{"id":882130,"date":"2026-10-14T15:34:20","date_gmt":"2026-10-14T15:34:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/882130\/"},"modified":"2026-10-14T15:34:20","modified_gmt":"2026-10-14T15:34:20","slug":"how-does-a-boston-medical-center-resident-make-it-on-85000-a-year","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/882130\/","title":{"rendered":"How does a Boston Medical Center resident make it on $85,000 a year?"},"content":{"rendered":"

After high school, she quickly dropped out of college and moved to Portland, Maine, working in coffee shops and restaurants and volunteering at Planned Parenthood. She made friends who were applying to nursing programs and decided to pursue a similar path, enrolling in a local college. There, a microbiology professor threw out the idea of medical school. <\/p>\n

\u201cAs soon as he said it, I was like, \u2018Oh my God, why has this never occurred to me?\u2019\u201d she said. \u201cI liked this idea of being a person in a scary situation who could make somebody feel less scared.\u201d<\/p>\n

Plus, there was another, seemingly obvious benefit to a medical career.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was like, \u2018Wow, how cool would it be to not have to worry about money?\u2019\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

The earnings: She soon learned it wasn\u2019t that simple.<\/p>\n

\"ChrisChris Torlone, a third-year internal medicine resident at Boston Medical Center, went through her medical backpack.David L. Ryan\/Globe Staff<\/p>\n

On paper, Torlone earns about $85,000 a year working anywhere from around 45 to 86 hours a week at Boston Medical Center, where she \u201cmatched\u201d for residency after attending medical school in Chicago. Her paychecks come out to roughly $2,160 every two weeks, after taxes, retirement contributions (about $130), union dues ($52), and other deductions. (A new union contract for residents<\/a> is currently in negotiations after the previous one expired.) She has also gotten a stipend twice a year for living and educational expenses \u2014 most recently, it was $2,250.<\/p>\n

Though her pay will improve after residency, \u201cI didn\u2019t ever imagine that as a doctor I would be living paycheck-to-paycheck, basically,\u201d she said. Her patients at the safety-net hospital often assume she can\u2019t relate to their financial strain.<\/p>\n

\u201cOne time, a patient asked me how much I make, and I told him,\u201d Torlone said. \u201cHe was really surprised. He was like, \u2018That\u2019s more than me, but that\u2019s way less than I thought you would make.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

The partnership: Torlone\u2019s husband earned about $24,000 last year at his uncle\u2019s Malden flower shop last year, Torlone said, working part time to accommodate her nutty schedule. The plan when they moved to Boston was for him to take over the shop, but the couple \u201cunderestimated how demanding it would be,\u201d Torlone said. Whether it happens now will be a matter of timing.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat is the dream,\u201d Torlone said, \u201cbut my husband is very kindly willing to put his aside for mine.\u201d<\/p>\n

The expenses: Torlone and her husband pay $2,600 a month for their 700-square-foot garden-level apartment, a one-bedroom with an office-turned-nursery. It was a stroke of luck finding landlords who \u201cdon\u2019t believe in raising rent,\u201d Torlone said, and the unit is blocks from the hospital, sparing her a commute. \u201cMissing any more time during the day with my kids would be devastating to me,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

\"ChrisChris Torlone moved a small table in her South End apartment. Torlone and her husband pay $2,600 a month in rent for the unit.David L. Ryan\/Globe Staff<\/p>\n

The apartment also comes with a free parking spot for their Ford SUV, a hand-me-down from a relative, which they\u2019re planning to trade in for a used Subaru soon. Car insurance costs about $187 a month; gas and tolls run about $250. Monthly utility bills for gas, electricity, and Wi-Fi, meanwhile, clock in around $200 to $390. <\/p>\n

They try to minimize takeout and coffee (about $100 a month) and mostly cook at home. Buying food<\/a> for a family of four is \u201cnuts,\u201d Torlone said, particularly because \u201cmy toddler eats what an adult eats.\u201d Stop & Shop, Trader Joe\u2019s, or Market Basket hauls run about $800 a month, with baby formula tacking on about $130 more. Diapers and baby wipes are another $175 monthly. <\/p>\n

\"ChrisChris Torlone looked over food in the refrigerator. Grocery hauls from Stop & Shop, Trader Joe\u2019s, or Market Basket run about $800 a month, she said.David L. Ryan\/Globe Staff<\/p>\n

Torlone tries to pinch pennies on other kid expenses, thrifting baby clothes and nabbing a scooter for her toddler for $50 on Facebook Marketplace instead of spending $130 retail.<\/p>\n

One perk of working in a hospital? Free health coverage for her whole family (with minor copays). <\/p>\n

