BU vs U Iowa

[Deciding2014]

I have pretty much made up my mind, but would still like to hear other opinions. I haven’t really talked about this decision with anybody except my mom, so maybe somebody here knows something I don’t. The USNews rank difference is like 2-3, so essentially the same as far as that is concerned.

About me: From MA, lived in Boston area my whole life. I am interested in doing research in medical school. My goal past medical school is to match into a Boston hospital for residency, hopefully one of the Harvard hospitals. Current interests include surgery, cardiology, pathology.

BU: Pros: superior east coast match list, more familiar location, no worries about research opportunities in Boston, P/F pre-clinical, some accomplished students.
Cons: 120-130K more expensive pre-interest -- this will be in the ballpark of 200K by the time I pay it off. Liked the students here less.

Iowa: Pros: Better residency director score (on par with NYU), good research available, ability to do a few clerkships before step 1, very friendly and down to earth students, significantly more affordable.
Cons: new untested curriculum, non P/F, location (only been in the midwest for medical school interviews – no family/friends), regional-heavy match list -- worried I might not match close to home. No local airport so flying away for residency interviews might be a pain.


What do you guys think?

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[Bulbasaur]

I would go with BU since you specifically mentioned that you'd like to do residency in Boston.


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[JJMrK]

I would go with BU since you specifically mentioned that you'd like to do residency in Boston.
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Agreed.

 

[byaaaaaaah23]

Same as above. That is not an unreasonable amount of debt and think about how you'd feel if you didn't match in Boston from Iowa-- probably pretty upset. Not a guarantee that you'll match in Boston from BU but a much higher likelihood.

 

[JJMrK]

It's not even just about matching there (which is far more likely if the OP attends BU). IMO, if you want to train and live there, why go anywhere else at all? If Boston is what you want, stay and don't look back.

 

[yankees26]

I dont think it is not as clear cut as everyone is saying. 200K is nothing to simply ignore. I think if you are happy at Iowa, especially since you say you like the students there more and could have 200K more money, you could be perfectly fine there. As you said, Iowa has a better residency director score, so you could definitely match close to home if you do well. Does Iowa have an away rotation option?

 

[kittykattat]

Im curious how bad the loan dent would be at Iowa, without the extra 200k to pay off if you go to BU? I saw an above poster say that is not an unreasonable amount of debt, which it wouldnt be in itself, but I was under the impression that you meant that would just end up being 200k EXTRA. Like what are we talking total if you go to BU?

 

[Deciding2014]

Im curious how bad the loan dent would be at Iowa, without the extra 200k to pay off if you go to BU? I saw an above poster say that is not an unreasonable amount of debt, which it wouldnt be in itself, but I was under the impression that you meant that would just end up being 200k EXTRA. Like what are we talking total if you go to BU?

It would be around 80K debt at U Iowa, around 200K at BU.

 

[kittykattat]

It would be around 80K debt at U Iowa, around 200K at BU.

Oh well thats much lower than what most students are looking at! Go BU if you are set on that Boston residency. Good luck on your decision!

 

[cookiemonsters]

Graduating with 120K less debt is a pretty substantial deal. Iowa is a highly respected medical school, and as long as you do well there, you should have no problems matching back close to home. Remember that like 90% of students at Iowa are from the midwest, which is why the match list is so regional heavy. At residency interviews students are often asked why they want to go to a new part of the country, but since you said you are from MA, it will be self-evident why you want to match in Boston.

Going to BU might put you at an advantage to inbreed at Boston Medical Center for residency, but let's be real, BMC isn't exactly a competitive place to match to anyway lol.

 

[DermViser]

I have pretty much made up my mind, but would still like to hear other opinions. I haven’t really talked about this decision with anybody except my mom, so maybe somebody here knows something I don’t. The USNews rank difference is like 2-3, so essentially the same as far as that is concerned.

About me: From MA, lived in Boston area my whole life. I am interested in doing research in medical school. My goal past medical school is to match into a Boston hospital for residency, hopefully one of the Harvard hospitals. Current interests include surgery, cardiology, pathology.

BU: Pros: superior east coast match list, more familiar location, no worries about research opportunities in Boston, P/F pre-clinical, some accomplished students.
Cons: 120-130K more expensive pre-interest -- this will be in the ballpark of 200K by the time I pay it off. Liked the students here less.

Iowa: Pros: Better residency director score (on par with NYU), good research available, ability to do a few clerkships before step 1, very friendly and down to earth students, significantly more affordable.
Cons: new untested curriculum, non P/F, location (only been in the midwest for medical school interviews – no family/friends), regional-heavy match list -- worried I might not match close to home. No local airport so flying away for residency interviews might be a pain.


