Help me help my sister pick a school, please

[DrMagicD]

I'm very proud of my sister for getting into her top schools, and she is an aspiring physician. While I'm currently in medschool, I never had to choose among such prestigious schools for a pre-medical program. I'm wondering if any of you all could help me help her decide?

She's gotten into the following schools:

Yale
Harvard
Princeton
Brown
Duke
Vanderbilt

I've heard that some schools are worse programs because it's harder to get good grades. But isn't getting a 3.0 or something at an Ivy looked upon better or the same as say a 3.9 from elsewhere? At least that's how I had thought of things when I was in undergrad... though maybe things change.

Thanks for all the help in advance!

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[apumic]

whichever offers her the biggest/best financial aid package (and by best, I mean the one that makes school cheapest; a $20,000 over 4-year package at a state school costing $24,000 over 4 years kills a $75,000 over 4-year package at a $150,000 top-20 school any day of the week!). Debt (or lack thereof)>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>perceived prestige. She'll be the same student and achieve the same at any school she goes to, so let's be honest -- debt is the most important thing to consider.

 

[brooklynblunder]

harvard. should have decent financial aid and huuuuuuuuuuuuuge grade inflation

 

[RogueUnicorn]

i personally would go to the cheapest out of HYP

 

[J ROD]

I'm very proud of my sister for getting into her top schools, and she is an aspiring physician. While I'm currently in medschool, I never had to choose among such prestigious schools for a pre-medical program. I'm wondering if any of you all could help me help her decide?

She's gotten into the following schools:

Yale
Harvard
Princeton
Brown
Duke
Vanderbilt

I've heard that some schools are worse programs because it's harder to get good grades. But isn't getting a 3.0 or something at an Ivy looked upon better or the same as say a 3.9 from elsewhere? At least that's how I had thought of things when I was in undergrad... though maybe things change.

Thanks for all the help in advance!

All of those are great schools and she can get whereever she wants from any of them.

I would look more at cost, where I wanted to be (weather wise), where I felt most comfortable, etc.

Basically, other factors besides academics. All of them have that.

I would have to go to Harvard.....personally.

 

[metallica81788]

Whichever one is the cheapest, that way she won't carry much/any undergrad debt with her to med school.

 

[LaserJet]

Don't like 95% of Harvard applicants end up getting in somewhere? I would go to Harvard regardless of the cost. The Harvard name is just so powerful...

 

[DrMagicD]

Thanks you all. Been much help. Trust me debt is a huge factor, I realize this as an M2 but I'm assuming they will offer comparable aid so it should even out the field in those terms, except maybe Vandy which may end up being the most economical choice..

I guess now it's up to her to decide the enviornment etc... anyone know how Yale and Harvard compare in terms of college life / env. About all I know is Harvard's in Boston... much bigger city setting than Yale.

Thanks again!

 

[bookfreak89]

i personally would go to the cheapest out of HYP

This. Princeton has a no loans policy, so all the aid you get will be scholarship money. Don't know if Harvard/Yale has this system; they might.

 

[JJMrK]

Moving to hSDN.

 

[LizzyM]

Yale does have a "grants only" policy for students below a certain income level.

New Haven is a small, otherwise economically depressed city. It is about 2 hours from NYC by train (or car). The hospital (including a brand new cancer hospital, a children's hospital and a psychiatric facility) is within walking distance of the main campus (there's a shuttle bus, too) so access to volunteer opportunities and labs is good in that regard. There are numerous other volunteer opportunities through Dwight Hall. The school is in the process of expanding into a huge West Campus that was previously the North American headquarters of Bayer Healthcare. This is relevant to any interest she may have in life sciences research.

The college system at Yale is unusual and creates small communities of undergraduates within an otherwise large university.

BTW, for those who are speculating about my location -- I'm not in New Haven but my brother is.

 

[loveoforganic]

"The college system at Yale is unusual and creates small communities of undergraduates within an otherwise large university."

In what way is this unusual? The premise I've definitely seen repeatedly, so I assume it's the implementation.

 

[LizzyM]

Undergrads are assigned to a college which serves as their living quarters, dining hall, library, recreational facilities (which vary, one even has a rock climbing wall), as well as a "master" and a dean (both senior faculty member) who live in the house with their families and who take their meals with students. The master is charged with responsibility for students' well being and for social events such as lectures and teas; the dean assists with academic matters.

The college system at Yale is about 75 years old.

 

[whitesox24]

All of those schools are considered extremely prestigious, so any one of them would be great for a person. Personally, I would pick whichever one costs the least amount of money, but your sister really can't go wrong with picking any of them. Also, I have always heard that the Ivies grade inflate a lot, so she may want to take that into consideration as well.

 

[Cytotoxic]

Harvard. Name, resources, networking opportunities, location, I could go on and on.

 

[Hoody]

Yale. Because Aurora Kennedy will be playing hockey there for the next four years. Go Bulldogs.

 

[schrizto]

Yale. Because Aurora Kennedy will be playing hockey there for the next four years. Go Bulldogs.

I don't even know who that is. If I wanted to rub elbows with celebrities, I'd go to Brown, and if I wanted big time sports, I'd go to Duke.

 

[Ischemic]

Dude, choose your own ****ing school. Everyone has their own likes/dislikes/preferences so this should be a PERSONAL decision. Seems more like you're on here to brag than actually wanting an answer.

 

[schrizto]

btw, out of those, I would go with Harvard or Yale.