The U.S. News Short List, separate from our overall rankings, is a regular series that magnifies individual data points in hopes of providing students and parents a way to find which undergraduate or graduate programs excel or have room to grow in specific areas. Be sure to explore The Short List: College, The Short List: Grad School and The Short List: Online Programs to find data that matter to you in your college or grad school search.
Few jobs pay as much as a doctor’s salary. Dermatologists, surgeons, gynecologists and other types of physicians often make $200,000 or more, but they may spend almost as much as a year’s salary to get into these careers.
Graduates from public medical schools who took out loans had an average of $167,763 in debt in 2014, and for private school graduates who borrowed, it was $190,053, according to an October report from the Association of American Medical Colleges. The report only tracks debt for M.D.-granting institutions.
[Get the facts about borrowing specialized health care student loans.]
Tuition and fees at private institutions can be especially high, but some schools stand out for keeping costs relatively low. At Baylor College of Medicine, for example, tuition and fees for out-of-state students during the 2014-2015 school year are $31,618. Baylor had the lowest tuition and fees among private schools, according to data submitted to U.S. News by 48 ranked schools.
It also topped this list of 10 schools last year and is again followed by many of the private schools that were most affordable in 2013-2014, such as the University of Pikeville and the Miller School of Medicine at the University of Miami. New to this year’s list is Howard University. Tuition and fees at the school are $46,838 for this school year.
Find out [which private medical schools award the most financial aid.]
Among all private institutions, the average cost of tuition and fees for the 2014-2015 school year is $51,044. The average among the 10 least expensive private medical schools is $42,251.
Medical students at Columbia University pay more than students at any other private school: $59,063.
Explore the [2016 Best Medical Schools.]
Below is a list of the 10 private schools with the lowest tuition and fees for the 2014-2015 school year. Unranked schools, which did not meet certain criteria required by U.S. News to be numerically ranked, were not considered for this report.
| School (name) (state) | Tuition and fees (2014-2015) | U.S. News research rank | U.S. News primary care rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Baylor College of Medicine (TX) | $31,618 | 21 | 11 |
| Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine (PA) | $32,510 | RNP* | 57 (tie) |
| University of Pikeville (KY) | $40,120 | RNP | RNP |
| Edward Via College of Osteopathic Medicine–Virginia and Carolinas | $42,500 | RNP | RNP |
| University of Miami (Miller) | $42,610 | 45 (tie) | RNP |
| Lincoln Memorial University (DeBusk) (TN) | $44,320 | RNP | RNP |
| Touro College of Osteopathic Medicine (NY) | $45,950 | RNP | RNP |
| Howard University (DC) | $46,838 | RNP | RNP |
| Mayo Medical School (MN) | $47,470 | 27 | 42 (tie) |
| Rocky Vista University (CO) | $48,578 | RNP | RNP |
Note: While Baylor College of Medicine, Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine and the University of Miami’s Miller School of Medicine are private programs, these schools offer different rates for in-state and out-of-state students. The programs’ in-state tuition rates are lower than the out-of-state rates provided in this article.
* RNP denotes an institution that is ranked in the bottom one-fourth of all medical and osteopathic schools. U.S. News calculates a rank for the school but has decided not to publish it.
Don’t see your school in the top 10? Access the U.S. News Medical School Compass to find information on tuition and fees, complete rankings and much more. School officials can access historical data and rankings, including of peer institutions, via U.S. News Academic Insights.
U.S. News surveyed 156 medical schools for our 2014 survey of research and primary care programs. Schools self-reported myriad data regarding their academic programs and the makeup of their student body, among other areas, making U.S. News’ data the most accurate and detailed collection of college facts and figures of its kind. While U.S. News uses much of this survey data to rank schools for our annual Best Medical Schools rankings, the data can also be useful when examined on a smaller scale. U.S. News will now produce lists of data, separate from the overall rankings, meant to provide students and parents a means to find which schools excel, or have room to grow, in specific areas that are important to them. While the data come from the schools themselves, these lists are not related to, and have no influence over, U.S. News’ rankings of Best Colleges, Best Graduate Schools or Best Online Programs. The tuition and fees data above are correct as of March 17, 2015.
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10 Most Affordable Private Medical Schools originally appeared on usnews.com
