Best Urban Med Schools

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SoCalRULES!!!!! said:
Disney Concert Hall is probably the US's most important piece of urban architecture since the empire state building. Plus LA is the new center for urban architecture.

**!! spits out soda!!**

Mickey, is that you pretending to be a SDN member again??? I told you before that mice are not allowed in med schools.

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SoCalRULES!!!!! said:
Chicago on the other hand is where you can go
and get great polish sausage and applecakes.

:laugh:

You know what makes SoCalRules kind of sad is how he is so stupidly stubborn about the whole "Chicago and the Midwest sucks" thing even after everyone in this thread, from all over the country mind you, completely ripped him a new one.

Be man enough to realize you totally lost several pages back in the thread. You put Portland and San Diego and Los Angeles as better URBAN experiences than freaking Chicago! Just admit you were way off. We all know it, so be a man about it and face the music.

There is no way around it, the creative community of LA is just soo
much larger than any midwest town. It's definitely the cooler city,
though not nearly as cold

Huh? I think that you 1) Missed that no one was arguing who had the bigger "creative community" and 2) Who the hell correlates the size of a "creative community" with urban lifestyle!? You don't really understand what "urban lifestyle" means, do you.

People had you totally pegged a couple pages back when they said you could care less about urban lifestyle and you are just about celebrity culture... I think you'd be happiest moving inside your television.

Given a choice between UCLA and Northwestern or UCSF and University of
Chicago, I doubt anyone, except people from Chicago or the Midwest
would ever, pick Chitown over mighty California. And, I would expect a
fair number of Midwesterners would relish the chance to go to LA, while
no Californian would ever be happy about going to the MIDWEST

Speak for yourself. The draw to people from California (and there certainly are a lot of Californians at Northwestern I must say) is largely because of the location alone. California has many great things but there is NOTHING like Northwestern's residential highrise urban location on the entire West Coast, and it offers a perfect alternative to the New York City lifestyle without the New York City prices. Hence the draw for those that want an urban lifestyle you simply can't get on the West Coast, without New York City prices.

BTW I leave you with this fact: "mighty California" now has negative domestic migration to the Midwest. You know this right? There are more people from California moving to the Midwest than the other way around? New York Times even did an article about this the first week of November. Not that I care but since you act like it's the other way around I figured you needed to hear what is actually going on outside of MTV News.
 
SoCalRULES!!!!! said:
LA is more globally connected so it is more exhilirating because of all the people coming here from all corners of the world. Chicago on the other hand is where you can go and get great polish sausage and applecakes.

An article by Rob Paral that appeared in Migration Information Source
http://www.migrationinformation.org/Feature/display.cfm?id=160

The Chicago region continues to have one of the largest and most diverse immigrant populations in the country. Among metropolitan areas, the number of Chicago-area immigrants ranks seventh in the nation, with 1.4 million immigrants who constitute 18 percent of the overall population. ...

The three largest foreign-born groups in metropolitan Chicago represent different world regions, including Mexico (582,028 persons), Poland (137,670), and India (76,931). These groups constitute 56 percent of all area immigrants. The remainder of the immigrant population is extremely diverse, with no group comprising more than five percent of the population.
substantial growth among the Indian-origin population, which doubled in the 1990s and surpassed Filipinos to become the largest Asian group in the area. ...

(T)he 1990s saw persons from the former Soviet Union rise from the tenth to the fourth-largest immigrant group. The Chinese-origin population surpassed the Korean population to become the sixth largest foreign-born group. The 1990s also witnessed a sharp demographic decline in certain European-origin groups such as Germans and Italians, who are increasingly elderly and experiencing high mortality, and who no longer figure among the top immigrant groups in the region. ....

Chicago maintains its legacy as a major destination for immigrants to the United States. Recent patterns suggest continued growth among Mexican immigrants and Indians, as well as high percentage growth among certain sub-Saharan African groups such as Nigerians and Ghanians (both of whom tripled their size in the 1990s).



 
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^

Don't even bother LizzyM.... you know he'll just role his eyes because the place you are talking about isn't within his myopic field of view nor does it have a rich [MTV] culture.
 
Gavanshir said:
I'm going to nominate McGill University at the heart of downtown Montreal as the best urban medschool. It doesn't get any better.

