New Online Tool From AAMC Helps Students, Residents Manage Loans

As medical schools across the country welcome droves of incoming students, the Association of American Medical Colleges, or AAMC, is launching new tools to help students in need handle the hefty debt the new school year brings. Medical students and residents can use these online tools, the Medloans Organizer and the Medloans Calculator (free registration required), to estimate and better manage their educational debts.

Simply put, the Medloans Organizer allows users to electronically enter, track and store loan information in a centralized location. The Medloans Calculator helps users figure out loan repayment options and amounts.

The tools work this way: After registering, users enter information about the types and terms of the loans they are carrying into the Medloans Organizer. Next, they enter information about their residency program and salary into the Medloans Calculator. The calculator then computes monthly amounts based on different repayment options, such as standard, graduated, extended and income-based.

The organizer and calculator are part of the AAMC's FIRST (Financial Information, Resources, Services and Tools) for Medical Education program.

According to the AAMC, FIRST for Medical Education is designed to help members of the academic medicine community -- medical students, residents, advisers and financial aid officers -- navigate the complexities of student debt.

The new Medloans tools complement AAFP resources on debt management, including the Academy's "Debt Management Guide -- Time Well Spent: Your Way to Fiscal Health" (13-page PDF; About PDFs) and information available on the Virtual Family Medicine Interest Group website.