Confused...please help

[LIDO]

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Hello sdn'ers,

I am a bit confused with picking an undergraduate school to complete my learning and would like some opinions. I have recently applied to stony brook and Binghamton (suny schools) for they are both highly rated and have a good output for premed students. I have thought about applying to Cornell as a spring transfer and possibly university of miami. Money is def a consideration and by attending bing or stony the saving would about 20-30k (roughly). Yet I want an institution that will provide with a firm education and good leaping board into med school...if that is possible 🙂. Any feedback on these school or maybe a different school not listed would be great. I want to eventually work in pediatric oncology and realize that one must get an awesome IM res. followed by a fellowship. I am trying to make sure that I can optimize my edu with the resources I have to the best level.

 

[piyomonsta]

I went to Cornell, and it prepared me very well for med school. Cornell is known to work its students EXTREMELY hard (except for the hotel school 🙂, sorry hotelies if you're there), so even though med school is a lot of studying, I was already used to the workload and didn't need to adjust much. The university is also great in that there are 7 different colleges on campus. I was in Arts and Sciences, and had pre-med friends in the colleges except Architecture, all of whom are now also in med schools. So the opportunities are vast at Cornell; you can study anything you want, and still pursue medicine. Some colleges at Cornell are also state-run (Ag, HumEc, ILR); if you're a New York resident, you can get cheaper tuition. The pre-med classes were taught very well, and they definitely helped me prepare for the MCAT and med school (esp. biochem) as well. Chances to do research with reknown professors and to participate in clinically-related volunteer work are also plentiful.
There are a few drawbacks about the school. It's in the middle of nowhere, the weather sucks except in august, september, and may, and the campus is huge and has LOTS of hills (walking can be a pain especially in the snow). Cornell's also the largest Ivy (there's over 13,000 students), and so it can be overwhelming to an incoming freshman.
But overall, Cornell is a wonderful school; I loved it. Where else can you take classes in wine-tasting, mushrooms-and-molds, or psych 101 with famous Professor Maas? There's at least 10 libraries. And the campus is amazingly beautiful in the fall and spring. I hope you look into Cornell some more and choose to apply. Good luck!

 

[LIDO]

I forgot to mention in my above post that I am a transfer student. I have attended university at buffalo for the one semester (spring) b/c of medical leave I missed the fall semester. I am not sure if cornell would be an option. I would be applying for spring transfer (in 2005). I only have 12 credits (again this was basically b/c of illness). I realize that cornell would be looking at my hs record. I have a very good gpa, good ec's, and my senior yr took part in an amazing program. The only thing is my sat score was low (an 1180)...should I retake the sat next month? The program my senior is awesome support of my future career. I attended hs each day and afterwards spent each day at the VA hospital. I took classes at the VA (anatomy, physiology, gov/eco, english) and three days a wk went on rotations with doctors (usually alone but sometimes with med students). During the course of the year I rotated in every area from surgery, oncology, derm, ortho and so on. Do you think this program would pull weight at cornell? Or will my sat score shut me out? I did very well at ub this semester (pretty sure all A's). I guess I am asking for an eval. from some ppl...preferably ones that attended cornell. Sorry if this message is hard to follow....its wee late and I am stressin' just a bit. 😕

Thanks for the help!

 

[LIDO]

any comments?

 

[funkless]

Just this:

ANY school will provide you with all of the resources that you need to earn yourself entrance to ANY medical school you desire to attend.

I do believe that outstanding extracurriculars (academic and otherwise) are THE most important thing when it comes to getting into a top-tier school.


--Funkless

 

[piyomonsta]

It won't hurt to apply. Admissions at any school looks into a wide range of things when considering applicants, not just grades and scores. And the program that you participated in high school can only help you, not hurt you. I don't know how admissions works for transfer students, so I would recommend asking your advisor at your current school. Perhaps consider retaking the SATs only if you have the time and the motivation to score better. But I think more importantly, focus on your application, especially your personal statement and short essays. And carefully choose people who can write you great recommendations. An overall strong application may outweigh a weak score or grade.

 

[Heal&Teach]

Just this:

ANY school will provide you with all of the resources that you need to earn yourself entrance to ANY medical school you desire to attend.

I do believe that outstanding extracurriculars (academic and otherwise) are THE most important thing when it comes to getting into a top-tier school.


--Funkless

Totally agree. I'm an alum of a SUNY school (neither of those you mentioned) and I just applied and was accepted to med school. But I also went to graduate school afterward, and then worked for a few years. My undergraduate record was very strong, and it definitely helped me in the process. Wherever you decide to go, you'll be fine as long as you work hard and create a challenging environment for yourself. The resources at any school will only be what you make of them. UB and Stony Brook both have great med schools with outstanding research opportunities (I was accepted to both). If you're looking to go top tier, your scores (GPA, MCAT) and ECs (research, volunteerism, clinical exposure) will be very important as funkless noted.

I also agree that you should just try to apply to Cornell.. you never know if you don't try. But you would not be at a major disadvantage by going to the state schools. Just my two cents...

Best of luck,
H&T