Brown (Alpert) Med School vs Mayo

[Darkkprince]

Hey all,

I need some help deciding which of these phenomenal schools to attend. I haven't received my financial aid package from Mayo yet, but let's say theoretically each school costs $0 (I wish).

Which would you attend and why? Mayo is certainly a dream school of mine, and I fell in love with it on my interview day. But the idea of moving to Rochester, MN from the east coast is definitely a huge downer. I'm scared that even though I love the school, the location might cause me to be unhappy.

Any insight would help, especially from current students who may have faced a similar issue.

Thank you!

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[GnothiSeauton]

Generally speaking, I think the location isn't such a big deal. You'll be so engaged in your education during medical school that you probably won't feel very cognizant of your locale most of the time. During your free time you can always take a little trip to Minneapolis if hanging out in a city is important to you, and it's not like Providence is the capital of the universe anyway. If Mayo appeals to you in every other aspect I would definitely go there.

 

[Calicha]

I would agree that you shouldn't be put off by location. You will be very busy, and Mayo sounds like the better option if you call it a 'dream school'. Providence is not all that great (I spent a while there) - and while it is more centrally located on the East Coast, I would give much more weight to the quality of the medical school itself.

 

[mooxamillion]

I didn't interview at Mayo, but I had lots of pretty frustrating interactions with their admissions office this cycle. Long story short- they are a mess and I didn't feel like I was valued as an applicant very much at all. I interviewed at Brown and was accepted back in October. I absolutely LOVE the school and found the Second Look Program to be AMAZING. Brown really cares about their students and each and every person I met was unique in their own cool way. I am from Minnesota originally and can say that over time the weather can be a huge downer lol. I wanted to stay on the East Coast because I think it will give me a fantastic shot at some residency programs out here. Just my two cents! Good luck with this big decision!

 

[Ampharos]

Disclosure: not on wl for either school.

There are interesting qualifiers to each of the schools. Brown doesn't own their hospital and they have had some problems retaining/recruiting diverse faculty members. They do try to practice medicine through a frame of social justice which I found to be pretty cool. I think that this cycle was particularly rough for Mayo (new dean, new school, etc), and I was personally frustrated by all the hoops that I had to jump through with LOIs encouraged, interview mishaps, etc. That being said, the medicine that Mayo practices is amazing and there are a lot of zebra cases. I personally think that Mayo's patient population is less diverse though, especially in terms of SES.

 

[deev04]

Brown doesn't own their hospital and they have had some problems retaining/recruiting diverse faculty members

Can I ask what you mean by this? Like financially own? How would that affect faculty recruitment?

 

[Ampharos]

Can I ask what you mean by this? Like financially own? How would that affect faculty recruitment?

Brown does not control faculty recruitment at its main teaching hospital(s).

 

[Fortyfive]

Hey all,

I need some help deciding which of these phenomenal schools to attend. I haven't received my financial aid package from Mayo yet, but let's say theoretically each school costs $0 (I wish).

Which would you attend and why? Mayo is certainly a dream school of mine, and I fell in love with it on my interview day. But the idea of moving to Rochester, MN from the east coast is definitely a huge downer. I'm scared that even though I love the school, the location might cause me to be unhappy.

Any insight would help, especially from current students who may have faced a similar issue.

Thank you!

Hey, congrats on the two great choices!

What kind of specialties are you interested in?

 

[ivybme]

I agree with @Ampharos here - I think the cycle was rough mainly because of the new dean and new school. Both probably put a huge strain on the admissions process and probably was a situation unique to this year. While I didn't interview at either school, I will say that almost everyone at Mayo raves about the school a ton. I actually have a different question for you -- are you okay with the small class size (50 students) and did you get along with the students at Mayo on interview day? Honestly, while location is important, I think being able to connect with your class is perhaps even more important than the location, and I'm saying that as a huge fan of the east coast.

Edit: Just want to briefly clarify - I do say the location is not as important also because Providence isn't really a huge city, even though it's on the east coast. I know a few students that go to medical school near a big city but not IN one, and they mostly say they don't have time to venture to the city. While you will be around Providence, it will be harder to take time to enjoy large cities nearby like Boston or NYC. That being said, if you really do like Providence more than Rochester, then by all means Brown may be the better choice. Personally, I just don't really think Providence is THAT much of an upgrade to outweigh all the pros you stated about Mayo.

 

[Darkkprince]

Thank you for all the great responses so far guys! Really helpful

 

[Darkkprince]

Hey, congrats on the two great choices!

What kind of specialties are you interested in?

Thank you! And I'm gungho neurosurgery (so of course in that regard Mayo>Brown), but I don't want to let my stubborn ways limit me, so I'm going to go in with an open mind.

