PHYSICIAN FINANCIAL WELLNESS
Graduating medical students are faced with a wide array of financial planning and wellness challenges. The median medical student debt has continued to increase, and there is a corresponding proliferation of federal repayment and forgiveness options. Other financial planning needs, such as budgeting and insurance, also arise during this time of transition. A unique opportunity to learn key concepts around budgeting, investing, insurance, and negotiation through independent and group learning experiences. This format allows for better analysis on financial decisions and to understand the impact of these decisions on both current and future financial health and wellness.
Prerequisites & course information
Requisites: MED SC-M 810 , 811 , 812 , and 813 Course Designation: Grad 50% - Counts toward 50% graduate coursework requirement Repeatable for Credit: No Last Taught: Spring 2026 Learning Outcomes: 1. Define budgeting and its role in the trainees’ life Audience: Graduate 2. Explore different budgeting techniques Audience: Graduate 3. Create an income-adjusted and -appropriate budget for both trainees and physicians early in practice Audience: Graduate 4. Describe how federal income-driven repayment programs work and how they interact with public service loan forgiveness Audience: Graduate 5. Describe the requirements for public student loan forgiveness Audience: Graduate 6. Demonstrate awareness of the NIH loan repayment programs for biomedical or biobehavioral research careers Audience: Graduate 7. Identify the options in loan repayment (IDR and PSLF, refinancing, and forbearance and deferment) Audience: Graduate 8. Discern the types of insurance relevant to physicians and evaluate best practices for purchasing insurance Audience: Graduate 9. Explore basic negotiation theory and how it applies to career and salary negotiations Audience: Graduate 10. Explore the types of retirement savings accounts and their relative utility during different stages in a physician’s career Audience: Graduate 11. Gain an overview on how to plan for financial wellness Audience: Graduate 12. Apply all the financial tools to real-life scenarios Audience: Graduate 13. Identify key terms in financial literacy Audience: Graduate Learning Outcomes: 1. Define budgeting and its role in the trainees’ life Audience: Graduate 2. Explore different budgeting techniques Audience: Graduate 3. Create an income-adjusted and -appropriate budget for both trainees and physicians early in practice Audience: Graduate 4. Describe how federal income-driven repayment programs work and how they interact with public service loan forgiveness Audience: Graduate 5. Describe the requirements for public student loan forgiveness Audience: Graduate 6. Demonstrate awareness of the NIH loan repayment programs for biomedical or biobehavioral research careers Audience: Graduate 7. Identify the options in loan repayment (IDR and PSLF, refinancing, and forbearance and deferment) Audience: Graduate 8. Discern the types of insurance relevant to physicians and evaluate best practices for purchasing insurance Audience: Graduate 9. Explore basic negotiation theory and how it applies to career and salary negotiations Audience: Graduate 10. Explore the types of retirement savings accounts and their relative utility during different stages in a physician’s career Audience: Graduate 11. Gain an overview on how to plan for financial wellness Audience: Graduate 12. Apply all the financial tools to real-life scenarios Audience: Graduate 13. Identify key terms in financial literacy Audience: Graduate
Sources
- Course catalogue ↗2026-2027