Money
Paying for MBBS, honestly
The first question most families ask, answered with our verified fee data and loan math you can check — not a lender's brochure, not an agent's estimate.
| Type | Typical (median) | Range (10th–90th pct) | Colleges |
|---|---|---|---|
| Government (incl. AIIMS/central) | ₹2.90 L | ₹2.90 L – ₹8.10 L | 41 |
| Private | ₹24.30 L | ₹2.70 L – ₹72.90 L | 219 |
| Deemed university | ₹87.75 L | ₹8.55 L – ₹110.25 L | 30 |
Cheapest non-NRI seat per college, academic fees only — you will also pay: Hostel · Mess · One-time admission charges · Security deposit (refundable) · University & exam fees · Books, instruments & living costs. Abroad has no honest single figure: bring the agent's all-in quote to the abroad tool and price it against that university's FMGE record and your India options.
EMI reality check
Standard EMI math — you supply the rate your bank actually quotes (they move; we don't pretend to know today's).
Remember the moratorium: repayment typically starts after course + up to a year, but interest accrues from day one — on a ₹60 L loan, five years of accrued interest can add a third to the principal before the first EMI. Ask every bank for the post-moratorium outstanding, not just the rate.
How education loans actually work
- The collateral tiers: small loans (typically up to ~₹7.5 L, under the credit-guarantee scheme) need no collateral; mid-size need a co-applicant and often partial security; the ₹40–80 L a private/deemed seat needs is a secured loan against property or deposits at most banks. Ask the tier cutoffs at your bank — they differ.
- The college matters to the bank: banks maintain internal college lists and lend faster and larger against government and established private colleges; a newly permitted college can mean slower approval and stricter security. Ask the branch about YOUR college by name.
- What counts as cost: tuition, hostel, and one-time institutional charges are financeable heads; the bond amount is not a loan head anywhere we have verified — a college's bond terms sit outside the loan.
- Public-sector schemes first: the PSB loan schemes (e.g. SBI's student-loan family and its peers) publish their rates and margins; compare at least two PSBs and one private bank, and check the Vidya Lakshmi portal — one application reaches multiple banks.
Structure above is stable; numbers move. We quote no bank's current rate on purpose — any figure printed here would be someone's yesterday.
Scholarships worth the paperwork
- Central Sector Scheme (CSS): for board toppers in the family-income band — applies via the National Scholarship Portal (scholarships.gov.in).
- Post-Matric scholarships (SC/ST/OBC): state-administered, cover fee components at government colleges for eligible categories — apply through your state's portal every year, not once.
- Minority scholarships: merit-cum-means schemes via NSP for notified minorities.
- State fee waivers: several states waive or cap fees for their domicile students in state-quota seats (income-linked) — the state prospectus is the source; check your state guide.
- College-level aid: AIIMS-class institutions have their own concession structures — ask the institution, in writing.
We list schemes, not amounts — amounts change yearly and the portal's figure is the only one that counts. Everything above is applied for on official portals, free. Anyone charging to “arrange” a scholarship is selling you a form.
Before you borrow
- Up to ₹7.5 lakh is collateral-free under the central credit guarantee scheme (CGFSEL). Above that, banks ask for security — usually property.
- Interest usually accrues while you study even if repayment is deferred — the balance you start repaying is larger than the amount sanctioned.
- Apply through Vidya Lakshmi with your allotment letter, not before it — banks process against the seat, not the plan to get one.
- Compare the monthly number against a government seat's whole-course fee before deciding the private option is the safe one.