 

[Darkkprince]

I agree with @Ampharos here - I think the cycle was rough mainly because of the new dean and new school. Both probably put a huge strain on the admissions process and probably was a situation unique to this year. While I didn't interview at either school, I will say that almost everyone at Mayo raves about the school a ton. I actually have a different question for you -- are you okay with the small class size (50 students) and did you get along with the students at Mayo on interview day? Honestly, while location is important, I think being able to connect with your class is perhaps even more important than the location, and I'm saying that as a huge fan of the east coast.

Edit: Just want to briefly clarify - I do say the location is not as important also because Providence isn't really a huge city, even though it's on the east coast. I know a few students that go to medical school near a big city but not IN one, and they mostly say they don't have time to venture to the city. While you will be around Providence, it will be harder to take time to enjoy large cities nearby like Boston or NYC. That being said, if you really do like Providence more than Rochester, then by all means Brown may be the better choice. Personally, I just don't really think Providence is THAT much of an upgrade to outweigh all the pros you stated about Mayo.

Thank you for your response! And honestly, I did click with the people at Mayo, although I didn't get to meet a ton of them. Class size is a bit iffy for me. I definitely like small classes, but it highly depends on if I get along with the people in them (which of course will depend on my classmates.) I come from a very large undergrad where my classes have ranged from 20 student all the way to 500 students

 

[thenucleusaccumbens]

I moved from the east coast to go to Mayo and I'm super happy that I chose to do that. I don't have any regrets and could not see myself being this happy at any other med school. I have friends at various other med schools and I feel thankful to be at Mayo every time I talk to them because Mayo goes above and beyond to prioritize student wellness. They actually keep track of student burnout through surveys and have done research and we have much lower rates compared to other programs. Also if you are interested in neurosurgery, Mayo is a great place to be (ranked #1 for Neurosurgery in the country). You will find many mentors here and endless opportunities to get involved with research with the top surgeons in the field. Feel free to message me if you have any more specific questions.

 

[thenucleusaccumbens]

Thank you for your response! And honestly, I did click with the people at Mayo, although I didn't get to meet a ton of them. Class size is a bit iffy for me. I definitely like small classes, but it highly depends on if I get along with the people in them (which of course will depend on my classmates.) I come from a very large undergrad where my classes have ranged from 20 student all the way to 500 students

I don't know what type of magic the admissions committee works to make this happen, but somehow the classes all seem to get along really well. I honestly am constantly in awe of my classmates and feel so fortunate to be able to go to school with such incredible people. Mayo is a wonderful place and that's why you'll find people in every class who turn down Harvard, UCSF, Columbia, and other awesome schools in amazing cities, to be here. I should also add that coming from the east coast, there's a lot I enjoy about living in Rochester. Rochester is growing (over $5 billion is being put into developing it further) and there's new businesses opening up all the time here. In the short time that I've lived here there have been a bunch of cool new places open up. There's a neurologist at Mayo who actually has a really nice instagram showcasing Rochester that I'd recommend checking out - Rochester, MN (@rochester_mn) • Instagram photos and videos

 

[theNDhopeful44]

Dude you got into Mayo and you're considering turning them down for Brown? C'mon. Mayo is the best hospital in the nation right now and they're training is second to none.

 

[Darkkprince]

Dude you got into Mayo and you're considering turning them down for Brown? C'mon. Mayo is the best hospital in the nation right now and they're training is second to none.

Very true

 

[Darkkprince]

I don't know what type of magic the admissions committee works to make this happen, but somehow the classes all seem to get along really well. I honestly am constantly in awe of my classmates and feel so fortunate to be able to go to school with such incredible people. Mayo is a wonderful place and that's why you'll find people in every class who turn down Harvard, UCSF, Columbia, and other awesome schools in amazing cities, to be here. I should also add that coming from the east coast, there's a lot I enjoy about living in Rochester. Rochester is growing (over $5 billion is being put into developing it further) and there's new businesses opening up all the time here. In the short time that I've lived here there have been a bunch of cool new places open up. There's a neurologist at Mayo who actually has a really nice instagram showcasing Rochester that I'd recommend checking out - Rochester, MN (@rochester_mn) • Instagram photos and videos

Thank you! You've been such a great help (both on here and the Mayo 16-17 thread

 

[Endoxifen]

Hey all,

I need some help deciding which of these phenomenal schools to attend. I haven't received my financial aid package from Mayo yet, but let's say theoretically each school costs $0 (I wish).

Which would you attend and why? Mayo is certainly a dream school of mine, and I fell in love with it on my interview day. But the idea of moving to Rochester, MN from the east coast is definitely a huge downer. I'm scared that even though I love the school, the location might cause me to be unhappy.

Any insight would help, especially from current students who may have faced a similar issue.

Thank you!

Mayo has a bar nearby that's called "grand rounds." I think you know what to do.

 

[Darkkprince]

Update: Committed to Mayo! Thank you for all the help everyone


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[Endoxifen]

Update: Committed to Mayo! Thank you for all the help everyone


Sent from my iPhone using SDN mobile

Congratulations!