Costs of a medical education: comparison with graduate education in law and business.

INTRODUCTION: The costs of graduate school education are climbing, particularly within the fields of medicine, law, and business.
METHODS: Data on graduate level tuition, educational debt, and starting salaries for medical school, law school, and business school graduates were collected directly from universities and from a wide range of published reports and surveys.
RESULTS: Medical school tuition and educational debt levels have risen faster than the rate of inflation over the past decade. Medical school graduates have longer training periods and lower starting salaries than law school and business school graduates, although physician salaries rise after completion of post-graduate education.
CONCLUSIONS: Faced with an early debt burden and delayed entry into the work force, careful planning is required for medical school graduates to pay off their loans and save for retirement.