A review of the nation's medical schools found Mayo Clinic School of Medicine is one of the best at minimizing the amount of student debt.

Mayo's med school ranked fifth among 110 medical schools throughout the country, with an average indebtedness of $69,695, according to a recent study.

The rankings, put together by Student Loan Hero a website dedicated to providing students and graduates with solutions to organize, manage and repay their student loans uses data from the U.S. News & World Report rankings of the Best Medical Schools.

Student Loan Hero ranked the schools using three factors: the level of indebtedness for medical school graduates, the cost of annual in-state tuition to attend the medical school full time and the percentage of students receiving institutional aid in the form of scholarships or grants.

The ranking notes "despite having the highest tuition rates of any of the top 20 medical schools, Mayo Clinic's scholarships and grants significantly offset these costs."

Mayo Clinic graduates have some of the lowest levels of medical school debt, according to the survey, with students owing about $95,100 less than the study's average.

The site notes that "although being a doctor can be a rewarding profession, the cost of medical school can be a huge barrier for aspiring students," and points to the $164,800 national average for medical school student debt.

"This level of debt results in financial and career stress, and can make doctors feel weighted down," said Elyssa Kirkham, the study's lead researcher in an email. "It can even affect career choices if a graduate feels financial pressure to pursue higher pay, even if it's not an otherwise interesting or appealing position."

The school, with an annual tuition of $49,900 also gives about 91 percent of its students some sort of financial aid, according to the rankings.

Outranking Mayo's medical school for the top four spots were East Carolina University (Brody),with an average debt of $112,692; University of New Mexico, with an average debt of $126,783; Baylor College of Medicine, with an average debt of $99,882; and Texas A&M Health Science Center, with an average debt of $128,797.

Some of the top average debts are higher than Mayo's because of how each of the three factors are weighted -- the average indebtedness is weighted at half, and annual tuition and the portion of students receiving scholarships and grants, are each weighted at a quarter.

"Graduates of the Mayo Clinic can command high pay and have more career opportunities, but won't be held back by high levels of medical school debt," Kirkham said. "Financially, this puts them far ahead of the pack."

Link:

Mayo med school ranked among best at minimizing debt - Post-Bulletin