Budget Your MD Newsletter: Issue 1.0
Picture yourself as the Alexander Hamilton of med school finances, rewriting the playbook and avoiding the mistakes that have left others in debt. Just as Hamilton laid the groundwork for a new nation’s prosperity with careful planning and bold vision, you’re crafting a financial plan to propel yourself into a future of wealth and stability as a physician. By learning from the missteps of those who came before and making smart, deliberate choices now, you’re building a foundation that will set you—and future doctors—up for success.
In today’s email:
Who’s behind this? A fellow student with a ton of passion.
There is a first for everything… Why I am doing this.
1,000 hours of Excel. Creating a tool, jam packed with value.
👇 TRY IT NOW: Determine how much student debt is too much… and build scenarios based on specialty choice, family plans and more! Click and try it yourself.
THE BIG IDEA
Who’s behind this?
Everyone has a backup plan if they don’t get accepted into medical school. Mine was to become a financial planner. I’ve always seen the job as the “doctor” of personal finance for the everyday person. Diagnosing the issues holding people back from financial freedom. Whether every financial advisor takes that approach, is up for debate. In 2020, I was accepted to study medicine in wonderful Northern BC (I’ve attached a photo of Prince George above). At that time, I was happily working side-by-side with a financial planner, creating wealth management plans and portfolios. Being a physician was always a dream of mine, and still is, so I took to the highway and moved up North.
Throughout my experience, I’ve laid in bed wondering how to improve financial education for my colleagues. Is there anyway that I could combine my dream of a career in medicine with my passion for money management? That was an intimidating thought and still is. As doctors we feel a pressure to act completely altruistic. There is guilt tied to the premise that you pursued a career in medicine for financial stability. I find myself in the middle, understanding the financial impact of a high earning career and grateful to be of assistance to people during vulnerable moments. I take pride in maximizing a great income and want to make sure I move forward with proper planning.
Where am I now? I’ve just started my Family Practice residency, in guess where? Prince George. I wouldn’t say the town has won me over yet, but it’s not as bad as people say. I like to remind those who hate… it has a Costco. At times I feel crazy for pursuing this dream while balancing the life of a new resident. But I find myself continually coming back to the idea of growing this dream. I’d appreciate it more than you’d know if you join in on the ride with me.
There is a first for everything…
Did I think when starting medical school I’d have this urge to start a newsletter? No, it wasn’t a part of my bingo card. But here we are. I wouldn’t consider my self the best writer. What I do know is I have a passion for equipping medical students and residents with the financial knowledge to excel in their career as a physician.
After graduating medical school and starting residency I’ve formed a small hypothesis for why you come across those grumpy preceptors in clerkship that don’t want anything to do with you. It could start anywhere, but I believe that the root may be poor financial management beginning as a medical student. Huge line of credit debt, student loans, possibly a car loan and a mortgage? Many new to practice physicians are stuck in the endless cycle of repaying debt for previous and future purchases. What are we left to do when the debt becomes crippling? Work more. Medicine is an amazing career, which provides so much value in being able to help people. But we directly exchange our time for income/money in return. This means when financial stress arises, more time is spent at work to make that extra buck and less time with family, friends and the things that keep us balanced outside of work. It is in those moments the lack of autonomy and endless hours of work that we start seeing the symptoms of burnout.
This is why I started Budget Your MD. Let’s actively discuss money and debt management early in our careers so we can take back that autonomy we crave for our future. With the tools and resources that I’ve created I hope to begin the change in our industry so finances become less of a reason for future physician burnout. You could have a huge interest in the game of money management or have no idea where to start. I believe you can find something valuable by engaging with our material.
Did you know?
A Heavy Debt Burden 🪨 Canadian medical students graduate with an average debt of over $100,000, with nearly a third carrying debt loads over $200,000.
A Hefty Price Tag 🤑 Nearly 70% of Canadian medical students graduate with some form of debt, with over 30%carrying loans exceeding $150,000.
Growing Over Time 📈 Medical school tuition in Canada has increased by more than 200% over the last two decades, outpacing inflation and the earnings of new graduates.
1,000 Hours of Excel
During my undergrad I was like most “pre-med” students taking biology, chemistry and physics because that’s what is needed to get into medical school right? Looking back on this, I sometimes question how those courses really fit into the knowledge required to be a great physician. But hey? The MCAT is a requirement and it definitely tests you on those subjects.
One course I did take that has stuck with me throughout my life thus far was BUSI 176: Introduction to Business Research & Decision Making. In clearer terms, Microsoft Excel for dummies. I’ve used those skills in countless scenarios but none I’m more proud of than the Debt Projection Tool.
I noticed a trend amongst medical students in their stress about things like student loans and LOC debt. Option 1; they're beyond stressed about their current LOC balance and believe they will never be able to pay it off. Option 2; they don’t worry enough about their debt and continue to spend beyond their means. My beyond complicated excel spreadsheet I call the Debt Projection Tool, will answer the question of “am I crazy for worrying this much?” or “should I be worrying more”. By answering 25 simple questions about your current financial landscape, the tool will give you a personalized report on where your debt is heading. In addition, to help with the longstanding question of what type of medicine should I practice? I customized the tool to show you the outcome based on 3 scenarios where you input future aspirations like family size and house purchase to account for those major milestones.
Until next Saturday…
Christian Wigmore (he/him)
Founder of Budget Your MD
PGY-1 UBC Family Medicine
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