Fatwa Explorer
Sign in

Fatwa #1402511 March 2006United States of America

to go to Medical School however it costs a lot more than I can afford. I will have to take out loans for that and there are no interest free loans available

Question

My question is about student loans. Inshallah I am planning to go to Medical School however it costs a lot more than I can afford. I will have to take out loans for that and there are no interest free loans available. I contacted the companies which do Islamic financing for houses etc. to see if they finance students but recieved answer in the negative. There are some govt. plans where the govt. pays your tuition and you work for them for 4 years. I am of course applying for them but If I don't get into that plan, what should be done. I don't want to take interest. There is also a program where you sign up with the army as a medical professional and they pay your tuition and you work for them for 4 years as a health care provider on U.S bases in U.S.A. I don't know if I should apply for this program since it is the U.S army.  I am also thinking about going into the community and ask for some money from some people, but I don't know how successful I will be since I iwll need about $200,000 for 4 years and here in Houston not a lot of people have that much money.  I also need this education as a means to provide for my family. Can I take those interest bearing loans in this case. I personally detest this and am looking for a way out of not taking loans. Pls. make Dua  for me that Allah swt provides some way out for me. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Answer

We commend you for your commitment in trying to avoid interest bearing loans. May Allah keep you steadfast and make you successful. Ameen

There are three options that you may adopt in trying to secure the loan for your studies.

1. You may approach a few prominent Muslim business men or relatives and request them to assist you in offering you an interest free loan for your studies. If you divide $ 200, 000 over four years it amounts to 50, 000 per year. It is a lot easier to collect $ 50 000 a year than asking for the full $ 200 000.

2. The second option is that you obtain the government loan and work for them for a period of four years. There is a two fold benefit in this option. One, the cost of your studies will be covered without you having to be burdened to repay the debt. Secondly, the advantage of gaining experience in a public practice will be of great benefit to your medical career. Thereafter you may open your private practice with a greater experience and possibly some financial footing.

3. The third option is that if nobody wishes to offer you an interest free loan, you may request them to purchase the text books for you at a higher price. The excess amount may be in lieu of the possible returns that they would have earned from a normal interest bearing transaction.

And Allah Knows Best

Muhammed Zakariyya Desai
Student: Darul Ifta

Checked and Approved: Mufti Ebrahim Desai

Something wrong with this record?

Report a problem

This goes to whoever maintains the archive, not to Askimam.org. For a question about the ruling itself, use the link to the original above.

Sent anonymously. No account needed, and nothing identifies you.