The Ministry Medical Group (MMG) Medical Student Loan Repayment Program offers students financial aid up to $200,000 while they are enrolled in medical education programs. It requires students to return to, and work as a primary care provider, for five years following residency, in an assigned Wisconsin community in which Ministry Medical Group has a facility (Amherst, Crandon, Eagle River, Iola, Laona, Merrill, Plover, Rhinelander, Rib Mountain, Stevens Point, Tomahawk, Waupaca, Weston or Woodruff). 

It also requires students to complete a Qualified Education Program (a course of study that prepares a student to become a licensed physician in the state of Wisconsin), and specialize in primary care: family medicine, internal medicine, pediatrics or internal medicine/pediatrics.

“Ministry Medical Group loan repayments will relieve some of the staggering debt burden many health professionals face, and provide them with the opportunity to practice medicine in the location and specialty of their choice,” Brant Bergeron, medical education program manager, said.

“The five-year commitment following residency is a time for me to grow as a physician and welcome the mentoring of fellow clinicians,” Cole Marschke, MD, an inaugural recipient of the MMG Medical Student Loan (now in residency), said. “Ministry Health Care is a great place to do that, and I look forward to being the next link in the chain in serving the healthcare needs of a Ministry community.”

The principle candidate should have the following qualifications: commitment to high quality care and the health of rural communities, demonstrate Ministry Medical Group’s values and promise to patients, a demonstrated commitment to practice medicine in a rural setting to meet the medical needs of the communities, and a strong desire to live a rural lifestyle and develop social ties within the community.

Special consideration will be made for students with ties to Ministry Health Care, or who are associates of Ministry Health Care, or who have graduated from communities in which Ministry Health Care has facilities. Exceptions include: family members of physicians employed by Ministry organizations, family members of physicians on the medical staff of Ministry organizations or Ministry organization “insiders” (officers or directors) and their family members. 

The application deadline is March 3. Applications are available at www.ministryhealth.org. Click on the “Careers” tab, the “Student Opportunities” link, and “Clinicals/Rotations” link to access the medical student loan application electronically. To request a brochure/paper application contact Brant Bergeron via email at [email protected], or by calling 715-343-3371.