The debt: But Torlone\u2019s career choice also means being saddled with debt. Lots and lots of debt. \u201cI owe the government, like, $420,000,\u201d she said \u2014 all from med school, plus interest.<\/p>\n

Torlone had been paying nothing under the SAVE repayment plan, but after that was struck down earlier this year<\/a>, she enrolled in a different plan requiring monthly $275 monthly payments. \u201cThey\u2019re only that little because I have two children,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

If all goes to plan, she will make payments for the next decade or so, when her debt is erased under public service loan forgiveness<\/a> \u2014 \u201cif that still exists, dear God,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

The child care: Until recently, \u201cour childcare has been the grandmothers,\u201d Torlone said, but \u201cnow that we have two under 2, it\u2019s a lot for even a young person.\u201d<\/p>\n

So Torlone and her husband started looking into day care for their toddler, a spirited troublemaker who loves Curious George. Then they did the math<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe were like, \u2018Oh my God, we can\u2019t even afford three days a week,\u2019\u201d Torlone said \u2014 $2,200 a month.<\/p>\n

They debated whether her husband should stay home full time, but decided against it. She already hates that becoming a doctor means losing so much time with her kids. \u201cIf he stayed home,\u201d she said, \u201cI would get so jealous.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"ChrisChris Torlone’s oldest child, who is nearly two years old, played with her stethoscope and badge.David L. Ryan\/Globe Staff<\/p>\n

Thankfully, a family member offered to chip in for day care costs, an idea Torlone might once have bristled at. \u201cBut I think my bar for accepting help has completely changed now that I have kids,\u201d she said. <\/p>\n

The savings: After they \u201cemptied their savings\u201d moving from Chicago to Boston, Torlone said, she and her husband have focused on rebuilding their nest egg. Because they sidestepped child care and student loan payments, they were able to squirrel about $30,000 into their shared savings account. (They also have separate accounts, but \u201cit\u2019s all kind of arbitrary,\u201d Torlone said.) But with those costs now materializing, \u201cless, if anything, will be going into savings,\u201d Torlone said.<\/p>\n

To put that money to work, Torlone is considering opening a CD account, which can provide a short-term boost<\/a>. \u201cIf we\u2019re gonna buy a house in the next three to five years,\u201d Torlone said, \u201cthen we want to be able to access that money.\u201d<\/p>\n

The goals: Often, that goal of buying a home<\/a> \u2014 in Melrose, perhaps, or on the North Shore \u2014 feels like a pipe dream, particularly when she dares to peruse Zillow. \u201cI stopped looking because it made me sad,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

She has heard about first-time homebuyer programs for physicians, which could offer a lower down payment requirement. Her parents have also offered to help, but she wants their money to be for them.<\/p>\n

\u201cI know they wouldn\u2019t offer unless they wanted to,\u201d she said. \u201cBut I also know that having kids, I would offer \u2014 I would literally do anything.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"ChrisChris Torlone and her oldest son played with her stethoscope. David L. Ryan\/Globe Staff<\/p>\n

The splurges: By and large, Torlone and her husband \u201clive like we are super broke,\u201d she said. A typical splurge is watching television with mocha chip ice cream. \u201cWe [have] just always kind of been simple people who are happy with simple life,\u201d she added.<\/p>\n

But as someone \u201cin the business of unpredicted tragedy,\u201d she said, she knows there is a time and place to splash out.<\/p>\n

There was a road trip with their oldest to Shenandoah National Park last year, which she estimates cost around $4,000, and a $1,500 family photo session in New Hampshire earlier this year. <\/p>\n

\u201cOne day, we are gonna have a house, and I want a picture to put up on the mantle,\u201d she said. \u201cAnd then I tortured myself over it. In the car afterwards, I broke down crying, and I was like, \u2018What have I done?\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

The future: As Torlone prepares to wrap up residency next year, she is wrestling with the question mark that comes after.<\/p>\n

She sees two main paths. One is a fellowship in infectious disease \u2014 her dream specialty \u2014 which would have pay comparable to residency and similarly grueling hours, she said. The other is working as an attending physician, which she expects would offer a low-six-figure salary even part time.<\/p>\n

The idea of flexible hours is particularly appealing, especially as she hopes to have a third child someday. But so much feels impossible to plan for.<\/p>\n

\u201cI logically know that I\u2019m gonna make more money, and that my work hours are gonna go down, and that things are gonna get better,\u201d she said. \u201cI think I just have to have faith and suspend my anxiety for now.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"ChrisChris Torlone is a third-year internal medicine resident at Boston Medical Center.David L. Ryan\/Globe Staff<\/p>\n

Dana Gerber can be reached at dana.gerber@globe.com<\/a>. Follow her @danagerber6<\/a>.<\/p>\n