Columbia vs. Penn

[naccarsc]

Hello everyone! I am currently in the very fortunate position of being able to decide between these schools. I am a California resident who is, at the end of the day, hoping to match back into California for residency most likely into internal medicine based on my current interests. Below I have drafted what I currently perceive to be the pros and cons for each school.

Columbia

Pros:

• Good reputation, very strong in research.
• NY-Presby is the 5th best hospital in the country and the clinical training is strong/ highly regarded by PDs.
• Strong in global health as well as public health (close to the Mailman School of Public Health campus, might be interested in an MPH later on)
• Got a nearly full COA scholarship. Would graduate debt free.
• I am of Hispanic/Latino ethnicity and want to work with the Latinx population (ideal in Washington Heights)
• NYC sounds like a fun place to be in your early 20s. Loved when I visited.
• For some reason I felt more "at home" here and the community within the school seemed more cohesive and welcoming.

Cons:

• It is in NYC which is nice to visit but living here would definitely be an adjustment (public transportation, hustle bustle vibes of the city)
• Far from home, but at this point both of my options are.
• Not a Top 5- not sure if this could hurt me with the potential change to P/F for Step 1. I want to match back into California for IM. This is my biggest concern.

Penn

Pros:

• Good reputation, very strong research. It is also well ranked among residency program directors (slightly higher than Columbia)
• Top 5 school! Match list is exemplary and has been for many years.
• Philadelphia is a nice city. More calm than living in NYC and could bring my car with me.
• Beautiful facilities. New hospital opening just in time for my class to start clerkships.
• Seems like there are more opportunities for interdisciplinary work with easy access to the other graduate schools on the UPenn campus. Not sure if I would necessarily partake in any but it is nice to know the opportunities would be there.
• Half tuition scholarship (around 35k) which makes it around 40k more expensive per year than Columbia.

Cons:

• Again, far from home and family.
• Alleged internal ranking that I asked many students about but was unable to get a straight answer. Student body seemed more stressed here.
• Community is more disperse since a lot of students live off campus and a lot of social life occurs outside. Could not quite gauge how the culture is here from interview day.
• Not as strong Latinx presence in the immediate surrounding area. There are opportunities to work with the Latinx community but it seems like you have to go a bit of your way to get them.
• Not as fun as NYC.

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[naccarsc]

Currently leaning more towards Columbia but wanted to get additional opinions!

 

[Zen Arcade]

Since you have the opportunity to be debt free, absolutely go to Columbia.

 

[meronebib]

Your gut is right, Columbia is the right choice. Seems like a perfect fit for you. Plus it’s nearly free. And there is minimal, if any, prestige difference. You’ll match fine from both schools.

 

[mass-premed66]

Take the money! I also was choosing between a top 5 school and Columbia and ended up picking Columbia in no small part because of the COA scholarship given.

But I agree with the “at home” feeling you got, it felt like a really special place. New York is an adjustment for everyone newly moving there but I think it’s manageable, especially living in Washington Heights. And if you want to work with a Latinx community, Columbia is perfect, especially with Dígame Más!


Hope you’ll be a classmate!

 

[mzlipton]

Take the money at Columbia and run! Seems like you connected with people there more and you'll be able to work with Latinx communities more easily. It sounds like you'd be happiest there and you shouldn't have a problem matching back to CA

 

[naccarsc]

Thank you all for the input! I ended up choosing Columbia