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Accelerating toward affordability: a net present value analysis comparing accelerated 3-year with traditional 4-year
Rafael Rivera1, Peter Nalin2, Christina Vitto3,4
1Department of Radiology, NYU Grossman School of Medicine, NYU Langone Health, New York, NY, United States.
Purpose:
Increasing student costs and financial burden of medical education necessitate an exploration of economically viable alternatives. Accelerated 3-year MD programs (A3YPs) are a promising solution, offering shorter training and potentially lower debt. This study calculated the additional financial value and potential debt savings inherent in A3YPs vs traditional 4-year MD programs (4YPs), focusing on net present value (NPV) (ie, current worth of future cash flows).
Method:
The authors used NPV analysis to evaluate the differential financial investment and expected future cash flows for A3YP students graduating from eight US medical schools in 2022 compared with 4YP graduates. The analysis considered tuition costs, residency and practicing physician salaries, and medical educational debt as the basis for the financial calculations. The analysis extended from the first year of medical school in 2020 through 1 year of postresidency practice in 2026, assuming contiguous training with no gaps and no fellowship training, including 7 years for the A3YP timeline.
Results:
Sixty-six students graduated from A3YPs from the eight participating schools in 2022 (range, 3-17 graduates per school; mean, 8 graduates). The NPV for A3YP graduates was $240,349 higher per graduate compared with 4YP graduates. The most significant contribution to this higher NPV was the additional year of physician-level salary received by A3YP graduates. Additional contributions included savings from avoiding a fourth year of tuition and lower loan repayment costs due to decreased medical educational debt for A3YP graduates.
Conclusions:
This study offers a novel contribution to the ongoing discourse regarding the financial implications of medical education by providing a comprehensive NPV analysis comparing A3YPs with traditional 4YPs. A3YPs offer considerable financial advantages over 4YPs, which has implications for reducing medical student indebtedness and potentially addressing physician workforce shortages. Further research is necessary to explore the specific impacts on individual schools and specialties.
