Case Western vs. USC-Keck

[Caligrl]

---

Members don't see this ad.

Hi guys,

Yes, yet another thread of this vs. that, please indulge me though (this is also a hypothetical choice, i am still on Keck's waitlist)....I was accepted to Case off the waitlist a couple weeks ago. I am thrilled and know that Case is a really great school, but I am a CA resident and still hold a candle for USC.

If given the choice, which one would you choose?

 

[riceman04]

Hi guys,

Yes, yet another thread of this vs. that, please indulge me though (this is also a hypothetical choice, i am still on Keck's waitlist)....I was accepted to Case off the waitlist a couple weeks ago. I am thrilled and know that Case is a really great school, but I am a CA resident and still hold a candle for USC.

If given the choice, which one would you choose?

I think both schools are great...but I think Case it putting way more emphasis on research than I feel comfortable with...So, while I do like research and think it is important to gain that added experience, I dont want it to be the major component of it. So in my case, I would choose USC.

I'm a CA res. also

 

[exmike]

I'm from california, and I had the unenviable choice between a cali school and case myself. Your decision is more simple since both schools are equally expensive. I can't deny it. I love california, but I chose to leave.

In talking to most of my california classmates (esp the ones that had a california option), the decision came down to two things: trying something new (because living in the california bubble your entire life makes for a less well rounded person), and the perceived reputation advantage of Case. I am sure both schools will give great basic sciences and clinical experiences. County+USC is equivalent to Metro Hospital in terms of the patient population it serves. What case does offer is two enormous research hospitals in University Hospitals and Cleveland Clinic and exposure to the top clinicians and researchers in may fields of medicine. I have been able to use the school's affiliation with Cleveland Clinic to get on board some great projects with renowned faculty. In terms of research and clinical breadth, Case's teaching hospitals in line with the best, and it'll certainly prepare you to be competitive come match time.

By the way, there are usually ~25 californians ever year, so you'll have plenty of people to gush about california with!

 

[riceman04]

I'm from california, and I had the unenviable choice between a cali school and case myself. Your decision is more simple since both schools are equally expensive. I can't deny it. I love california, but I chose to leave.

In talking to most of my california classmates (esp the ones that had a california option), the decision came down to two things: trying something new (because living in the california bubble your entire life makes for a less well rounded person), and the perceived reputation advantage of Case. I am sure both schools will give great basic sciences and clinical experiences. County+USC is equivalent to Metro Hospital in terms of the patient population it serves. What case does offer is two enormous research hospitals in University Hospitals and Cleveland Clinic and exposure to the top clinicians and researchers in may fields of medicine. I have been able to use the school's affiliation with Cleveland Clinic to get on board some great projects with renowned faculty. In terms of research and clinical breadth, Case's teaching hospitals in line with the best, and it'll certainly prepare you to be competitive come match time.

By the way, there are usually ~25 californians ever year, so you'll have plenty of people to gush about california with!

now that is one thing I noticed about the affiliations too...I think at USC you will have the opportunity to see a variety of diseases and have several different cultural experiences...but b/c the majority of teaching is done at County your exposure in clinicals is going to be limited to "getting by medicine"...whereas the affiliations that Case has will allow students to gain exposure to both "getting by medicine" and "technologically advanced medicine"

 

[Caligrl]

I'm from california, and I had the unenviable choice between a cali school and case myself. Your decision is more simple since both schools are equally expensive. I can't deny it. I love california, but I chose to leave.

In talking to most of my california classmates (esp the ones that had a california option), the decision came down to two things: trying something new (because living in the california bubble your entire life makes for a less well rounded person), and the perceived reputation advantage of Case. I am sure both schools will give great basic sciences and clinical experiences. County+USC is equivalent to Metro Hospital in terms of the patient population it serves. What case does offer is two enormous research hospitals in University Hospitals and Cleveland Clinic and exposure to the top clinicians and researchers in may fields of medicine. I have been able to use the school's affiliation with Cleveland Clinic to get on board some great projects with renowned faculty. In terms of research and clinical breadth, Case's teaching hospitals in line with the best, and it'll certainly prepare you to be competitive come match time.

By the way, there are usually ~25 californians ever year, so you'll have plenty of people to gush about california with!

Case definitely wins in the reputation and clinical departments. I eventually want to end up in CA for residency, but I would like to have a shot at a residency at one of the UC schools (which are very competitive I know). So while I know staying in CA for med school might make it easier to match somewhere here, I am trying to weigh the benefits of attending a higher ranked school like Case (the reputation may be more important than in-state location when getting the residency I want?)

 

[TheMightyAngus]

Case, if you are interested in going into academics and don't mind living in Cleveland.

Keck, if you are interested in private practice and living in California for the next four years is important to you.