Montreal is a great city, and McGill is indeed in a great location (a few blocks from St. Catherine Street in downtown, as I recall). Too bad McGill rightfully isn't too keen on non-French-Speaking Americans.
 
ctwickman said:
:laugh:

You know what makes SoCalRules kind of sad is how he is so stupidly stubborn about the whole "Chicago and the Midwest sucks" thing even after everyone in this thread, from all over the country mind you, completely ripped him a new one.

Be man enough to realize you totally lost several pages back in the thread. You put Portland and San Diego and Los Angeles as better URBAN experiences than freaking Chicago! Just admit you were way off. We all know it, so be a man about it and face the music.



Huh? I think that you 1) Missed that no one was arguing who had the bigger "creative community" and 2) Who the hell correlates the size of a "creative community" with urban lifestyle!? You don't really understand what "urban lifestyle" means, do you.

People had you totally pegged a couple pages back when they said you could care less about urban lifestyle and you are just about celebrity culture... I think you'd be happiest moving inside your television.



Speak for yourself. The draw to people from California (and there certainly are a lot of Californians at Northwestern I must say) is largely because of the location alone. California has many great things but there is NOTHING like Northwestern's residential highrise urban location on the entire West Coast, and it offers a perfect alternative to the New York City lifestyle without the New York City prices. Hence the draw for those that want an urban lifestyle you simply can't get on the West Coast, without New York City prices.

BTW I leave you with this fact: "mighty California" now has negative domestic migration to the Midwest. You know this right? There are more people from California moving to the Midwest than the other way around? New York Times even did an article about this the first week of November. Not that I care but since you act like it's the other way around I figured you needed to hear what is actually going on outside of MTV News.

That's b/c they know they can get much more for their money in Chi-town. As much as I do not want to admit it (being that I am a LA kid), I am slowly searching for other areas of the country where I think I can live. I am in Philly (in school) right now, and I love the culture. But I hate the style of houses out here. I also want to check out places like Seattle, Atlanta, and, for some reason, Chicago. I know that I cannot afford to live in a decent neighborhood in los angeles b/c of the housing boom. And dont let me start about the traffic, the cost of gas, and the fact that everything is inaccessible without a car (well the good thing is that there are few good bus systems out there. But it takes forever to get around the city and other neighboring cities). In the end though, I still love my LA b/c it is the most unique of the larger cities. There is no other place in this nation where you can go skiing and go to the beach (a real beach...not those junk things you call beaches that run along a dang lake) all in the same day.

well gotta get back to a paper (yuck :mad: )
 
LizzyM said:
An article by Rob Paral that appeared in Migration Information Source
http://www.migrationinformation.org/Feature/display.cfm?id=160

The Chicago region continues to have one of the largest and most diverse immigrant populations in the country. Among metropolitan areas, the number of Chicago-area immigrants ranks seventh in the nation, with 1.4 million immigrants who constitute 18 percent of the overall population. ...

The three largest foreign-born groups in metropolitan Chicago represent different world regions, including Mexico (582,028 persons), Poland (137,670), and India (76,931). These groups constitute 56 percent of all area immigrants. The remainder of the immigrant population is extremely diverse, with no group comprising more than five percent of the population.
substantial growth among the Indian-origin population, which doubled in the 1990s and surpassed Filipinos to become the largest Asian group in the area. ...

(T)he 1990s saw persons from the former Soviet Union rise from the tenth to the fourth-largest immigrant group. The Chinese-origin population surpassed the Korean population to become the sixth largest foreign-born group. The 1990s also witnessed a sharp demographic decline in certain European-origin groups such as Germans and Italians, who are increasingly elderly and experiencing high mortality, and who no longer figure among the top immigrant groups in the region. ....

Chicago maintains its legacy as a major destination for immigrants to the United States. Recent patterns suggest continued growth among Mexican immigrants and Indians, as well as high percentage growth among certain sub-Saharan African groups such as Nigerians and Ghanians (both of whom tripled their size in the 1990s).




I wonder why? No seriously I do?
I doubt they do a "Coming to America" and just randomly choose a place.
 
sanford_w/o_son said:
seriously. chicago is far more "urban" than sprawling l.a. using bestplaces.net, it has a higher pop. density (12,000 per square mile versus 8,000 per square mile) and a higher percentage of folks who use mass transit (28% versus 10%). there are plenty of immigrant groups (and neighborhoods) from all over the world. and its weather is colder than ny and boston, but not by a whole lot.

it seems chicago is always clumped in with "flyover" territory for those who don't know anything about it.