What do you guys think?

Based on your stated goals, the obvious answer is BU here.

 

[DermViser]

I dont think it is not as clear cut as everyone is saying. 200K is nothing to simply ignore. I think if you are happy at Iowa, especially since you say you like the students there more and could have 200K more money, you could be perfectly fine there. As you said, Iowa has a better residency director score, so you could definitely match close to home if you do well. Does Iowa have an away rotation option?

All medical schools allow away rotations. Hardly special in that regard.

 

[DermViser]

Graduating with 120K less debt is a pretty substantial deal. Iowa is a highly respected medical school, and as long as you do well there, you should have no problems matching back close to home. Remember that like 90% of students at Iowa are from the midwest, which is why the match list is so regional heavy. At residency interviews students are often asked why they want to go to a new part of the country, but since you said you are from MA, it will be self-evident why you want to match in Boston.

Going to BU might put you at an advantage to inbreed at Boston Medical Center for residency, but let's be real, BMC isn't exactly a competitive place to match to anyway lol.

 

[LuciusVorenus]

Definitely BU if you want to do residency on the east coast. I interviewed at Iowa and the thing that turned me off as well was the giant regional bias when it comes to the match. I mean, it's one of the biggest I've seen for a school where ~35% are OOS.

Also, forget about the residency director score it means nothing. I bet you the directors ranking schools are most likely just using last years USNWR rankings as opposed to remembering individual residents, their performance, and where they went to med school.

 

[Bulbasaur]

Graduating with 120K less debt is a pretty substantial deal. Iowa is a highly respected medical school, and as long as you do well there, you should have no problems matching back close to home. Remember that like 90% of students at Iowa are from the midwest, which is why the match list is so regional heavy. At residency interviews students are often asked why they want to go to a new part of the country, but since you said you are from MA, it will be self-evident why you want to match in Boston.

Going to BU might put you at an advantage to inbreed at Boston Medical Center for residency, but let's be real, BMC isn't exactly a competitive place to match to anyway lol.

BMC is prestigious in its own right, specifically in IM and EM. Maybe it doesn't have the fancy rads/derm departments that MGH has but you can literally say that aside from approximately 10 hospitals in this country, all others "aren't exactly a competitive place to match anyway."


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[Deciding2014]

bump for more opinions

 

[mrusiku]

Also, forget about the residency director score it means nothing. I bet you the directors ranking schools are most likely just using last years USNWR rankings as opposed to remembering individual residents, their performance, and where they went to med school.

Isn't that essentially what a residency director score is all about? I have a really hard time believing it's based on performance of residents, as if resident performance correlates almost identically with USNews rankings lol.

 

[LuciusVorenus]

Isn't that essentially what a residency director score is all about? I have a really hard time believing it's based on performance of residents, as if resident performance correlates almost identically with USNews rankings lol.

It TRIES to imply the latter if you read the description on USNWR.

I mean, what other reason could they have to include it? Showing how they're determining USNWR ranking by having residency directors parrot back USNWR rankings?

 

[waiting too long]

I agree Iowa is an awesome place but so is BU. The difference in debt is 120K not 200 as some posters said. Being a physician you will totally be able to pull off paying that back. The Midwest has less recreational opportunities than Boston and Iowa City isn't as easy to fly out of. Really the key is your desire to end up in Boston. OOS at Iowa is 1/3 of class so I would also be concerned about the match list being so regional heavy. In the end, you can't put a price tag on happiness and you'd be happier at BU (plus closer to family) so go there and don't look back.

 

[DermViser]

I agree Iowa is an awesome place but so is BU. The difference in debt is 120K not 200 as some posters said. Being a physician you will totally be able to pull off paying that back. The Midwest has less recreational opportunities than Boston and Iowa City isn't as easy to fly out of. Really the key is your desire to end up in Boston. OOS at Iowa is 1/3 of class so I would also be concerned about the match list being so regional heavy. In the end, you can't put a price tag on happiness and you'd be happier at BU (plus closer to family) so go there and don't look back.

Yeah, bc 120 K is just chump change. You realize there is compounding interest, right?

 

[waiting too long]

Yeah you're right. It is a lot of money and may be the reason OP could legitimately decide to go to one vs other-especially if money is their primary focus in being a doctor. Or the decision could be driven by just what they want for their happiness/peace of mind.

 

[Deciding2014]

FINAL BUMP, decision day approaches

 

[Deciding2014]

I picked BU. If it was a similarly ranked school further away from home, I probably would've chosen Iowa. Still not sure if it's the right decision for $$$ reasons, but I simply felt the potential for regret would be slightly higher at Iowa.

 

[JJMrK]

Congrats.