Kansas Medical Student Loan (KMSL)
Established by the Kansas state legislature, this loan helps students cover the cost of school in exchange for agreements to practice medicine in Kansas after residency.
This loan was created to encourage students to practice primary care medicine and psychiatry in the state of Kansas. It is awarded annually.
For additional information please review the Kansas Medical Student Loan informational sheets in the eligibility & deadlines section below.
Primary Care Deadline: March 1 for incoming first-year students
Psychiatry Deadline: September 30 for all applicants (M1-M4). Given the smaller nature of this program, all interested students will complete a Retroactive KMSL-Psych application regardless of their year in school.
Application: First-time applicants are asked to file a Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA. Students must also complete the appropriate Kansas Medical Student Loan Application, either for the Primary Care program or Psychiatry program.
Forms & Information Sheets (links open in new window)
- KMSL Primary Care Information Sheet
- KMSL Psych Information Sheet
- KMSL Physician Practice Site Approval
- KMSL Primary Care Renewal Application
- KMSL Psychiatry Renewal Application
Does it have to be repaid? Any person who fails to satisfy the service obligation must repay within 10 years to the University of Kansas an amount equal to the sum of money received in tuition payments and living expenses plus interest at the rate of 15 percent, from the date such money was received, with the first installment payment commencing 6 months after the date of the action or circumstances that cause the failure of the student to satisfy the obligations of this agreement.
Can a student receive funding for both programs (KMSL Primary Care and Psychiatry)? No. A student may only be in one program and must choose either the KMSL Primary Care or KMSL Psych path. Students in the KMSL Primary Care program are required to complete a primary care residency and then commence full-time practice in either pediatrics, emergency medicine, internal medicine or family medicine. Likewise, students in the KMSL Psychiatry program are required to complete a psychiatry residency and then commence full-time practice in either child or general psychiatry. Compliance in one program would be in direct violation of the other.
Award Maximum: Medical student tuition and monthly stipend
Need based: No
For more information, contact the Department of Student Financial Aid, (913) 588-5170 or email financialaid@kumc.edu.
Students who did not have a Kansas Medical Student Loan for all of the years they were enrolled can apply for the loan retroactively for the years they did not receive it.
For instance, if you received a Kansas Medical Student Loan your first year, but not years two and three, you can apply for the Retro Kansas Medical Student Loan for those two years. You can also apply for all four years if you never received it.
For each Retro Kansas Medical Student Loan contract, a student receives, one year of obligation will be required.
Recipients of the Retro Kansas Medical Student Loan also will be required to use those funds to repay student loans borrowed while in medical school. Any funds remaining after medical student loan debt has been repaid can be used to repay undergraduate student debt or other school-related expenses.
Deadline: September 30 of each year
Does it have to be repaid? For each Retro Kansas Medical Student Loan contract, a student receives, one year of obligation will be required. Any person who fails to satisfy the service obligation must repay within 10 years to the University of Kansas an amount equal to the sum of money received in tuition payments and living expenses plus interest at the rate of 15%, from the date such money was received, with the first installment payment commencing 6 months after the date of the action or circumstances that cause the failure of the student to satisfy the obligations of this agreement.
Award Maximum: Medical student tuition and monthly stipends as if the student had been receiving the Kansas Medical Student Loan from the beginning of medical school.
Need-based: No
For more information, contact the Department of Student Financial Aid, at 913-588-5170 or email financialaid@kumc.edu.
Frequently Asked Questions
What was the previous policy?
Previously, if a doctor completed post-residency training in any specialty except geriatrics*, the doctor was considered specializing. Once a doctor specialized, they were considered permanently out of compliance. The doctor had to repay the KMSL in full (up to 10 years of payments). The ability to fulfill KMSL through service was forfeited.
* The KMSL statute lists geriatrics as compliant training.
What is the new policy?
Doctors who pursue post-residency extended training that is 12 months or less (365 days) may go temporarily out of compliance, regain compliance, and fulfill the remainder of their KMSL contract(s) through KMSL-compliant service activities.
I want to complete post-residency extended training that is 12 months or less. How does this new policy work?
- Fill out the KMSL Extended Training Application Form.
- Student Financial Aid will evaluate your Extended Training Application Form.
- If the extended training is 12 months or less:
- Student Financial Aid will respond to let you know that the extended training would temporarily put you out of compliance.
- Student Accounting will send you a what-if repayment amount for the time you are temporarily out of compliance. This is based on your anticipated start date of your KMSL-compliant employment.
- If the extended training is 12 months or less:
What about post-residency extended training that is more than 12 months (366 days)?
Doctors who pursue this path are considered specializing. Once a doctor specializes, they are considered permanently out of compliance. The doctor must repay the KMSL in full (up to 10 years of payments). The ability to fulfill KMSL through service is forfeited.
- Fill out the KMSL Extended Training Application Form
- Student Financial Aid will evaluate your Extended Training Application Form.
- If the extended training is more than 12 months:
- Student Financial Aid will respond to let you know that the extended training would put you permanently out of compliance. The ability to fulfill KMSL through service was forfeited.
- Student Accounting will send you a what-if repayment schedule so that you understood the payoff amount or up to the 120 monthly payments you are allowed to make.
- If the extended training is more than 12 months:
Students
I am a KMSL recipient and have one or more contracts. When I became interested in post-residency extended training, I stopped taking new KMSL contracts. How does this new policy change affect me?
If the post-residency extended training is 12 months or less, you may go temporarily out of compliance, regain compliance, and fulfill the remainder of their KMSL contract(s) through KMSL-compliant service activities.
If you wish to receive new KMSL contracts, please fill out the KMSL Retroactive Application (includes both Primary Care & Psychiatry). Prior KMSL recipients receive priority consideration over potential first-time KMSL recipients. The number of KMSL contracts available varies from year to year. There is no guarantee we can award everyone who applies for the KMSL program.
Residents
I was previously told that completing post-residency training permanently put me out of compliance for KMSL. I want to complete post-residency extended training that is 12 months or less.
Please fill out the KMSL Extended Training Application Form. Because this policy change is an additional benefit, you may participate in the extended training, temporarily go out of compliance, and regain compliance to serve a prorated portion of your KMSL contract(s) via compliant employment.
Attending Doctors
I completed post-residency training that was 12 months or less. Under the previous policy I was considered specializing and was told that I am out of compliance. I am currently making payments for my KMSL contract(s). How does this policy change affect me?
Please fill out a post-residency KMSL Extended Training Application Form. We will evaluate your situation under the policy change to see if you can fulfill the remainder of your KMSL obligation via compliant service activities.
I have repaid my KMSL contract(s) in full. How does this policy change affect me?
The new policy affects current and future KMSL recipients. Because you do not have a KMSL contract, this policy does not apply to you.