Case Western vs. USC (Keck)

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leathersofa

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I'm deciding between these two. I live in the midwest
in terms of ranking, both are similar (case- 25, keck- 31). for tuition, both would come out to the same (no financial aid from either). I'm not sure if I want to live in california in the future, i wouldn't mind working there but i also wouldnt mind working in the midwest.

Any ideas? And if possible, could current students chime in?

Questions I have:
- Is one school more stressful than the other?
- I know LA is a big city, and Cleveland is smaller. But how is Cleveland in terms of the city? Would it be tough to have a social life and meet people or go to fun places in Cleveland?
I know LA is definitely bigger than Cleveland, but I'm worried Cleveland is on the level of Rochester, MN!

- If all else is the same, would a student coming from Case have a better/lower chance of matching into the same residency program than one coming from Keck?
-Are the match results of the 2 schools comparable? Is one better? (I saw that more than 90% of Keck students chose to stay back in California while Case was more spread out. Could I come back to the midwest if I went to Keck, or is going to Case better if I want to do residency in midwest?)
- If you attend Keck, are you more likely to match on the West Coast than the Midwest?

Thank you so much!! Any help would be appreciated!

Also, I heard lectures are not recorded in Case. Is this tough for current students, or should it be a deal breaker? I'm also worried about the written exams in Case. Keck has the more traditional curriculum.

I also want to do internal med in the future if that makes a difference
 
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- Is one school more stressful than the other?
Look at their curricula and compare them.

In terms of the grading system Keck is P/F pre-clinical, where Case looks to be more of a tiered approach (Above Expectations/Commendable/Satisfactory/Unsatisfactory... not 100% sure but this is off their registrar with no distinction for pre-clinical years).

I know LA is a big city, and Cleveland is smaller. But how is Cleveland in terms of the city? Would it be tough to have a social life and meet people or go to fun places in Cleveland?
I know LA is definitely bigger than Cleveland, but I'm worried Cleveland is on the level of Rochester, MN!
You'll probably have more fun being in LA (SoCal in general). The weather is great year round, there are ample venues, theme parks, beaches, food destinations, etc. That being said, I doubt it would be hard to have a social life or have fun in Cleveland, not at all, but it's not NYC/Chicago.

If all else is the same, would a student coming from Case have a better/lower chance of matching into the same residency program than one coming from Keck?
Hard to say, but outside of institutional/regional bias (arguable for the latter) I doubt it.

-Are the match results of the 2 schools comparable? Is one better? (I saw that more than 90% of Keck students chose to stay back in California while Case was more spread out. Could I come back to the midwest if I went to Keck, or is going to Case better if I want to do residency in midwest?)
Don't focus so much on which school matches 'better'--the match is largely dependent on the quality of the class itself outside of regional/school bias. That being said Case is well known in the Midwest and undoubtedly matches well there, but you have to consider that a lot of students going there want to match in the Midwest. This applies to Keck too. 90% of the students want to stay in California because a lot of them are from California, and if they're not, 4 years in SoCal probably shifted their opinion.

- If you attend Keck, are you more likely to match on the West Coast than the Midwest?
See above, but short answer yes, but because you're probably trying to.

Hope this helps, but what do I know? :laugh: (I'm from SoCal and interviewed at Case this cycle).
 
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Look at their curricula and compare them.

In terms of the grading system Keck is P/F pre-clinical, where Case looks to be more of a tiered approach (Above Expectations/Commendable/Satisfactory/Unsatisfactory... not 100% sure but this is off their registrar with no distinction for pre-clinical years).

Hard to say, but outside of institutional/regional bias (arguable for the latter) I doubt it.

Hope this helps, but what do I know? :laugh: (I'm from SoCal and interviewed at Case this cycle).


thank you so much, mr. magpie! and just to clarify at Case Western, the first and second years are graded pass/fail. The third and fourth year curriculum is graded Honors, Commendable, Satisfactory, or Unsatisfactory.

after reading this, i am leaning towards keck. I do plan coming back to midwest for residency probably, but who knows that may chance 😉
 
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