Boston University or Georgetown University

[SpiresAAC]

I know it's still a while until May 15, but I was hoping you guys could shed some light on the difficult decision that awaits me. BU or Georgetown? Boston or DC? Why?

Thanks!

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[H_Caulfield]

Go to BU if you want to do research (lots of facilities; ranked much higher than Georgetown). Plus, Boston is an impressive, classy city while D.C. is basically a ghetto (though I will admit to Boston having some grouchy people and cold weather). I'd also worry that Georgetown's religious affiliation would affect its teaching and practices; many times thus far have anatomy and neurosciences brought up stem cells, embryological genetic intervention, etc., and I wonder whether a school like Georgetown would just totally omit those (important) topics.

 

[babaghannough]

BU cuz boston's way nicer to be in. the people are younger, there's more to do, the cops aren't so worried about speeding and making illegal u-turns.

 

[babaghannough]

of course, unless you're ridin dirty you really have little to worry about in dc. except finding parking.

 

[daeojkim]

No one knows you better than yourself, YOU will have to make the decision. Preference varies from person to person. If you have a friend or relative in either city, you can always stop by and spend a day or two on both schools and the city.

I don't know much about BU, except that I am a Yankees fan and it would be hard for me to be surrounded by hardcore RedSox fans.. hehe.

Both cities are expensive to live. If you want to do research, there is always NIH nearby, and as far as I know, GU has a pretty good residency matching record, especially in ortho and anesthesiology.

I may be biased because I go to GU. Not necessarily for or against, but because I don't know much about BU.

If you want to do research, then BU "may be" a better choice. If not, then I don't think you can wrong with either place. You will spend the next couple of years bombarded with study materials wherever you go.

Anyways, if you want to do Ortho.. GU 100%. yeah guess what I am interested in doing.. LOL.

Either way, congratulations and hope that you will be happy wherever you end up going.

 

[imrep1972]

I'm trying hard to ignore the "slant" in this post

I can't speak much to Boston either, but to address a couple issues in this post.

For the OP:

1. Research - GU is definitley not known as a major research location. That being said, there are still many opportunities for research and GU has been a major player in some recent medical innovations (HPV vaccine, anyone?) so if research is important to you, I would suggest looking at available research in the fields you are interested in. There is a good amount here.

Also, the NIH is just up the road, and many students do research there. It doesn't get much better, in terms of research, to my thinking...

2. DC a ghetto? <sarcasm on> Yeah... that white house is pretty run down. All those museums and monuments... tagged with grafitti... That Kennedy center where major philharmonics, performers and international figures all appear at - well, we just had a drive-by there last week... <sarcasm off>

Look, DC *definitely* has bad neighborhoods. No question. However, DC is the friggin' capital of the most powerful country in the world. There's TONS of things to do and see in this city. If you enjoy policy making in medicine - this is the city to be. If you like listening to some of the greatest thinkers of our day speak on topics of international importance -well, c'mon over. If you want to see national history that has been preserved - well, we got it for you. If you want good food - well, ponder this: all these international leaders come to DC, they need to eat somewhere... DC has some of the best restaurants anywhere, and they have a variety of cuisine that I would put up against almost any other city, save maybe NY, SF, etc...

3. GU"s religious affliliation: this is a valid concern, if you don't know anything about Gtown. The fact is, GU still teaches about stem-cell research, genetic intervention, pretty much anything that you might think would be effected by its affiliation.

Now, it is true that you will not see an abortion performed in the hospital. However, if you feel that is a necessary part of your education, you simply request to do your OB rotations at one of the neighboring hospitals a couple miles away (this is not unusual - GU has about five hospitals that we do rotations at, so you will visit these other hospitals regularly anyway - you just request that one of those visits is for OB.)

So, I hope that helps a bit. I'm not going to sit here and say that DC can match Boston in every, or even many, areas. I just want to point out that DC does have quite a bit to offer and many people who come here for school wind up falling in love with the area (even people from Boston.)

GU as a school is a very good education. They seem to emphasize turning out physicians that go into surgery and medical sub-specialties. In my experience, GU has "name recognition" that seems to hold some weight, as well.

Ulitmately, however, daeojkim is right, YOU are the only person who can really tell you what you're going to like better. Come by and visit GU, spend a few days in DC checking it out. Do the same with BU. Either way, you're going to go to a great school, you're going to be a physician, and you're going to get a great education. You're in a win-win situation, really.

Good luck! Hope to see you as a little sib next year.

Go to BU if you want to do research (lots of facilities; ranked much higher than Georgetown). Plus, Boston is an impressive, classy city while D.C. is basically a ghetto (though I will admit to Boston having some grouchy people and cold weather). I'd also worry that Georgetown's religious affiliation would affect its teaching and practices; many times thus far have anatomy and neurosciences brought up stem cells, embryological genetic intervention, etc., and I wonder whether a school like Georgetown would just totally omit those (important) topics.

