever.</p>
<p>D1 has mentioned “family loans” that some people in her med school class take out. (I assume these are Grad Plus loans, but I don’t know for sure.)</p>
<p>These individuals take out loans in [substantial] excess of the COA because they’re married and are supporting a non-working spouse with small children at home. </p>
<p>So I know there is loan assistance available; however, I doubt it’s available if it’s for supporting persons other than the student’s legal dependents (spouse, children).</p>
<p>I also have checked the rules for the unsub federal loans. Direct student loans will not be available to MD/PhD students. Since all MD/PhD programs I’m aware of pay tuition plus a reasonable living expenses stipend, their COA is covered and the school cannot certify them as eligible for federal student loans.</p>