Cornell vs Mercer vs GSU for pre-med

[MercerorCornell]

Hello everyone. I am currently having trouble choosing between three different schools for pre-med. I have been accepted to Cornell University, Mercer University, and Georgia State to study biology on the pre-med track (made the mistake of not applying to UGA). I am about 95% sure that I want to stay on the pre-med track and hopefully become a psychiatrist. For Cornell University, I will have to pay around 60k per year, for Mercer about 25k per year and for GSU 20k per year. I have read about the pros and cons of each university and am truly stuck between the three as Mercer and GSU outweigh Cornell in terms of cost and difficulty, but Cornell carries much more prestige and connections. I have also requested an extension for the deposit deadline from these schools and all have agreed so I have a little more time to decide. However, I am not sure which is the best option for pre-med and I hope to hear your opinions on the matter.

Thank you for the help!

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[LucidSplash]

As always, the cheapest one.

Back in ye olde day, I also got into Cornell. But they didn’t give me as much financial aid as another school. So I went elsewhere.

Prestige is great and all, but it really isn’t worth much in the end. I went to my state medical school and graduated with around 225k in debt. By the time I finished training and started making real money to begin paying that off, interest had turned that into 300k. Go cheap for undergrad.

Also, if it’s anything like back in ye olde day, Cornell premed has a reputation for being cut throat and brutal.

 

[sliceofsupreme]

If you aren't entirely sure whether you want to stay on the pre-med track, I would say go to Cornell. Having that name-brand recognition and reputation for any other career besides medicine will help you a lot. However, if you are intent to continue pre-med, go to the university that has low cost and all the other resources you may need (quality research facilities, a hospital nearby, etc).

 

[Black Suede]

I'd you're serious about the pre-med track, I highly recommend GSU (my alma mater). It's affordable and the pre-med track has several classes and programs that you would be hard pressed to find at other schools (cadaver lab, clinical internships abroad, orthopedic trauma, pathophysiology, etc.) You will have to do well in your basic science classes to have access to the opportunities, but the hard work is very much so worth it. I honestly can't recommend it enough, as I truly believe the unique opportunities I was afforded access to at GSU played a large part in my ability to matriculate to a T10 medical school.

AND it's the most affordable option.