 

[Lulu8]

I just wanted to echo what the last poster said: DC is not a ghetto, lol. I've lived here for the past 6 years and can tell you that DC is one of the nicest/least-ghetto-ey cities I've been to. The metro is known for being clean and the city itself in nice and really not dangerous as long as you stay in the right parts (which is basically anything in North of the capitol). I went up to BU for my interview and I definitely felt like the area BU is in was very run down and I definitely felt more scared than I ever do in DC. But of course other parts of Boston are awesome. Just wanted to throw in my 2 cents. I got accepted at BU and not Georgetown, so I might see you if you decide to go to BU.

 

[SpiresAAC]

Thanks everyone! I actually went to Georgetown undergrad and have a lot of friends who went/are going to med school at Georgetown. The problem really is that I don't know Boston nearly as well, or BU, so I don't know how to compare them....except that I really liked BU when I interviewed there. Anyone have thoughts on BU?

 

[sponch]

You're focusing on the wrong thing. BU and GU are pretty much on par in terms of reputation, at least with residency directors. Outside the top medical schools, there are two groups: 1) everyone else and 2) the really bad schools. You can't go wrong in terms of residency coming from BU or GU. What you really need to pay attention to is your gut feeling when you are interviewing. Where do you see yourself fitting in? Which school are you more excited about? If you're still undecided I would come back for a second look. Trust your gut because it never lies.

 

[Hoya11]

ms3 at gtown
my opinion..

pros for gu

GU name > BU name to the layperson.

GU is often regarded as the best school in city while BU is not

GU area is the nicest/funnest/most expensive area in DC, I dont know how BU compares, but people come here on weekends from way out of town just to go out and you live right in the middle of it.

GU > or = to BU in terms of residency placement
(I just dont know about BU but our match lists are ridiculous compared to anyone)

There is one class for a few weeks that teaches about all religions, its a joke and its the only religious thing that happens here. Plus the abortion thing is accurately described above.

cons:

No housing. DOnt know about BU.

The administration here is just annoying, putting cutoffs on tests and red tape everywhere. I just went through an easy rotation that, becuase it was easy, they had to put cutoffs on the shelf exam scores where if you get below like 25% nationally you get a low pass. THat is what I mean, just little slaps in the face like that. Nothing is allowed to be a breeze. 10% of the class will low pass nutrition.

Very conservative and traditional people here, lots of people who are total aholes but have had the job forever so they hang around. THat kind of thing.

 

[imrep1972]

One note on that - they have replaced the religions class - it is now an "ethics and intercultural awareness" or some such BS. Still totally useless, but it now focuses on different cultures instead of different religions.

ms3 at gtown
my opinion..

pros for gu

GU name > BU name to the layperson.

GU is often regarded as the best school in city while BU is not

GU area is the nicest/funnest/most expensive area in DC, I dont know how BU compares, but people come here on weekends from way out of town just to go out and you live right in the middle of it.

GU > or = to BU in terms of residency placement
(I just dont know about BU but our match lists are ridiculous compared to anyone)

There is one class for a few weeks that teaches about all religions, its a joke and its the only religious thing that happens here. Plus the abortion thing is accurately described above.

cons:

No housing. DOnt know about BU.

The administration here is just annoying, putting cutoffs on tests and red tape everywhere. I just went through an easy rotation that, becuase it was easy, they had to put cutoffs on the shelf exam scores where if you get below like 25% nationally you get a low pass. THat is what I mean, just little slaps in the face like that. Nothing is allowed to be a breeze. 10% of the class will low pass nutrition.

Very conservative and traditional people here, lots of people who are total aholes but have had the job forever so they hang around. THat kind of thing.

 

[Bubblehead-to-MD]

ms3 at gtown
my opinion..

pros for gu

GU name > BU name to the layperson.

GU is often regarded as the best school in city while BU is not

GU area is the nicest/funnest/most expensive area in DC, I dont know how BU compares, but people come here on weekends from way out of town just to go out and you live right in the middle of it.

GU > or = to BU in terms of residency placement
(I just dont know about BU but our match lists are ridiculous compared to anyone)

There is one class for a few weeks that teaches about all religions, its a joke and its the only religious thing that happens here. Plus the abortion thing is accurately described above.

cons:

No housing. DOnt know about BU.

The administration here is just annoying, putting cutoffs on tests and red tape everywhere. I just went through an easy rotation that, becuase it was easy, they had to put cutoffs on the shelf exam scores where if you get below like 25% nationally you get a low pass. THat is what I mean, just little slaps in the face like that. Nothing is allowed to be a breeze. 10% of the class will low pass nutrition.

Very conservative and traditional people here, lots of people who are total aholes but have had the job forever so they hang around. THat kind of thing.

That doesn't sound like a very good environment to be in - are you happy you chose to go to Georgetown? Do you consider these things to be minor in the grand scheme?

I spent two days at Georgetown this past week. After being accepted, I wanted to get a better feel for the school before deciding which one to attend. Overall, I had a very positive experience. The students seemed happy to be there. So, I am asking these questions to find out if others have had a different experience.

Thanks!

 

[GeauxMD]

Outside the top medical schools, there are two groups: 1) everyone else and 2) the really bad schools.

What are the really bad schools? Are any of the allo schools considered really bad schools?