Veterinary colleges look within for debt-reduction strategies. Main ideas involve shortened preveterinary requirements, scholarships.
Representatives from veterinary colleges at the summit said reducing the time to complete preveterinary requirements—from four years to two—would reduce student debt, by decreasing total time in college, and decrease age at graduation, resulting in increased lifetime professional earnings. Plus, payments on undergraduate student loans would start after six years instead of eight, which would reduce the amount of interest earned on any unsubsidized student loans.
Read the full post from AVMA
Dr. Wise's Take
I think vet students often feel alone in the fight against rising education costs and resultant debt burden. Fortunately, that is not the case. In April 2016, Michigan State University, the AVMA and the Association of American Veterinary Medical Colleges came together for Economics of Veterinary Medical Education Summit. Some promising ideas for ways to assist students in the war against vet student debt were discussed.
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