Cincinnati vs. MCW

[Messerschmitts]

I got an invite for MCW today. I don't know if it's worth going. I've already gotten into the University of Cincinnati. Plus, I've been told the invite is for a spot on their alternate list. Is there any reason I'd go to MCW over Cincinnati?

One surprising thing though, even though Cincinnati gives you in-state tuition after the 4th year, it's actually cheaper, overall, for me to attend MCW (according to numbers posted by U.S. News). This is was mostly due to discrepancies in favour of MCW on the areas of "Required fees" ($1,095 for UCinn and only $45 for MCW), and "Room/board and misc. expenses" ($15,135 for UCinn, $7,500 for MCW). By my calcuation it would cost $163,998 for me to attend UCinn (with 3 years of in-state tuition), and $159,140 to attend MCW. Can it really be cheaper to attend a private med school?

However, on the MCW website I see this thing about a $5000 "Wisconsin-resident capitation". Does this mean that the OOS tuition at MCW is actually 33,000+5,000 = ~38,000, or does it mean in-state tuition is 33,000-5,000 = ~28,000? Also, are OOSers eligible for applying for in-state tuition after the first year then?

More importantly, is it worth it for me to buy a plane ticket and get stressed out to go to MCW for a shot at a waitlist when I'm already in at UCinn? UCinn is 10 ranks higher than MCW for research, but UCinn is unranked for primary care whilst MCW is ranked 44. But isn't the Primary Care ranking just the percentage of students going into primary care? Should I even care about this ranking if I'm mostly interested in E.M.?

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[DrRads101]

If you are interested in EM than there are few better places in this country to learn than at Froedtert Medical Center in my opinion. I also really like Cincinnati but Milwaukee is a more fun place in my opinion, with all the colleges, the endless bars, the waterfront and all the festivals happening in the summer along the lake. Kind of like a mini-Chicago. I'm biased though since I'm just an hour and a half south of Milwaukee so I know it pretty well, and honestly the fact I could be in Chicago in an hour and a half would be reason enough for me to choose MCW over UCinn.

 

[Messerschmitts]

Nobody else has an opinion? Pretty please? (Btw, thanks for your input, ctwickman)

 

[45408]

Hey, Messer, congrats on the interview and acceptance! I've been accepted to MCW, and I'm quite familiar with the hospital and such. Unfortunately, you don't get to tour Froedtert when you're at MCW, but you can take my word - it's a top-notch hospital. I believe you also have opportunities to do rotations at other nearby hospitals, of which there are several excellent ones (St. Mary's = burn unit, St. Luke's = cardiac surgery, St. Joseph's = baby factory), and if you want to do EM, then Froedtert's level 1 trauma center sees a lot of the crazy stuff!

You'll find that MCW has a lot of very positive reviews by pretty much everyone who has been there ( http://forums.studentdoctor.net/showthread.php?t=252576 ). As for tuition, I think it's the $33-5K=$28 for in-state. I don't think you'd pay $38K.

As for rankings, MCW is on the rise - they're building a top-notch research facility.

 

[Rjuza333]

I got an invite for MCW today. I don't know if it's worth going. I've already gotten into the University of Cincinnati. Plus, I've been told the invite is for a spot on their alternate list. Is there any reason I'd go to MCW over Cincinnati?

One surprising thing though, even though Cincinnati gives you in-state tuition after the 4th year, it's actually cheaper, overall, for me to attend MCW (according to numbers posted by U.S. News). This is was mostly due to discrepancies in favour of MCW on the areas of "Required fees" ($1,095 for UCinn and only $45 for MCW), and "Room/board and misc. expenses" ($15,135 for UCinn, $7,500 for MCW). By my calcuation it would cost $163,998 for me to attend UCinn (with 3 years of in-state tuition), and $159,140 to attend MCW. Can it really be cheaper to attend a private med school?

However, on the MCW website I see this thing about a $5000 "Wisconsin-resident capitation". Does this mean that the OOS tuition at MCW is actually 33,000+5,000 = ~38,000, or does it mean in-state tuition is 33,000-5,000 = ~28,000? Also, are OOSers eligible for applying for in-state tuition after the first year then?

More importantly, is it worth it for me to buy a plane ticket and get stressed out to go to MCW for a shot at a waitlist when I'm already in at UCinn? UCinn is 10 ranks higher than MCW for research, but UCinn is unranked for primary care whilst MCW is ranked 44. But isn't the Primary Care ranking just the percentage of students going into primary care? Should I even care about this ranking if I'm mostly interested in E.M.?

From what I know, MCW is a 50/50 public/private school and that's why it is less expensive than a regular private school. They do receive some government funds (someone please correct me if I'm wrong).

The Wisconsin area is also generally cheaper to live in than most other areas, MCW factors in $550 a month for rent in their student loans which is not an unreasonable figure. Also, the state capitation credit reduces in-state tuition by $5000, so in other words it's $33000-$5000, not $33000+$5000 for OOS.

As for which school is better, I'm probably biased by my MCW future, but I don't think you would be dissappointed with a trip to MCW. I absolutely fell in love with the school and the area. Everything is right there and as you'll hear from the M-1's and 2's, the students ARE the school; no nursing, no dentist, no PA's, just Med students. It's your choice, and an expensive question, but I don't think you'll be dissappointed with the look.

PM if you want more info.


Also, they're plugging LOTS and LOTS of money into new buildings right now. I believe the other poster is right in saying that MCW is an up and coming med-school; again though, -biased

 

[.edu-MD]

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[45408]

As for peds, Children's Hospital of Wisconsin (you can see it from MCW) is #3 in the nation.

