Baylor anyone?

[longhorn]

This is completly hypothetical, but suppose a Texas resident got into Baylor and say a Top 5. med school. Which would you choose? If this has happened to anyone please list your choice and why you choose the way you did.

The reason I ask is because Baylor is perhaps one of the best medical schools values for you dollar in the country(along woithUCLA, UCSF, and Umich). It seems like someone would have to have a strong reason to turn it down.

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[freakazoid]

Hypothetically, I'd pick Baylor. Would prefer to stay in Texas, where friends and family are. Come this time next year, I'll let you know.

 

[Gradient Echo]

I believe mma picked Baylor over Harvard...

I got shunned by Baylor.. they didnt even offer me an interview.

No regrets though

 

[mma]

I am not a TX resident and I sure did pick Baylor over Harvard!

Why? The top 3 reasons (order changes with the hour):

1. Texas Medical Center. Biggest in the world. Huge public and VA hospitals (i.e., lots of hands-on experience). Big Spanish speaking population. Lots of specialized care. People fly in from all over to receive care here. Plus, TMC grows every day...

2. Baylor's feel. Baylor is very open to people from a wide variety of educational and life experiences. (This is an intensely personal thing--I did not want to go to med school in a place where more than 30% of the students in each class come from either Harvard or Yale. Not that this is a bad thing--I went to Harvard as an undergrad, too--but I feel it is time to move on.)

3. The Deal. Let me explain: As a student at Baylor, you have access to TMC, which essentially means that you can learn whatever it is in the world that you want to learn. You finish preclinical in 1.5 years, which means you have 2.5 years to do rotations. So before you go off to residency interviews, you can do electives and a sub-I in whatever you want to do. Also, Step I of the Boards is not a requirement for promotion, which means that you can do a few key rotations before you take the boards, which can improve your score. (Both the increased amount of clinical experience and the higher board scores will lead you to a better residency placement.) You can work with many big name specialists here in things ranging from surgery to nutrition. And you can leave school with little to no debt, which will give you the freedom to do whatever you want in the future without fear of your ever-increasing loan load. I will leave Baylor with no more than $60K in debt. I would have left Harvard with at least $212K in debt. This is a huge difference! And it would not have afforded me any better opportunities than Baylor will.

Also consider why schools in the top 5 are in the top 5--NIH funding? Faculty-student ratios? Residency director rankings? Percent accepted (or not accepted)? Which reasons are important to you? Which are not? I think Baylor takes a big hit in the rankings because of the fact that it does accept some students with lower stats (many reasons for this) and because about 1/2 of the students elect to stay in TX for their residencies, so some residency directors are less familiar with Baylor students. (This does not prevent people from matching in top residencies in the really tough specialties!)

I have a friend who is a resident at a Harvard-affiliated hospital. He says repeatedly that the med students who are great at HMS would have been great regardless of what med school they went to. The ones who need HMS are the ones who aren't great. I think this goes for most of the top 5 schools. (He and ALL my other resident/physician friends encouraged the Baylor decision. I mean, each and every person.)

Now, it would be a HUGE lie to say that it wasn't a tough thing to give up. But on the "pros" list for Baylor was longer and more passionate than the one for Harvard. And it is not a decision I regret.

And, you know, I only have really good friends here in TX. If you threw my mom and dad and grandmother into the mix (unfortuantely, they are in Boston), there is no way any school other than Baylor would have even been on the radar!



Good luck!
mma

 

[lilycat]

I have a good number of friends at Baylor who chose it over other "top" schools (ie, Harvard, Penn, Duke, Wash U, Columbia). Generally, it was for many of the reasons that mma put so succinctly. Often it's a pretty personal and/or subjective decision -- at some programs you just feel "right" when you are there and surrounded by the students and the faculty, and at other schools, no matter how much you feel like you "should" like them or how good they sound on paper, you just don't get that same vibe.

 

[longhorn]

Kool guys, if I get LUCKY I might have to make that choice. Your inputs really helped and re affirm whateveryone has been telling me. I am gonna base the rest of my furutre choice(maybe) on how I feel. I got to UT AUstin so I kinda wanna get out of Texas. Guess I can just apply and see what happens, Thanks guys!

 

[pbehzad]

man mma i wish i were in your shoes, i really want to go to baylor. i mean that is my goal school. congrats on getting into two great schools.
longhorn you want to get out of texas, you should go to OU med school Boomer Sooner!

 

[longhorn]

I hate OU, your football team sucks!! GO LONGHORNS

 

[pbehzad]

longhorn,

dont get mad that ou is just better than ut in football. if my memory serves me correct it was 63-14 and 14-3. i wonder what this years score will be, maybe 69-0 OU. Boomer Sooner!

 

[mma]

P.S. I went to UT for grad school. Go Longhorns!!!! And anyone who wants Baylor info/med school admissions info, let me know!