I agree, Chicago is way better than any urban cities in California. There's nothing quite like it. It's definitely not boring or as dilapidated as the city of LA.
 
In Washington/BC you can go to a beach and then go skiing in the same day. I have never done it, but it is doable. I personally like Vancouver British Columbia, and hence I want to attend the University of British Columbia school of medicine. I prefer fresh air and beautiful views over skyscrapers like in places such as New York (Vancouver does have a nice skyline). I am in Seattle right now, and I like it, but it is too small for me.
 
riceman04 said:
That's b/c they know they can get much more for their money in Chi-town. As much as I do not want to admit it (being that I am a LA kid), I am slowly searching for other areas of the country where I think I can live. I am in Philly (in school) right now, and I love the culture. But I hate the style of houses out here. I also want to check out places like Seattle, Atlanta, and, for some reason, Chicago. I know that I cannot afford to live in a decent neighborhood in los angeles b/c of the housing boom. And dont let me start about the traffic, the cost of gas, and the fact that everything is inaccessible without a car (well the good thing is that there are few good bus systems out there. But it takes forever to get around the city and other neighboring cities). In the end though, I still love my LA b/c it is the most unique of the larger cities. There is no other place in this nation where you can go skiing and go to the beach (a real beach...not those junk things you call beaches that run along a dang lake) all in the same day.

well gotta get back to a paper (yuck :mad: )

Those "junk beaches" sure beat what you'll find in Philly or Atlanta though... :) I don't think anyone would brag about Chicago's beaches, but hey, they do exist, they are clean, they have enough chicks to keep your eyes busy, the water is warm enough to swim in in the summer, and best of all you can walk to a lot of them from your downtown apartment... so it's not like it sucks to have them around....

Well if you ever come to Chicago, seriously, PM me and you can stay at my apartment for nothing.... that's an open invitation man... and since my roommate is from Southern California he can give you the lowdown on the differences, too... he loves showing people from his home state around the city...
 
ctwickman said:
Well if you ever come to Chicago, seriously, PM me and you can stay at my apartment for nothing.... that's an open invitation man... and since my roommate is from Southern California he can give you the lowdown on the differences, too... he loves showing people from his home state around the city...


That's cool with me
 
riceman04 said:
That's b/c they know they can get much more for their money in Chi-town. As much as I do not want to admit it (being that I am a LA kid), I am slowly searching for other areas of the country where I think I can live. I am in Philly (in school) right now, and I love the culture. But I hate the style of houses out here. I also want to check out places like Seattle, Atlanta, and, for some reason, Chicago. I know that I cannot afford to live in a decent neighborhood in los angeles b/c of the housing boom. And dont let me start about the traffic, the cost of gas, and the fact that everything is inaccessible without a car (well the good thing is that there are few good bus systems out there. But it takes forever to get around the city and other neighboring cities). In the end though, I still love my LA b/c it is the most unique of the larger cities. There is no other place in this nation where you can go skiing and go to the beach (a real beach...not those junk things you call beaches that run along a dang lake) all in the same day.

well gotta get back to a paper (yuck :mad: )

well, i'll be applying to one or two l.a. schools, so it's all good. i'm down with the climate and terrain.
 
riceman04 said:
I wonder why? No seriously I do?
I doubt they do a "Coming to America" and just randomly choose a place.

the common wisdom on immigration is that once a stable community of a certain ethnicity is formed in a foreign city, it serves to introduce new immigrants of that ethnicity to the foreign country's customs and language while providing the familiar, supportive environment of the ethnicity.

I've been in just about every hospital here, and there are a large number of African (not sure which countries) and Fillipina/-o nurses and other medical professionals in many of these hospitals (and nursing homes). I also see a decent number of foreign doctors (probably the biggest group would be from India).

The most puzzling thing to me is that there are side-by-side Indian and Pakistani communities (divided by Western Avenue) off Devon Street. What I've heard folks say about that (including one Pakistani guy I talked to) is that in the context of America they have more similarities than differences.
 
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sanford_w/o_son said:
Montreal is a great city, and McGill is indeed in a great location (a few blocks from St. Catherine Street in downtown, as I recall). Too bad McGill rightfully isn't too keen on non-French-Speaking Americans.

Really?? Where did you hear that? Out of the 8 American students in our class this year, I would really be surprised if more than 1 was actually fluent in French...
 
