Our Story

He spent years fighting to get into medical school. Now we're fighting to make sure money isn't what forces him out.

Eli did not begin his professional life in medicine. He comes from a humble Brazilian family — his father is a pastor and a public-school teacher. Eli first graduated in Biomedicine. But medicine stayed with him as the thing he was supposed to do.

For years he tried to find a way into medical school while studying and working. After he and Ju married, financial responsibility pushed him toward the pharmaceutical industry. He stepped away from healthcare because he needed to help support his family.

Ju kept believing that becoming a physician was what he was meant to do, and encouraged him to try again. Eli studied while working until he was finally admitted.

The plan they built together

Together they made a hard decision: Eli would dedicate himself to becoming a doctor, and Ju would take on most of the responsibility for supporting their household while he studied. They moved to São Paulo so Ju could pursue better opportunities and raise their income. Her career grew, and for several years the plan held.

Why the money became the problem

Medical education in Brazil is extraordinarily expensive. Eli's tuition is currently around R$ 10,800 per month. Without family wealth or assets to finance the degree, they became dependent on private student financing carrying an annual interest rate of roughly 42% ⚑ to verify against the contract. Every semester another block of tuition is financed, and the total burden grows. They used additional loans to try to restructure the pressure, and it became a debt snowball.

Today, despite Ju working full-time and running additional consulting and entrepreneurial projects, their available credit is largely exhausted. Continuing Eli's education has become financially uncertain — right as he finishes his fourth year.

We are close

Two years remain: the final clinical training and the last of the tuition. This campaign exists to get through that stretch — and then to keep supporters updated all the way to graduation and into cardiology training.