P.P.S. Baylor was my goal, too...

mma

 

[longhorn]

hye mma you mind if I PM you and ask you some questions, Baylor is my first choice

 

[dr kevin40]

what's up longhorn....u PMed a few days ago. what's ur top 3 schools? top 5 if u want

 

[Trek]

Baylor SUCKS!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Anyone that goes there does too!!! --Trek

 

[Mystique]

Originally posted by Trek
Baylor SUCKS!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Anyone that goes there does too!!! --Trek

It seems Trek has finally come to realize something about himself...

 

[Trek]

So what are you saying about Praying4, mma, DrBlue, me, idiot, sterling and the rest of us?! Care to elaborate, my friend You in chat, by the way? --Trek

 

[Mystique]

Originally posted by Trek
So what are you saying about Praying4, mma, DrBlue, me, idiot, sterling and the rest of us?! Care to elaborate, my friend You in chat, by the way? --Trek

I wasn't referring to the entire Baylor crew...just the one and only Trek of TX. Nah, this lamer has been there and done that already...she's gettin' ready to brush her pearly whites and watch a movie. 2-0 in the FIRST series!!!! I've been watching Jeopardy during lunch so start sweatin'.

 

[Trek]

Originally posted by ThingAMaJig

I wasn't referring to the entire Baylor crew...just the one and only Trek of TX. Nah, this lamer has been there and done that already...she's gettin' ready to brush her pearly whites and watch a movie. 2-0 in the FIRST series!!!! I've been watching Jeopardy during lunch so start sweatin'.

Tomorrow- more food, LESS weed. It's obviously messed up your memory of the REAL first series where i spanked you. Wake up and smell the Gucci, honey! --Trek

 

[jaboy]

One thing about Baylor...Houston

doesn't Houston really suck?

 

[lilycat]

The thing about Houston is that it is one of those cities that everyone loves to hate.

Anyways, when I moved there from California, I had talked to a TON of people with jaboy's attitude -- everyone telling me how awful Houston was, how dirty, how dangerous, etc. Maybe I lucked out because I'm living in a really nice area, but I honestly don't think it's that bad. It reminds me a lot of LA in many ways -- large, spread-out city with some areas that are pretty bad, but if you can manage to stick with certain neighborhoods, you can really enjoy yourself and the city. Personally, I think there's only a small handful of really great cities in the US (maybe 4 or 5 at the most), and then the rest are sort of average, and a few are downright heinous. Houston falls into the average category, in my opinion.

 

[2badr]

In my dreams

 

[praying4MD]

Originally posted by lilycat
Personally, I think there's only a small handful of really great cities in the US (maybe 4 or 5 at the most), and then the rest are sort of average, and a few are downright heinous. Houston falls into the average category, in my opinion.

Houston would be an average city if it weren't for the people. It's the people that make it WAY above average.

 

[mma]

I've been in Houston for about 1 month now and I have enjoyed every moment of it. Sure, there are some weird, dangerous and/or red-necky portions, but nothing too different from any other city. On the plus side, Houston has amazing food, a very diverse population, and Rice's wonderful around-the-university track. There's good shopping, excellent movie theaters, and many phenomenal happy hour deals. Minute Maid Park is an unbelievable place to catch a ball game and Reliant Stadium looks promising. Houston is also a very easy city to get around in and, if there is anything you need, you can find it here.

But I will concur--on first look it is not so great. (I was a little disappointed in what I saw when I arrived here for my interview.) But after a few days and a little exploration it grows on you.


mma

 

[kin-tan-ti]

Texas rocks! I would love to go to Baylor!

If only I could get there from Nepal.

 

[Trek]

Baylor has been getting some good exposure on here recently- i can't remember this much talk of the school all of last year. --Trek

 

[time quaker]

After 3 years in Houston, I have mixed feelings about the city. It does offer a great deal in terms of entertainment, but in terms of traffic it is hell. I would hate to have to work in the med center just because of parking. Traffic on the interstates during rush hour is awful. Actually, the best time to travel is when no one wants to be out there.

I can't believe they renamed Astros field to Minute Maid Field. That's weird.

Oh and I would definitely have to disagree about the people of Houston. They are clearly somewhere in the less than average level. I never felt unsafe though when I was there.

All that said, Baylor is known to be a great school.

 

[Thewonderer]

I think that it is important to keep the comparison in perspective. In response to what lilycat said, I know of 5 people in my class who turned down Baylor to come to my school.

Truly you cannot beat Baylor in terms of bang for your buck. One thing that many out-of-state applicants don't realize is that once you get into Baylor, you only need to pay one year of out-state tuition. During that first year, if you buy a condo in condoland (with loans or whatever source you can find), you are eligible to pay in-state tuition for the next 3 years. It is no wonder that some out-of-staters are attracted to attend Baylor over other top 10 schools!!!!!!

However, I don't see how other points raised by mma are that special. Many top 10 schools have excellent hospitals affiliated with them (and VA hospitals too) and have many world-respected clinicians there. People fly to UCSF, Mass General, Hopkins, Sloan-Kettering, New York-Presbyterian, Barnes-Jewish, etc. for care as well. Basically, whatever TMC offers, other places do as well.