 

[Art Vandalay]

EDIT: Oh, one other thing I noticed. Again, if you're into research, Cincy's summer research program offers a pretty high stipend (almost $5200), although it did seem more competitive than at other schools.

Off the topic, but do you know if Cincy's summer program is only for students there? Or can outside med students apply?

 

[Hawkeye Kid]

A few thoughts...

1. Rjuza is correct, the Wisconsonites get a 5K discount, so your tuition is 33K.
2. If you're looking at EM as a career, you can't go wrong either way. Cincinatti, though, definitely has the better reputation of the two (first EM program, etc) but you'll get fine mentorship at either. I wouldn't let this weigh too heavily into your decision.
3. Unless you're sold on Cincy, there's little harm in coming to the interview at MCW. Aside from airfare, you really don't need to spend any money (shuttle from the airport, stay with a host, etc) and the interviews are incredibly anti-stressful. If you think you might like MCW, come check it out, get a spot on the waitlist and see what happens. Where you go to medical school is a big decision and it's always good to have options. Unless you absolutely can't afford it or you're absolutely set on Cincy, I'd do the interview.
4. Milwaukee is a good place to live. Probably a bit colder than Cincinnati and with less twang. I didn't spend much time in Cinci when I interviewed but the people didn't seem all that impressed with the city itself.

That's it for now. Congrats on the acceptance and the interview. Figure out what's best for you, do it, and don't look back.

 

[Messerschmitts]

Thanks to everyone for their input! I really want to check out MCW now, but roundtrip ticket will be well over $400! General Mitchell is not cheap to fly into (of course, neither is CVG of Cinncy) It wouldn't be so bad if I could stick some more Midwestern interviews into the trip, but it's late in the season and it'll be an entire trip just for MCW, and for an alternate list at that. I guess I'll sleep on it.

Hawkeye Kid, thanks for your well-structured response. But what do you mean Milwaukee has less "twang", ha ha?

 

[.edu-MD]

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[.edu-MD]

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[Hawkeye Kid]

Thanks to everyone for their input! I really want to check out MCW now, but roundtrip ticket will be well over $400! General Mitchell is not cheap to fly into (of course, neither is CVG of Cinncy) It wouldn't be so bad if I could stick some more Midwestern interviews into the trip, but it's late in the season and it'll be an entire trip just for MCW, and for an alternate list at that. I guess I'll sleep on it.

Hawkeye Kid, thanks for your well-structured response. But what do you mean Milwaukee has less "twang", ha ha?

First, the twang--it just struck me as evident that Cincinnati is in close proximity to Kentucky, that's all. Don't get me wrong, Milwaukee has it's own little Canadian/Minnesotan-like dialect that can be tough to get used to as well.

As for flights, have you looked into flying into Chicago? Especially if Southwest flies out of whereever you're from, you could fly to MDW for cheap and rent a car (~1.5-2 hr drive w/o traffic). I recently flew through O'Hare because it was >$300 cheaper than MKE. Even with car rental, it might be cheaper. Also, depending on where you're from, you might get a cheaper flight from a less-convenient airport and, if you can con someone into giving you a ride, not spend any more on parking. Just a thought...

 

[LabMonster]

Thanks to everyone for their input! I really want to check out MCW now, but roundtrip ticket will be well over $400! General Mitchell is not cheap to fly into (of course, neither is CVG of Cinncy) It wouldn't be so bad if I could stick some more Midwestern interviews into the trip, but it's late in the season and it'll be an entire trip just for MCW, and for an alternate list at that. I guess I'll sleep on it.

Hawkeye Kid, thanks for your well-structured response. But what do you mean Milwaukee has less "twang", ha ha?

The drive isn't horrendous - something else to think about...

 

[juice2369]

Hey I too am debating whether to go to cincinnati ... cincinnati seems like a really well rounded school with lots of opportunities. they do better than average on the boards, and student/ faculty both seem fun, warm and welcoming. cincinnati seems to be a conservative and quiet small city. with the new facilities being built and all the hospitals nearby im leaning towards going there. by the way UC is implementing a md/mph program fall 07 if you are interested.

 

[45408]

I was curious what it was rated #3 for so I went to check. It's rated #3 by Child magazine. Unfortunately the link is broken so there's no indication what criteria were used. But I personally would tend to put very little weight on a magazine doing a rank list (Child magazine, US News, etc).

As for NIH dollars, Cincy children's is #3 for independent children's hospitals behind Boston Children's and CHOP (Philly), although CHOP and Cincy are basically the same at almost ~74 million. These three hospitals are #5-7 on the list:

That's funding - I guess the CHW ranking is based on care?

 

[Freakedout]

That's funding - I guess the CHW ranking is based on care?

How do they quantify care

 

[45408]

How do they quantify care

okay, more like "volume of X procedures performed annually"

would you go to a hospital that did 5,000 organ transplants or 50?

 

[earmuffs]

Both are fabulous pediatric hospitals.

In terms of nationwide reputation of their children's hospitals, Cincinnati is better (perceived by most as top 5). CHW is up there as well, but in the opinion of most faculty & PD's I have spoken with, more like top 20. Reputation ain't everything though.

Either way, both are great med schools and you'll get great clinical training (especially on your peds rotation).

Congrats on your acceptance. That's a great position to be in...

 

[Franimal]

Just another thing to think about... I will be going to MCW in the Fall... but I just read a profile of an M-1 there. They interviewed in early February and were placed 20th on the "in-state" list. They got their acceptance in early July. So I guess the waitlist moves. I am not sure what the "in-state" list was but that is what their profile said. Anyhow, just wanted to let you know. Good luck with your decision.

 

[Franimal]

Oops

 

[Llenroc]

Wisconsin is cold, very cold.

Cincinnati's winters are much milder.