Of the 6 I interviewed at, 3 had guards (Einstein/Hofstra/Upstate.) Buffalo didn't and it's in a terrible area.
You guys are really over reacting on this. I've been to 11 interviews, and MOST had some form of security guard or desk.
First off, Buffalo is in the very northeastern tip of Buffalo, It is not that bad. Cross the street and you are in Amherst, which have been rated safest place in America at least 5 of the last 10 years. The North Campus (which the medical school is not a part of ) is fully isolated in Amherst and you are fine.
As for guards, SUNY Downstate, NYMC (for student parking and when you enter the building), Einstein, Upstate, Morehouse, Howard, Medical College of Georgia, Hofstra, and George Washington all had guards.
I can't remember if Cooper Had guards or not, but the actual Medical School WILL have guards, but since the school wasn't open, we met at the Hospital and Dr. McGeehan and Dr. Dayton were waiting for us at the lobby, and we did eventually get tags to wear, and I can't remember if VCU had guards or not. So, we know Cooper will, that leaves VCU as the only school that probably didn't have guards.
I have USUHS next week, and it for sure has guards, and they aren't playing by the email instruction that I got. Vermont afterwards, not sure about them. Eastern Virginia in March and finally Albany in April. EVMS is in Norforlk and I'm sure they will have guards of some sort. And I would not be surprise if Albany has them also. So the Guards issue is an overraction. Especially for Einsten, which is located in the Northeastern part of the Bronx, far from the "bad" areas of the Bronx. Quite Frankly, it is close to Westchester, New York's Most Richest County per capita.
Last thing to say, I just finished the Einstein interview, and I was talking to a fellow interviewee yesterday about her experience at Washington university. She went there as an undergrad, it is known for being the most stringent of all medical schools with their acceptances. But it is located in the second most dangerous place in America. Yale is located in New Haven, not exactly Greenwich now is it. tons of Schools located in Philadelphia (the joke is Killadelphia). Johns Hopkins is located in Baltimore, MD (Bury-More, Body-More), ever saw the Wire??? My point is, Hospitals tend to be in very populated areas, since that is where most of the people are, and where the most need is. Medical Schools, tend to be close to Hospitals, either across the street or several blocks away. Finally, a caring physician, should want to help the most people as possible, especially those in need, those underserved and without insurance. If the Northeast part of the Bronx is bad, then there is no chance people would volunteer to take a course overseas or even work there for goodwill and that is too bad.
Anyways as for the original topic. I loved VCU a lot, love the people. Very nice and seem to want to help you out, and this was from the students, all the way up to the associate dean. I loved the location, the program, the lecture halls, the new building about to open up everything. Einstein to me is closer by a mile and that counts a lot. It is a better rated school with higher GPAs and board scores. I know plenty of physicians who graduated from Einstein and they were great. The school is already de-emphasizing constant lectures and including more study groups and so forth. Housing is cheap and not bad, if you want to live on campus. They are well updated as far as technology from the lecture halls, to the paperless curriculum, to flatscreens all over the place. You really couldn't can't go wrong with either. In general, I guess look at the match rate for the last few years to see if either of the two have a reputation for matching people to your anticipated residency, but I think more important would be to wait for the financial aid package and chose the one that is most generous if you think the two schools are very close to each other.
