Brown PLME vs. Columbia vs. Full-ride (Special Program) UNC-CH

[premed2015/2019]

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I'm really lucky to be in this situation right now, but am stressed out that my upcoming decision can mean where I'm going to be at for the next 4-8 years. I'm set on doing medicine and my end goal would be dermatology. Which school should I go to to achieve this dream?

If anyone can give feedback on Alpert's placement into dermatology, that would be great. I know they have around 3 people get in every year, but not sure if this is comparable to other top medical schools.

Also, though I have a full-ride at UNC, finances is not a concern. The program would give me lots of extra advising though.

 

[snowflakes]

Okay, here are my thoughts.

Brown is a great undergrad. The med school isn't quite as highly ranked as the undergrad. I usually have strong feelings about BS-MD programs and committing to one med school early on, but I think this case is an exception because Brown is a great place to be for undergrad.

Pros:
- You can relax for the next four years and do less hoop-jumping than other applicants.
- You'll be getting a great undergrad experience. Advising at Brown should probably be quite strong, though maybe not quite as personalized as the scholarship program at UNC.

Cons:
- You may be able to get into a stronger med school than Brown
- You may be able to get into a cheaper med school than Brown.
- You may like another med school more than Brown.

I'd say, take the program, and re-evaluate in a few years years if you still want to commit to Brown's MD or want to apply out. Unless I'm mistaken, you're allowed to apply to other schools and give up your Brown MD acceptance right? If you have a strong record after undergrad, it may be worth it to apply to other schools to see if you get an offer that fits you better, financially and opportunity wise . If you're not really that competitive of a med school applicant after college, then keep your guaranteed acceptance to Brown.

Disclaimer: I'm saying all this assuming you're not signing some sort of binding contract or honor code saying you'll stay at Brown for your MD.

EDIT: Just checked...seems like it's okay to apply out and give up your spot at Brown if you choose to do so. In that case, I really think there's no downsides to choosing Brown's PLME if finances for undergrad are really not an issue for your family.

http://brown.edu/academics/medical/plme/current-students/applying-out-other-schools

 

[resiroth]

Sorry but it's hard not to find this a bit funny. Dermatology is such a competitive specialty and you haven't even started college(?). Bottom line is that whether or not you can pursue derm is much more a function of whether or not you can hack the step 1 than what rank your school is.

 

[WedgeDawg]

Go to Brown, take the MCAT in 3ish years, see what your GPA/MCAT/app is like. If it's strong, forgo PLME and apply, if not, take your Alpert acceptance and run with it. This is the most risk-averse option.

 

[Doug Underhill]

If your end goal is to do medicine, you should take the guaranteed acceptance to medical school. Right now, there are hundreds of kids at both UNC and Columbia who are going to get weeded out by the pre-med weed out courses. Then, there's another big lot of people at those schools who will be weeded out by the MCAT. Finally, there are still probably a substantial number of people at those schools with a decent GPA and MCAT who will get interviews but won't make it past that stage. Don't throw away a fantastic opportunity on some dumb hypothetical that you could possibly go to a better medical school than Brown: the Warren Alpert School of Medicine is a fantastic program and it's pretty unlikely that either UNC or Columbia will get you somewhere better.

 

[youmed]

Brown PLME, no question.

 

[johnnytest]

Umm.. guaranteed MD acceptance at Brown. I would take that in a heartbeat.

 

[RedPhys]

If you're sure about medicine, no question. Brown PLME.

 

[premed2015/2019]

Thank you for all of your responses.

@DoctorofDelight and resiroth : I've interned with a dermatologist for the past three years and really fell in love with the field. I also have experience in other fields ie. surgery, pathology, etc. and none of them were as interesting to me. I know derm is a super hard residency to get, which is why I need to start maximizing my choices now.

 

[CrimsonKing]

And you want to do dermatology because....?