Cincinnati vs. IU

[kmieczni]

Hi everyone!

These are pretty similar schools (as far as I can tell) with comparable costs so I'm having trouble deciding between the two. Any insight or thoughts would be much appreciated!

Cincinnati

Pros

• Seems like a really supportive and tight-knit community
• Top-notch pediatrics dept./relationship with the Children's Hospital (not sure if I'm interested in peds but it's a possibility)
• Match list seems good? I don't know what specialty I want to do so it's hard to glean much from it
• I know a couple of people here and they've spoken very highly of it
• Really nice facilities
• Eligible for in-state tuition after the first year

Cons

• I'm not sure if I like Cincinnati that much. I visited the city last weekend and honestly just found it really confusing and maybe a little depressing? In fairness it was cold and raining the entire time I was there so maybe it was just the weather lol
• Farther from family/friends by about 2 hours (not a huge concern)
• The UC logo looks like the Chick-fil-A logo and I can't unsee it

IU

Pros

• In-state tuition
• Good reputation (at least in the Midwest...I think?)
• Lots of resources and such because it's a big public school (and the largest med school in the nation)
• Seems to match people into competitive specialties
• I like the logo
• A little closer to home

Cons

• I'm not really sure if there's much coherence as far as community goes because there are 9 campuses across the state (and I don't think many students stay at the same campus for all 4 years)
• Doesn't publish a match list so I have no idea where people are ending up (I want to do residency in Chicago or Ann Arbor)
• Communication/recruiting efforts have been lacking compared to Cincinnati
• My biggest issue with this school is the campus placement process -- I won't find out which campus I'm going to be at until after I have to decide on a school. The lack of transparency bothers me (I don't want to be trapped in Terre Haute for 2 years!) and makes me feel negatively toward IU admin/makes it harder to envision going there

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[Banco]

Sounds like you like Cincinnati more. I agree, the whole different campus thing puts a dent into IU. I think both are great schools, with good regional and national reputations; overall pretty comparable.

 

[Weeble Wobble]

I'm in the exact same position as you choosing between these two schools. Feel free to PM me if you wanna chat.

I'd give the city of Cincinnati another chance. Both schools are so closely ranked that I don't foresee the level of training being different at either one so both should give you opportunities in the future.

I think I'm making your decision harder lol. I personally think it would be easier to decide if IU is able to get campus assignments out before 4/30.

 

[YCAGA]

Cincinnati is a great city and an ideal city to do medical school in particularly. The culture at Cincinnati COM is pretty intense though; they value high MCAT and “unique” EC’s more than other schools I have seen…just from knowing their student body. I’m not sure if IU is more laid back, maybe someone else can comment on that.