4 Weeks

We only have four precious weeks remaining. Along with our summer fun (4th of July pool party-with fireworks, of course), we are making progress on our LLUSM registration. Here’s what we have completed so far:

transcripts- with completed degree and from every college attended

background check

health form

financial aid

class list

The last step before we can receive our student ID badges is to obtain financial clearance. This may seem a little confusing since we checked off “financial aid” above, but financial clearance is different from financial aid.

Financial clearance is the just-close-your-eyes-and-sign-your-life-away step. To become financially cleared, you must pay off at least the half of the tuition and enrollment fees (~$24,000). There are several options.

• Inherit Apple.
• Happen to be adopted by Bill Gates.
• Enter into some shady business most likely getting you kicked out of school, especially Loma Linda.
• Patten the cure for cancer and charge millions which is just be mean.
• Spend quality time with your wealthy relatives.
• Rely on your loan and owe nearly three times as much in a few years.

Essentially, whichever way you choose, you have to come up with the big bucks and close your eyes as they disappear or we should say, are invested.

Financial aid, on the other hand, is a little less painful. It is the process of figuring out what help (help is nice) you want to accept to obtain financial clearance. More of an open-your-eyes-very-wide-before-signing step.

Important, life-altering decisions must be made, like how much you can pay out of pocket and how you will cover the rest. Options include scholarships, school, government, and private loans. But, make sure you read all of the fine print. We weren’t kidding when we said a loan can nearly triple by the time you pay it off. The paperwork can be very confusing, and you don’t want to miss out on opportunities that could save you thousands. As promised in our first $$money post, we will give more specifics concerning these financial aid options in an upcoming post (now that we have gone through the process).

To sum up this financial mumbo-jumbo: Financial aid is the help you get to pay off the ~$50,000/yr so you can receive financial clearance and start med school.

So, how did we do? Is the financial process clear as mud? Let us know if this helped and/or comment below with your questions. =)

-Janthony