Brown vs. UMN

[snorkmaiden6]

I already made a post but I recently got in to UMN off the WL (yay) and also have financial aid info which I think will add context. I hope that's ok @mods! I'm flexible on specialty, except I have zero interest in surgery. For now, I'm most interested in primary care (internal med with a fellowship later on), or perhaps PM&R. I have not gotten FA info from MN so I added the estimate for what I think max would be.

Brown (Over 400k Loan)
Pros:

• LOVE the global health/humanities focus (I want to do public health alongside medicine)
  • tracks + global electives make the curriculum feel super personalized
• Close to the ocean (surfing) and close to Vermont (skiing)
• I really enjoyed Providence when I visited
• Was my dream school before I applied and is higher ranked (idk if Ivy prestige applies but possibly?)
• Wasn't able to attend second look but campus looks gorg
• Apparently changing to complete P/F

Cons:

• Got zero aid = over 400k in loans required :/
• High COL and I prefer to not have roommates
• I don’t know anyone in New England—feels very nerve-wracking
• Not as dog friendly

Minnesota (Predicting 250K Loan max)
Pros:

• Haven’t lived near family in almost 10 years, and now they’re all in the Twin Cities
• Very dog friendly/family support for my dog
• Low COL
• The school has strong ties to refugee/immigrant health (important to me personally + career-wise with global health)
• Great emphasis on (rural) primary care

Cons:

• Curriculum seems slightly less innovative/tailored than Brown's
• Research seems more STEM based rather than global health or medical humanities based
• Not by the coast or mountains
• Campus looks less updated based on website but I'd appreciate insight from someone who has visited
• I think Providence + Boston area might be a cooler urban area

Additional question: will either of these schools make matching in certain locations challenging? Would someone who attends UMN be willing to answer a few questions? Brown was the dream school but with the finances + lack of family support, and how much I liked my UMN interview, I'm starting to re-think.

Thanks so much for any help!

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[Basalganglia4life]

My guy the difference in cost is over 150k plus 8-9% interest. Is Minnesota as cool as providence? Hell no. You are going to be too busy grinding to enjoy much of either place. In the end it’s just 4 years of your life after that you are in residency and have to move all over again. I think your future self will be much happier to be in less debt rather than having missed out on some big city experiences.

In terms of matching I don’t think mn will hold you back. It is a great established program with plenty of research and connections

 

[snorkmaiden6]

My guy the difference in cost is over 150k plus 8-9% interest. Is Minnesota as cool as providence? Hell no. You are going to be too busy grinding to enjoy much of either place. In the end it’s just 4 years of your life after that you are in residency and have to move all over again. I think your future self will be much happier to be in less debt rather than having missed out on some big city experiences.

In terms of matching I don’t think mn will hold you back. It is a great established program with plenty of research and connections

Thank you for the reality check. I’ve decided MN is now the move as long as I get the expected tuition amount.

 

[m1redsox]

The three most important considerations are family support, cost, and prestige. UMN sweeps the board on all three of these points.

 

[snorkmaiden6]

The three most important considerations are family support, cost, and prestige. UMN sweeps the board on all three of these points.

Thank you for the insight. I agree on the first two, and it seems close enough on the last point. Do you think UMN has more “prestige” for primary care or in general?

 

[m1redsox]

UMN is better in primary care and about even in general. Most rankings put them both in the mid-thirties for research.

 

[snorkmaiden6]

UMN is better in primary care and about even in general. Most rankings put them both in the mid-thirties for research.

Gotcha! well I'd like to pursue primary care so seems like a no brainer, ty for the info

 

[pluviophile]

Congrats on two great choices! For reference, I attended UMN Twin Cities for undergrad and would've attended there for med school if I didn't get off the waitlist for my #1. Honestly, I'd really advocate for UMN based on the finances alone, esp with the current government... Add in the facts that you have family support and that you are interested in primary care, I agree that UMN is a no brainer. To address some of your UMN cons, you can definitely find global health or humanities research if you wanted. Since the med school is located within the undergrad campus, I feel like it should be very easy to collaborate with those departments. Speaking of the campus, the med school's main hub is in one building in the East Bank. I'm trying to remember what the interior looked like from last year's admitted students day, and I think it was pretty modern and newish-looking overall.

I don't think that attending either UMN or Brown would make matching in certain locations difficult. Where are you hoping to match? I feel like UMN's match results are very self-selecting in that the majority of their med students are originally from Minnesota and want to practice locally. There are definitely historically strong matches outside of the Midwest, so I don't feel like the school itself would limit you in any way.

 

[snorkmaiden6]

Congrats on two great choices! For reference, I attended UMN Twin Cities for undergrad and would've attended there for med school if I didn't get off the waitlist for my #1. Honestly, I'd really advocate for UMN based on the finances alone, esp with the current government... Add in the facts that you have family support and that you are interested in primary care, I agree that UMN is a no brainer. To address some of your UMN cons, you can definitely find global health or humanities research if you wanted. Since the med school is located within the undergrad campus, I feel like it should be very easy to collaborate with those departments. Speaking of the campus, the med school's main hub is in one building in the East Bank. I'm trying to remember what the interior looked like from last year's admitted students day, and I think it was pretty modern and newish-looking overall.

I don't think that attending either UMN or Brown would make matching in certain locations difficult. Where are you hoping to match? I feel like UMN's match results are very self-selecting in that the majority of their med students are originally from Minnesota and want to practice locally. There are definitely historically strong matches outside of the Midwest, so I don't feel like the school itself would limit you in any way.

I think I would like to match east coast or mountain west. That being said if I enjoy Minnesota, I definitely can see myself wanting to stay there esp near my family. I got the same impression from Minnesota’s match list that most people probably preferred to stay in the Midwest, so it was hard to glean much info from the list. Either way, I’m getting the impression now that MN is more on par than I realized (if not better in primary care) than the other two options (recently got off the waitlist at Rochester for similar price as Brown), so will just have to wait on aid package from MN to make a final choice. If they end up all being the same price, I’ll have to rethink my life. Thank you for your help 🙂

 

[Yhwach]

UMN if you are sure you want primary care.

 

[snorkmaiden6]

UMN if you are sure you want primary care.

I think I'm like 75% sure