I have also just finished my clinical year. And people are putting too much glow or emphasis on their clinical or even medical education over all. Most of the learning is on your own and is very team dependent. There are some bad-ass residents who will make your life miserable. And it does not matter you are at TMC or Mount Sinai Hospital. It does not matter your attending has published 5 ground-breaking articles this past year and is world-renowned because you won't get more than 30 minutes of talking time with him. And the reality is that you are so busy learning the "basics" behind a disease that there is no point for you to talk to your "world-renowned" attending (unless you want to appear stupid). And sometimes, how much learning you get also depends on how hard your team gets hit. Admitting more patients is actually a bad thing because you will be scutted out, doing blood draws instead of reading up. So by talking how much volume TMC gets is really irrelevant. Also, rest assured, a good teaching resident actually looks for "bread-and-butter" case for you to work-up. There is no point seeing a case where you might not encounter again for the rest of your life. I followed a patient with chromosome 22 deletion on peds, and I really made little effort reading up on it because it was way more important for me to know asthma, cystic fibrosis, congenital hearth disease, down's syndrome, etc. inside out. And just as long as your hospital is big enough and see some minimum volume, you will be fine.

Therefore, I only agree that the feel you get from a school is the most important factor. The emphasis on getting the best medical education and meeting the best student body (heck, all med schools have gunners because after all, it is "med" school and not vocational school) is blown out of proportion on this board.

 

[mma]

Feel is absolutely the most important thing when choosing a school. But opportunity to work with all kinds of students and physicians and patients is another. Yes, there are talented students and physicians at other schools--all other schools--but they are generally accompanied by a higher price tag, are in colder weather, and come with a what I found to be a less supportive (for me) and diverse (and here I mean diverse socially, racially, educationally, historically) environment.

One's reasons for preferring a school to another are one's own. But you're right: it is wise to keep everything in mind when choosing a school. Ultimately, it only matters whom you know (at which point it does come into play who your attending may be), what friends you make, and how happy you are at your chosen school.

mma

 

[MacGyver]

Baylor is a fine school. I still think its more of a regional school at this point rather than a national focus because 80% of the people that go there are TX residents.

I think the only reason that Baylor has gotten so much pub on here recently is because there are 3 or 4 really active posters on here who will be going there; you notice that all the people on this forum (11 or 12 i think) going to Columbia have barely talked about their school on here.

Baylor's acceptance to matriculant ratio is about 50% like most of the other "top" schools out there; I think this is greatly helped by the perception of most TX residents that Baylor is clearly the best school in TX. Since 80% of the people they accept are Texans, many of whom applied only to TX schools, Baylor is the best choice out of UT SW, UTMB, Texas A&M, UTSA, Texas Tech.

Somebody posted a brochure on here showing the different acceptance to matriculant percentages; almost every school was around 50% except Harvard - they got a whopping 68% of all their acceptace offers to matriculate there.

 

[Thewonderer]

I agree with mma that Baylor is extremely affordable compared to other top 10 private schools that run up to $33k for tuition and $12k for living expenses PER year! And in the end, whatever school you feel comfortable with, you should choose.

I disagree with MacGyver in that Baylor is known nationally. It is a top school that comes with a state-school price tag. I encourage out-of-staters to give it a shot since the tuition after 1st year can be exactly the same as in-state if you own a property in TX.

 

[Trek]

McGyver is mad cos he isn't a baller like me. Or mma. --Trek

 

[MacGyver]

Originally posted by Trek
McGyver is mad cos he isn't a baller like me. Or mma. --Trek

Baylor is a good school, I'm not disputing that.

But some of you seem to imply that everybody turns down other top schools to go to Baylor. The statistics dont bear that out.

There are just as many people likely to drop Baylor and go somewhere else as there are people who drop other top schools to choose Baylor.

Thats all i'm saying

 

[mma]

I don't think anyone has implied that everybody turns down top schools to go to Baylor. I said I did, which is true, and lilycat said she knows several people who did, which is also true.

Of course people turn down Baylor. Sometimes it's just not the best fit.

And, then again, sometimes it is.

mma

 

[lilycat]

MacGyver -- since when does knowing "several" people equate to "everyone." Seems like a bit of a leap on your part, or that you were purposely misconstruing statements on here.

I believe the OP was asking whether or not it's plausible to choose Baylor over schools in the "top 5" -- since I know "several" people who have done this (read, more than two, but less than everyone), yes, I think it is plausible. If the question had been reversed, my answer still would have been yes, because I know "several' people who turned Baylor down to attend other schools, top 5 and non-top 5.

I would never say that Baylor or any other school is the "best" at anything. But, is it the best fit for some people -- yes, just as Duke and Columbia, etc. are the best fit for other people. Personally, I don't think I could have ever been happy attending Wash U, unlike some people on this board , but whatever works. That's why we can all end up at different schools and still have similar levels of contentment and satisfaction. You have to go with what's going to make YOU personally happy, not what's going to please someone else.