Median tuition and fees of first year medical students are about $32,000 at private schools and about $30,000 at public schools for non-state residents. Median tuition and fees are about $14,000 for first-year in-state resident medical students at state schools, according to figures appearing in a September, 2003 issue of American Medical News.

In addition, the same publication reports that almost 54% of 2002 medical graduates are carrying a debt of $100,000 or more and 21% of graduates owe $150,000 or more. The rise in medical school tuition is expected to further fuel the growth in medical school debt, which in turn will have other repercussions.

"It is a concern because medical students often choose a medical specialty based on their level of debt, which is not the ideal way to pick a field," says Kurt Mosley, a noted physician supply expert with recruiting firm Merritt, Hawkins & Associates. "Ideally, students should be picking a specialty because they have a passion for it, not because they can more quickly retire their educational debt. Increasing tuition also may discourage many people from entering medicine in the first place."

On the bright side, Mosley points out that more hospitals and others employers are offering forgiveness of education debt as part of their recruiting packages. Such debt is forgiven over time in exchange for the physician's commitment to stay in a particular area.

"Physicians who thought they would be servicing educational debt for a decade or more are finding that they can retire it in two to three years and be free and clear," Mosley comments. "It's one benefit well worth exploring."