Cost is definitely an important factor (I needed a good bit of financial aid to go to my university). But outside of my state school, all the privates I'm applying to are roughly the same. I've done research on the schools I'm applying to and a few of them are known for providing quite a bit of financial relief for their students. I'm hoping I'll be fortunate enough to have multiple acceptances and then take the finances into consideration when choosing my school.
But, as of now, pre-primary, cost does not really rule out too many schools. The reason I started this thread is that I would prefer to cut my primary and secondary costs down a little -- but in the long run, if I deem it important to apply to all 18 of my schools, the expenses are minimal.
The other day I thought about why I really want to apply to, for example, Yale as opposed to Columbia. Yale has a P/F pre-clinical system and a required thesis but I'm not sure how diverse New Haven's patient population will be. I love NYC and Columbia does not require a thesis.... etc.
And, before anyone posts, I realize there is a thread about "Yale vs. Columbia" in the "School Specific Discussions", I've read it and it was very helpful. This is just a hypothetical example -- I'm not even applying to both schools. I am just wondering if there are any general differences between med schools that help people compare and contrast schools.
I've been reading SDN for a while and the advice people have given has been very helpful. Most of the threads here are rehash of the same 3 or 4 questions but I havent been able to find one that tackles this question exactly. Answer at your will.
