Training in a Big City by Julie Muchnick
Every year medical school hopefuls and students research the country for that perfect combination of a great program in an ideal location. Many of those begin this search by crossing off their list all large metropolitan areas in fear that living there will only intensify the hardships of medical training. However, spending those years in a city like New York can also be a wonderful once-in-a-lifetime experience. This was an easy choice for us to make, as we both grew up in New York and were looking forward to exploring it further as adults.
While deciding to stay in the city was easy, choosing a specific dwelling wasn’t. Realizing that if we lived apart, we’d only see each other once a week at best, I pushed hard for us to move in together. Of course the fact that Michael’s medical school had student housing on the Upper East Side didn’t hurt either. Standing up to my wishes was never his strong suite and soon he was in the Housing Office picking up an application. Reading it we realized that prior to securing a coveted subsidized apartment, we were required to provide proof of our commitment to each other (my college roommates had a ball making fun of our Domestic Partnership). After all the paperwork was finally collected and submitted we were given a choice of a few apartments. In the end we picked the most expensive apartment but one with all the appliances and plumbing intact, not to mention a 24-hour doorman.
Although paying rent and other living expenses was a shock to the system at first, I loved remaining in my favorite city. While Michael didn’t see much outside of the library walls, we still tried to have as much of a social life as possible. I did all the planning and he did his best not falling asleep at the opera, ballet, the theater, museums, restaurants and various other parties. I felt that my party had been cut short when we learned that Michael matched in Brooklyn for the prelim year and in the Bronx for the remainder of the residency.
After learning that we did not quality for resident housing we once again got lucky and found a great rent stabilized apartment in Brooklyn, However, the program did provide us with a several hundred dollar monthly housing supplement. We also bought our first car and I finally got my driver’s license (growing up in New York I didn’t have an opportunity to get one until I turned 25). Michael wasn’t too crazy about this at first because I practiced my driving between two shopping districts. I was giddy with two incomes and much cheaper housing. We also discovered the new gentrified areas in downtown Brooklyn where many restaurants and boutiques have migrated to avoid high Manhattan rents. I’m still not sure if it was all the new restaurants, buying the car or getting married that prompted both of us to gain weight during the first year of residency.
At first we were both a little apprehensive about moving to the Bronx. Neither of us knew much about this borough but we soon grew to love it. While we did get approved for resident housing, I found the kitchen and closets (only 2) to be cramping to my style and decided we need to look for a bigger space. We ended up with another great rent stabilized place, which also included a balcony. After only a few months in our new home, we completely fell in love with the Bronx. The housing was half the price of other boroughs (and probably 3 times less than Manhattan), our neighborhood was very safe and friendly and there were tons of parks around. Whenever we missed Manhattan, we hopped in our car and drove a few miles south and our favorite Brooklyn hangout places were still only 30-40 minutes away. Plus I was closer than ever to the shopping mecca of the tri-state area – New Jersey malls.
As we get older and our friends are slowly moving out to the suburbs, we see our lives slowing down as well. We are finally ready to make a similar move and try a smaller city, while remaining safely close to New York. Neither one of use regrets remaining in New York for the past eight years. We were both too young to settle down with a house and a family and needed to have fun for a few more years. But we’re also proof that it’s possible to live in and enjoy New York (or any other big city) while struggling with a medical lifestyle and one salary. It just takes a little planning and budgeting. In the past eight years I learned how to live in one of the most expensive cities on a very limited budget and expensive taste. Remember there are bargains to be found everywhere, even in the New York City real estate market.
