kingkong6712
Full Member
- Joined
- Jul 2, 2025
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- Reaction score
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- Points
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- Pre-Medical
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Both schools are health equity/underserved-focused in an urban area. The main differences are in:
BIGGEST CON ABOUT BU:
If I go to BU, I might need a car in my M3/M4 year. The problem is, my family never owned a car. So that means -16k for used car + 500/month insurance + 3k parking fee a year, which is an extra 35k I will need to lose/pay. I hate driving bc I don't even have a license/permit, and BU puts their students in VAs around Boston and the middle of nowhere places like Cape Cod/Berkshire, so I am worried about getting into a car accident and the stress of owning a car in a city. This is giving me a huge headache.
Downstate, I don't need a car at all for my 4 years there.
Biggest PRO About BU
Financial aid:
BU debt is 180K-200k at attendinghood (225k need-based scholarship + 106k BU Institution loan at 0% interest until my residency is completed)
Downstate COA is 260k total. If I include interest that accumulates during med school and residency, it would be about 335k at attendinghood. So I am looking at a cost difference of at least 120k.
BU has better national recognition.
More research opportunities.
Con for BU:
Family/friends are near the Brooklyn/Downstate area.
I have a few friends in Boston, so it feels like starting over socially.
I have to wake up at 7 AM for classes at 8 AM because of BU's flipped classroom and do their self-guided learning in the afternoon/evening, and it is mandatory attendance. SUNY Downstate has an optional lecture that I can watch at 2x speed after I wake up at 10 AM every day.
Boston's rent/grocery/entertainment costs are expensive compared to the SUNY Downstate area.
I am not sure if I need to do away rotation in NYC to match in that area if I leave NYC.
But overall, I am leaning towards BU for the cost difference (it will be at least 120k cheaper). The cons are quite annoying to think about and are the only thing preventing me from jumping into BU for financial reasons.
BIGGEST CON ABOUT BU:
If I go to BU, I might need a car in my M3/M4 year. The problem is, my family never owned a car. So that means -16k for used car + 500/month insurance + 3k parking fee a year, which is an extra 35k I will need to lose/pay. I hate driving bc I don't even have a license/permit, and BU puts their students in VAs around Boston and the middle of nowhere places like Cape Cod/Berkshire, so I am worried about getting into a car accident and the stress of owning a car in a city. This is giving me a huge headache.
Downstate, I don't need a car at all for my 4 years there.
Biggest PRO About BU
Financial aid:
BU debt is 180K-200k at attendinghood (225k need-based scholarship + 106k BU Institution loan at 0% interest until my residency is completed)
Downstate COA is 260k total. If I include interest that accumulates during med school and residency, it would be about 335k at attendinghood. So I am looking at a cost difference of at least 120k.
BU has better national recognition.
More research opportunities.
Con for BU:
Family/friends are near the Brooklyn/Downstate area.
I have a few friends in Boston, so it feels like starting over socially.
I have to wake up at 7 AM for classes at 8 AM because of BU's flipped classroom and do their self-guided learning in the afternoon/evening, and it is mandatory attendance. SUNY Downstate has an optional lecture that I can watch at 2x speed after I wake up at 10 AM every day.
Boston's rent/grocery/entertainment costs are expensive compared to the SUNY Downstate area.
I am not sure if I need to do away rotation in NYC to match in that area if I leave NYC.
But overall, I am leaning towards BU for the cost difference (it will be at least 120k cheaper). The cons are quite annoying to think about and are the only thing preventing me from jumping into BU for financial reasons.
