The 2023-2024 MCASOM Budget COA is truly meant to be a tool, not a rule book for how you should spend your money.

The COA helps a learner gain an understanding of the cost of matriculating and includes allowances for various necessary expenses such as housing, internet service, food, and transportation.

Housing is often the largest expense in a student’s budget. Our cost of attendance provides a realistic housing allowance which takes into account that our schools are located in professional communities. Our housing allowance is calculated for a student living on their own. That said, we strongly encourage learners to spend less than the allowance on their actual housing expenses.

Here are a few reasons why you may not want to max out your housing allowance:

• If you’re borrowing money for school, the less you spend, the less you owe!
• Don’t forget about expenses on the horizon such as your clerkships, away rotations, and residency interviews. Those costs can add up. Leaving room in your budget will allow you to better afford those expenditures.

What are some ways to spend as little as reasonable on housing?

• Have a roommate
  • Having a roommate can be a wonderful experience! Not only do you spend less, but a roommate often means meeting new people, sharing experiences, and having a measure of social connection at home.
• Commute
  • A little distance may not be a bad thing. A commute can be a time to relax, listen to music or a great podcast and decompress before you get home.
• Efficiency over luxury
  • The more amenities an apartment complex hosts, the more you may pay. Consider an apartment with fewer amenities, especially if the price is right!
• Look in the right places
  • The online community #wearemayoclinic can be a great place to find a roommate or a place to live!

We all need a place to call home. We strongly encourage you to avoid spending your entire housing allowance on rent. There are other expenses on the horizon and the less you spend, the more you have for these other (very important) expenditures.

The first rule is to spend less than you have coming in.  
 
First, what’s your working capital? Are you living on student loan funds? Do you have a partner who works? Is family supporting you? The first step is identifying how much money you have on a monthly basis.  
 
Second, what’s the outflow of cash? What are your expenses? Some expenses, like utilities, tend to vary. Call your utility company and ask if they will provide an average for a particular address.

This way you can get an idea of the energy costs before signing a lease.  
 
We like to break this up into bills and spending.

• Bills are things like rent, utilities, car insurance, streaming services, internet, etc.
• Spending is the stuff we do on a day-to-day basis like groceries, household items, gas, eating out/entertainment, self-care, etc.

It can be helpful to use a separate payment method for our spending. This could be a separate checking account or a credit card (that is paid off in full each month). As you look back at your expenses, you only have one account to review!  

Why do I need to look back at my expenses?

The short answer is to track what you’ve spent.  

You also want to identify patterns that can help you make a more accurate financial plan. Notice a lot of takeout? Perhaps that coincides with finals/big exams. After you’ve identified your habits and patterns, you can plan accordingly.  

What is budget insurance?

If you live on a set income (such as a student loan disbursement), give yourself a little “insurance.” 
 
After you receive your student loan money or payday check, buy a gift card to the gas station and the grocery store. When funds are running low, you’ll have a little peace of mind knowing that you have money for fuel and food.  
 
Another insurance is to pay ahead on your utility bill. You can also look into budget billing and even-pay with your utilities. The utility company calculates an average energy use. Each month you are billed for the average use. Your actual energy use may be higher or lower; but the bill remains the same dollar amount. This kind of predictability can be really helpful when money is tight.

Everyone needs to eat! It’s important to get the most mileage possible out of your food budget. Before starting medical school, consider the following:

• Expand your cooking skills
• Take a class
• Watch some YouTube tutorial videos
• Ask a friend or family member to teach you
• Build your repertoire of budget-friendly meals
  • Budget Bytes is one of our favorite resources
• Follow budget-friendly foodie influencers  
• Research budget-friendly grocery stores near your future medical school

Did you know that the average American household throws away $1,500 of food each year? Yikes! 
 
An easy way to control your food budget is by cooking at home and meal planning! If you don’t know how to cook and meal plan, we encourage you to start learning this valuable life skill. 
Making food at home is nearly always more cost-effective than eating out or getting takeout. You don’t have to follow Martha Stewart or Gordan Ramsey either. Keep it simple and check out YouTube videos with searches such as basic cooking skills, easy meals, and cooking for students – you get the idea! 
 
Effective meal planning can start with a question as simple as “What does my schedule look like this week?” Your schedule can help you identify which day(s) you can cook, eat leftovers, grab takeout, or go out to eat. Having a loose plan of what your week looks like helps to answer the question, “Will I have time to make (and eat) this before it goes bad?”