I haven't been everywhere, but I've been to many American cities. Philadelphia, New York, Atlanta, Dallas, Houston, San Diego, Los Angeles, San Francisco, and lots of cities in between those. There's only one city listed above that I ended up really not liking in the end: LA. We had planned on staying for a week in that city on a trip several years ago and ended up staying a day and a half. I can't really say I like Houston that much either, but I would much rather live in Houston than LA.

By the way.. I'm visiting Chicago this weekend and after seeing the pics in this thread I'm looking foward to the trip even more. Are there any places that I have to see while I'm there?
 
^

It's going to be unseasonably cold this weekend in Chicago so keep that in mind when you are visiting...

...anyways, a few ideas: definetly hit up Michigan Avenue for some shopping, go up to the top of the Hancock building for a crazy urban view (at night is the coolest I feel), The Art Institute of Chicago is an absolute must see, a block north of the Art Institute is Millenium Park which is a must see also... the skating rink @ Millenium Park is now in full swing so rent some skates there with a friend and have a blast.... There are tons of neighborhoods to check out too but that would take you a few days... and then of course in the spring/summer/fall the city is a whole different animal (not that there won't be many people outside now, but when it is warm out there are all the festivals, the lakefront, and the parks would be full and that would be tops on your list then...)
 
Prag said:
Really?? Where did you hear that? Out of the 8 American students in our class this year, I would really be surprised if more than 1 was actually fluent in French...

8 American students? My mistake then . . . McGill isn't too keen on French- or English-speaking American students. ;)
 
sanford_w/o_son said:
8 American students? My mistake then . . . McGill isn't too keen on French- or English-speaking American students. ;)

hahah...true enough...though the 12 international students taken this year is actually twice as many out-of-province students...nothing to do with McGill specifically--silly government quotas...
 
sanford_w/o_son said:
the common wisdom on immigration is that once a stable community of a certain ethnicity is formed in a foreign city, it serves to introduce new immigrants of that ethnicity to the foreign country's customs and language while providing the familiar, supportive environment of the ethnicity.

I've been in just about every hospital here, and there are a large number of African (not sure which countries) and Fillipina/-o nurses and other medical professionals in many of these hospitals (and nursing homes). I also see a decent number of foreign doctors (probably the biggest group would be from India).

The most puzzling thing to me is that there are side-by-side Indian and Pakistani communities (divided by Western Avenue) off Devon Street. What I've heard folks say about that (including one Pakistani guy I talked to) is that in the context of America they have more similarities than differences.

You know, that is interesting that you say what you said about the Indians and Pakistani's. You see that here too. You also see that trend with the Jewish community and the Arab communities.

About the nurses from the Phillipines: I heard that they have a program that specifically trains nurses there who will then come here to work.
 
@CTWICKMAN,

I simply said that UCSD, and Oregon were overall more desirable when you add the quality of the education along with the quality of the city. Portland is a great little urban city who has done an incredible job with city planning. It might be a bit of an overcall, but I'll stick with it.


As an aside, I ask you to read this. Unfortunately it's a PDF, but it illustrates what I am talking about. LA, NY, and SF are international cities much more so than Chicago which is sort of the Midamerican Capitol, the buckle of the rustbelt, the place to go to become nobody. LA and NY are places where you go to become huge, to live the good life.

http://www.citybrandsindex.com/downloads/cbi2005-q4-free.pdf

And I'll bet all my cash that med school slots and residency positions are far more desired in LA and SF than Chi-town (and I'm sure the ones in Chicago are very competitive, but not like WESTCOAST). The same way LA and SF have grown (in the case of SF a metro). Chicago has lost almost a 1,000,000 over the last 50 years. LA has gained 2,000,000 and the metro might have tripled. C'mon now!
 
so it's come to this: defending your ridiculous position with a corporate study that uses non-objective attitudinal survey data (also, an "online survey" that accessed a "wide range of income groups", gimme a break), engages in wtf-does-that-even-mean MTV-speak, doesn't have chicago on the list at all and in fact states that their purpose was to list a wide range of city brands from poor to high rather than an exhaustive list, and being from a corporation actually has as interest in selling (gasp) its information to others.

sure, many people in america do like la. americans also like warm weather and cars. you do the logic.
 
