Overview
Internal medicine is a 3-year residency ending in an attending salary near $240K. Two different futures split the decision: hospital-employed IM docs at nonprofits usually win with PSLF; private-practice IM docs often prefer refinancing or aggressive payoff.
Physician salary & compensation
Median salary
$240K
Range
$210K – $290K
Source
MGMA 2025 / Doximity 2025
Residency training timeline
Training years
3y
PGY-1 salary
$65K
Annual growth
2.0%
Fellowship
Optional
Not baked into training
Most internal medicine trainees follow a 3-year track. PGY-1 pay starts around $65K with roughly 2.0% annual raises.
PSLF & forgiveness strategy
PSLF fit depends heavily on employer: academic + VA + large health-system jobs usually qualify; private practice usually does not.
Our pick · PSLF at a nonprofit, refinance in private practice
Repayment recommendation
With a 3-year training track, PSLF clears the decade at year 10 of attending. If you land in private practice, refinancing to 3–5% knocks 2–4 years off payoff and saves $30K–80K in interest.
Run your numbers for Internal MedicineKey takeaways
- Subspecialty fellowship (cards, GI, etc.) adds 3 years and usually makes PSLF easier
- Hospitalist income at $300K+ starts to tilt math toward aggressive payoff
- Refinance offers cluster around 4–5% for high-credit attending IM docs
Ready to model your debt strategy?
Compare PSLF, refinancing, and aggressive payoff for your Internal Medicine scenario — pre-filled with the salary and training defaults from this page.
Open the calculator