Non-Traditional Med Student 101: Gettin’ to the Money

Ok. If you’re a non-traditional med student like me or a non-traditional pre-med, the likelihood of you having racked up above average debt in attempt to get into med school…likely!🙋🏾‍♀️I was fortunate enough to have my undergrad degree covered 90% by my college and 10% by my parents. My 2 Masters degrees and post-bac…all me! I definitely entered into med school with above average debt for a med student, BUT by any means necessary, right? As such, opportunities to offset costs are of extreme importance to me! Sure, there are ample opportunities for doctors to have their loans repaid, but I like to reduce my loan requests as much as possible PLUS…I gotta live! Atlanta with all the building, revitalizing, (*cough cough) gentrification is rather expensive now. Every bit counts! SO my top tips for earning scholarships…

1. Pay attention to your school email inbox! The major scholarship I’ve had the entirety of med school was right in my inbox first year. We had just begun classes when the Assistant Dean of Students emailed us about this opportunity. I know school emails can be annoying to keep up with, but really pay attention to them and apply when you see scholarship opportunities! If your school does not email you, be proactive and ask the Financial Aid office if anything has come across their desk. They usually have the goods!

2. Write a personal statement that grabs your readers’ attention. It’s so important to stand out when applying for these opportunities. Tell a story. Paint a picture with your words. Remember those skills from 5^thGrade Creative Writing class?! Use them! The first line should absolutely snatch attention AND edges! The casual “I am interested in a career in medicine because…” should be off your radar. Instead, try “Flashing lights. Blue, then red, then white, then all of them all at once. That’s all that was in my purview the first night on the street medicine team…” Get it?

3. Don’t reinvent the wheel. Keep your personal statement and every iteration of it in a folder. Tweak and revise as needed. Ask your letter of recommendation writers for general letters without any program names so you can re-use them over and over. Med school is hard and takes up your time. I think that’s a major reason why so many med students don’t apply to scholarships. Take the time. Make the time. And make it easy on yourself by not reinventing the wheel.

4. Narrow your search! If you are doing a basic google search for opportunities, look for programs that are a bit more narrow in scope. Are you an army wife? A future elementary school educator? Are you blackity👏🏾black👏🏾black👏🏾black?!✊🏾“Minority scholarships” are amazing opportunites. The competition is nearly cut in half because of the huge filter in place. Only persons of color are chosen. Seek out those scholarships and apply!

5. Sign up for Scholly! This is a program/app that allows you to complete a questionnaire and be matched with suggested scholarship applications. Really does help with spending less time on the search and more time on applying. Yep, they have suggestions for grad students and med students too. I like to scroll through on my phone at least once a week to see if there’s anything new I can apply to. You can sign up for free (limited view of scholarship listings) or pay $2.99 per month or about $30 per year (that’s the option I chose!) to have access to more scholarship listings.

6. Apply for everything even if you don’t qualify! Just because a program lists a required GPA or standardized exam score…does not mean it’s required. I’ve applied for many a program for which, on paper, I did not qualify. I sho did press that submit button on my application anyway! I trust God to supply all my needs and if He wants me to have a scholarship, I’m going to get it no matter what my stats say. I have to do my part and apply. Don’t limit yourself. You just never know. And sometimes, not enough people apply to a scholarship and the money is defaulted to who? You!

7. Once you get into a scholarship program, give it your best! Always, always, always send a thank you letter! It’s kind and it’s professional. If there are scholarship requirements (a project, a conference, etc.), be sure to meet all deadlines. Respond to emails in a timely manner. If scholarship reps ask you to speak to a prospective student or at a gala to share your experience in the program, try your best to do it. Show your gratitude for the opportunity through your professionalism and willingness to help out. This only leads to more open doors for you.

I hope all of these tips help! Feel free to share any tips you’ve learned in the comments below! Now, here are all the scholarships I have earned throughout my med school tenure:

Aetna/NMF Rural Health Scholars Program at Morehouse

Anarcha, Betsy, and Lucy Memorial Scholarship Award

United Health Foundation/NMF Diverse Medical Scholars Program – renewable each year!

Dr. LaToya Smith Medical Memorial Scholarship

NMF National Alumni Council Scholarship

*Bonus Tip: Y’all. National Medical Foundation is it! I have never seen so many scholarship opportunities for medical students in one place! One of the best parts? The money goes directly to you so you can decide how best to spend it without your school interfering and snatching it up first! Apply! And ensure you are on their email list (sign up on the left sidebar on the webpage I listed) so you know when each scholarship application opens!

And now a word about this lewk: I LOVE a good power suit! You may have seen this one on many a blogger and celebrity this season. I mean, it really is the perfect golden yellow. Wearing this color in honor of the drop of “Beychella Homecoming!🐝” Here are the links to the exact suit: blazer & pants! And I linked a similar suit I’m loving on liketoknow.it ! Hope you enjoyed and got a lot out of this post! Go apply to an opportunity!

xoxo,

Anya

Photos by Tina Smith