Ohio State vs. Tulane

[deleted388502]

Hey guys,

I'm a senior in high school and was really lucky to get into some good schools, OSU and Tulane being the two that are left. I have full tuition to OSU and would be paying approximately 22K at Tulane (may possibly be a little less, crazy battle going on with FA atm.) I would take OSU in a heartbeat, especially since I love the school, but I spoke with the pre-med advisor and she scared me a bit. I was a bit concerned after glossing over mdapplicants.com for OSU about where pre-meds end up for med school from OSU, and the advisor said she didn't know, and never got back to me.
I know it's really silly to aim for one specific school, but I want to know that going to a specific undergrad school, at least starting out, will not deter me from getting into a med school like Columbia or another top tier school. I know that it's GPA and MCAT's that count...but can someone who goes to OSU as an undergrad realistically get into JHU or UCSF type schools? Or would Tulane be worth the difference to start off with an advantage, because I know a lot of kids from there go to Yale and WUSTL type schools. I just want to know whether or not going to OSU will already make the playing field unequal.

Any insight is appreciated! This is a really hard decision for me.

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[asli]

There is no difference really as to where you go, and Tulane isn't really a 'top school,' at least not enough to differentiate it from OSU, which is a respectable institution. I mean, if you were deciding between Columbia and OSU, then maybe it is worth the trouble, but in all reality undergrad does not matter. I know of several OSU students who got into great medical schools.

 

[AH3]

Welcome to SDN!

Going to Ohio St will not hurt your chances of getting into med school. It is a large and (from what I know) well-respected university. Adcoms will not think less of your application simply because you went to Ohio St. If you go there and do everything right (as far as 'pre-med' stuff goes- GPA, MCAT, extracurriculars) you will be a competitive applicant.

Knowing just what you posted, I would go with Ohio St. You would be saving yourself a lot of money and I don't see Tulane giving you any edge to get into med school. When it comes down to it, your individual application is what sets you apart, not your undergrad and peers.

 

[deleted388502]

Thank you both for your thoughtful responses! That definitely makes me feel better, I guess I'm just afraid that in a application pile with my application from OSU vs an application from Duke or something, I'd be shot down. I don't really know how that works though, I'm just really scared of setting myself at a disadvantage from the start, especially since I don't know anyone whose gone to OSU for undergrad, and I have no idea where their undergrads end up typically.

 

[rHinO1]

Hey guys,

I'm a senior in high school and was really lucky to get into some good schools, OSU and Tulane being the two that are left. I have full tuition to OSU and would be paying approximately 22K at Tulane (may possibly be a little less, crazy battle going on with FA atm.) I would take OSU in a heartbeat, especially since I love the school, but I spoke with the pre-med advisor and she scared me a bit. I was a bit concerned after glossing over mdapplicants.com for OSU about where pre-meds end up for med school from OSU, and the advisor said she didn't know, and never got back to me.
I know it's really silly to aim for one specific school, but I want to know that going to a specific undergrad school, at least starting out, will not deter me from getting into a med school like Columbia or another top tier school. I know that it's GPA and MCAT's that count...but can someone who goes to OSU as an undergrad realistically get into JHU or UCSF type schools? Or would Tulane be worth the difference to start off with an advantage, because I know a lot of kids from there go to Yale and WUSTL type schools. I just want to know whether or not going to OSU will already make the playing field unequal.

Any insight is appreciated! This is a really hard decision for me.

Go be a buckeye, bro.

Your undergrad institution will have minimal impact on where you get into med school. If you do well at OSU, get a great MCAT, and have the expected ECs, then you will end up at a great medical school debt free from Ugrad. Really, Tulane is pretty comparable to OSU as far as recognition. In fact US news ranks Tulane #51, and OSU # 56.

Since you got an OSU scholarship, you're probably from Ohio. If so, it would also save you money being closer to family when it comes time to go back home to visit.

Biggest plus for OSU is their sports teams.

 

[metallica81788]

Don't get bogged down with undergrad debt for a school that's not any better than the one that's free.

Plus, sports!!!

 

[Geekchick921]

Welcome to SDN!

I would take OSU in a heartbeat. I think your first instinct was right-on, and you'll probably learn most pre-med advisors are worthless. Everyone that's given you advice so far in this thread made the points I would have made, too. Being debt free >>> any possible advantage Tulane might give you when it comes to medical school in 4 years. It's not like you're deciding between a backwater state school and an Ivy.

That said, I'm moving your thread to hSDN. That's really where it belongs.

 

[link2swim06]

As an OSU alumni and current med student I can tell you that Ohio State will definitely HELP your chances.

Here is some benefits I found:
-they have an pretty competitive honors program, which can let you take classes with a much smaller size and schedule before the rest of the school
-by going to the biggest university in the US, you can basically do whatever activities you want. If you want to do research its on campus, if you want to hospital volunteer its on campus, if you want to do a sport its there, etc...
-an important part of undergrad is having fun....whatever your definition of fun its probably there.
-there isnt a premed committee or anything annoying like that to deal with when applying

But honestly i dont think it matters really, let me put it this way, when i started undergrad, all my roommates and I are now in med school.

 

[NOsquid]

Go to OSU for free.

If they were both free, I'd go to New Orleans - no contest.

 

[deleted388502]

Thank you guys so much. I committed to OSU today, I didn't get the scholarship from Tulane. I really appreciate your insights, and hopefully I'll be able to achieve my ivy league med school dreams from OSU. GO BUCKS!