No offense SoCalRules but you completely missed the point... this isn't a popularity contest, this is about world-class URBAN LIFESTYLE. All you seem to care about is how these cities are "perceived" and for you... that perception has equalled reality. Read your posts: Every single one of your arguments centers around "perception" and none of it around real urban lifestyle. I have come to the conclusion that you have obviously never even set foot in Chicago from all your comments (like you would know that the lost city population that you mention is totally irrelevant in the face of the massive building boom that has taken place since then, as all that population was lost in certain neighborhoods focused south of the city, not to mention that 99% of your LA "growth" has been out rather than up making it irrelavant in the face of discussion about urbanity...).

Moreover, I have concluded that you do not care about, do not live, and perhaps do not even want an urban lifestyle from your comments, so it's not even worth discussing it with you because you are on a totally different page and want something totally different, like "celebrity" and a "big pat on the back" for your city or something...
 
SoCalRULES!!!!! said:
I never said LA was more urban than Chicago. I said LA, NY and SF are the US's three cosmopolitan world class urban cities.
Dude, your Cali bias is crazy. You can't include both SF and LA in a list of the top three. NYC is a given, and I'd say Chicago is definitely in there as well. It's pretty pathetic that some of the coastal residents think that the "flyover" states have nothing entertaining or of value. I've been to both coasts, including LA, SD, SF, NYC, Washington DC, Philly, etc., and Chicago is one of the big dogs.
 
You know, think of movies like Vacation or shows like Married With Children, people are always portrayed like dopes. They always show shots of the skyscrapers and downtown, so evidently skyscrapers don't provide sophistication. But think of Sex in the City or 6 feet Under. Now those are sophisticated people and of course they are set in NY and LA! :laugh: Or think of the movie collateral.



Also Brokeback Mountan just opened this weekend in NY, SF and LA. Why only those cities? It is because of the intellectual power and culture of those cities. Something you just can't get in FLYOVER country. It, of course, didn't open in Toledo, Chicago and Des Moines.
 
SoCalRULES!!!!! said:
You know, think of movies like Vacation or shows like Married With Children, people are always portrayed like dopes. They always show shots of the skyscrapers and downtown, so evidently skyscrapers don't provide sophistication. But think of Sex in the City or 6 feet Under. Now those are sophisticated people and of course they are set in NY and LA! :laugh: Or think of the movie collateral.



Also Brokeback Mountan just opened this weekend in NY, SF and LA. Why only those cities? It is because of the intellectual power and culture of those cities. Something you just can't get in FLYOVER country. It, of course, didn't open in Toledo, Chicago and Des Moines.

wow, this one piece of evidence has completely changed my mind. chicago sucks, and is definitely on par with des moines :laugh:

of course movies will be released early in hollywood, since most of them are produced there. but if you equate most movies with intellectual power, you need a serious reality check.
 
SoCalRULES!!!!! said:
You know, think of movies like Vacation or shows like Married With Children, people are always portrayed like dopes. They always show shots of the skyscrapers and downtown, so evidently skyscrapers don't provide sophistication. But think of Sex in the City or 6 feet Under. Now those are sophisticated people and of course they are set in NY and LA! :laugh: Or think of the movie collateral.



Also Brokeback Mountan just opened this weekend in NY, SF and LA. Why only those cities? It is because of the intellectual power and culture of those cities. Something you just can't get in FLYOVER country. It, of course, didn't open in Toledo, Chicago and Des Moines.

by the way, if you are a guy (and it sounds like you are), you have lost any remaining shred of credibility you have by referencing sex and the city, and for comparing it favorably to married with children. please stop posting on this forum and take your metrosexual ass to the salon for a manicure :cool:
 
^

As if he had any credibility in the first place? Talk about an in-your-face lack of sophistication... never mind real life or TRAVELLING, all his arguments are centered around how things are PORTRAYED in the most sophisticated mediums of all... movies and television! :laugh:

And wow, a low-budget movie seeking greater publicity is opening in New York first, the media capital of America? And also LA, where movie companies are headquartered? And wow, this same movie, about a homosexual love story, is also opening in San Francisco first too? Pinch me I must be dreaming.

Was I spot on or was I spot on... this guy could care less about urban lifestyle... wonder why he even made a thread about it.
 
you can't just look at the whole city though...you have to look at the school's exact location in that city b/c lets face it, as a med studnet, you're not gonna have that much time to life the high life...columbia's in nyc, but not in the cool, hip part...its in the gheetto
 
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