Don't base your decision on where you want to end up for residency. There are a multitude of factors more important than what state your medical school is located in. Base your decision on what you want to get out of your four years of med school.

 

[Caligrl]

I am really not sure what area of medicine I want to end up in. I think i will probably end up in private practice somewhere, but I am not sure and i wouldn't discount the possibility of being in academic medicine.

But---I do know that there is a good chance I will be trying to match in a relatively competitive specialty (derm, rads, surgical subspecialty). I know Case is a very well regarded school, but really-------how much more regarded is it than USC? I would really like to get a general consensus (I know that Case is higher in the US News rankings etc.)

 

[USCMed08]

OP: I think you're getting too caught up with reputations here (especially if you're basing this off of US News). Take a look at the match lists of USC and Case. While it's true that those lists are partially dependent on the students, the reputation of a school also comes into play. USC has had relatively stellar match lists the past couple of years, and each class seems to be trumping the previous class. We would not have had 6 derm matches and a multitude of rads matches this past year if our reputation was significantly lower than Case's.

Having finished 2 years of med school, I would base my choice on (in order of importance):

1. Is the school top 10 (here is where rep really matters as there's a huge gulf between Harvard, Hopkins, etc and schools like USC, Case, etc)?
2. Cost
3. Location/family/friends/social support network
4. Structure of first 2 years (PBL vs traditional)
5. Strength of dept that you're considering matching to

With that being said, you should have no problems matching if you do well at either school. IMO, it comes down to whether you prefer CA (familiarity) or Cleveland (novelty).

 

[attaboybambeeks]

OP: I think you're getting too caught up with reputations here (especially if you're basing this off of US News). Take a look at the match lists of USC and Case. While it's true that those lists are partially dependent on the students, the reputation of a school also comes into play. USC has had relatively stellar match lists the past couple of years, and each class seems to be trumping the previous class. We would not have had 6 derm matches and a multitude of rads matches this past year if our reputation was significantly lower than Case's.

Having finished 2 years of med school, I would base my choice on (in order of importance):

1. Is the school top 10 (here is where rep really matters as there's a huge gulf between Harvard, Hopkins, etc and schools like USC, Case, etc)?
2. Cost
3. Location/family/friends/social support network
4. Structure of first 2 years (PBL vs traditional)
5. Strength of dept that you're considering matching to

With that being said, you should have no problems matching if you do well at either school. IMO, it comes down to whether you prefer CA (familiarity) or Cleveland (novelty).

excellent post.
i took SC over case using similar logic

 

[Caligrl]

That is the thing----I know that school rank is only one small part of where each student ends up and a large part is dependant on other factors such as board scores, class ranking and letters from clinical clerkship directors.

As an about to be third year med student at USC, how do you like it overall? Any specialties that you feel USC has particular strengths in (besides the excellent ER program I know they have)?

I know that rankings are somewhat arbitrary, which is why I started this thread. I am really trying to get a sense of what each school is like so I can make the best decision given the chance.

Thanks!!

 

[exmike]

I would argue that the difference in reputation isn't miniscule.

I agree, see the strength of the departments. Here are cleveland clinic's

http://www.usnews.com/usnews/health/best-hospitals/directory/glance_6410670.htm

Or University Hospitals

http://www.usnews.com/usnews/health/best-hospitals/directory/glance_6410920.htm

or the match list

13 rads, 13 ER, 9 anesthesia, 5 derm, 5 ortho, 5 ophtho, 4 neuro etc etc

If matching competively is important to you, you can't go wrong with Case.

 

[USCMed08]

The first two years (assuming it is an 8-12 PBL school) are pretty much going to be the same no matter where you go. It is during the 3rd year that differentiate schools. Since I haven't been on the wards yet, I don't want to mislead you. However, my impression is that you have to like to get your hands dirty and be proactive to enjoy 3rd year at USC. Nobody is going to hold your hand at County. But if you do the work, you'll learn an immense amount and be relatively experienced for a 3rd year. As far as the first two years, that is highly dependent on the makeup of you classmates. The school itself has decent facilities, but instructors can be hit or miss (which I assume is the same for every school). The main thing that will draw (or repel) you to USC will be its location. Either you love LA or you hate it. I happen to love it.

In comparison with Case's match list this year, USC had:

19 rads, 17 ER, 6 gas, 6 derm, 5 ortho, 4 optho.

Other highly competitive matches include 5 ENT, 3 combined plastics, 3 uro.

USC has about 160 students in the 2006 class (not sure about Case).

As you can see, specialty-wise there is not much difference in terms of matching between the two schools. Program-wise, many of the above matches were at UC/CA programs.

Exmike, on what basis do you claim that the difference is not small? And if it is as significant as you claim, how does it play out in terms of post-med school endeavors?