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Cornell Tri-I MD-PhD vs. Penn MD-PhD
- Thread starter RICTOR
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As someone who faced this decision many years ago, I have to say that you need to also put more focus on the location and environment into consideration. The stuff about research (cancer vs not) is definitely worth a thought. However, the MD/PhD program is extremely long (can be 10 years of the most exciting time in your life). Think about where would you be happy if you happen to be the one who stay in the program for 10 years. Do you like big cities like NYC/Manhattan or do you prefer a small one like Penn? Will you have good social supports in either locations? Which location is more likely to lift you up when you have the worst day in the lab or on the wards?
Personally I am so glad I made the decision based on location rather than stuff like med school ranking. In the end of the day, if you are happy and comfortable, you will do better work. This is especially true when you are comparing two top programs. In addition, doing your training in a city that you like means you will make more connections that will help you to stay in that particular location the longer term. Of course many people match to a different city, but still you will have a strong network where you spend 8+ years of your life.
Personally I am so glad I made the decision based on location rather than stuff like med school ranking. In the end of the day, if you are happy and comfortable, you will do better work. This is especially true when you are comparing two top programs. In addition, doing your training in a city that you like means you will make more connections that will help you to stay in that particular location the longer term. Of course many people match to a different city, but still you will have a strong network where you spend 8+ years of your life.
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I don't mean to hijack here, but since when would Philadelphia be considered a small city? Both the city and the metropolitan area are in the top 10 of the United States. It's definitely smaller than NYC, but I'd hardly call it small, lol.
The advice is pretty good though.
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Everything is a small city if you’re from NYC lol
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accepted at Penn, was R'd at Tri-I:
tbh my long term dream is to be a physician-scientist in NYC at a place like Rockefeller or MSKCC so would I have this choice, provided that I liked Cornell on my interview day/second look, I would probably choose Tri-I because of location and because my interests are well represented by the research offered there. Not like you can't get there from Penn, but if you really love the city then why wait 8 yrs to start living the dream? I think it will come down to things like location / fit / personal happiness depending on how strong your research fit is at both institutions. If one is clearly a better option / has more and better labs you would want to do your PhD in then choose that if you like both locations about the same. Philly is obviously much cheaper than NYC but that may not matter depending on your situation (I live with my SO so COL factors into our decision as we may not be able to just rely on subsidized student housing or tiny dorms).
tbh my long term dream is to be a physician-scientist in NYC at a place like Rockefeller or MSKCC so would I have this choice, provided that I liked Cornell on my interview day/second look, I would probably choose Tri-I because of location and because my interests are well represented by the research offered there. Not like you can't get there from Penn, but if you really love the city then why wait 8 yrs to start living the dream? I think it will come down to things like location / fit / personal happiness depending on how strong your research fit is at both institutions. If one is clearly a better option / has more and better labs you would want to do your PhD in then choose that if you like both locations about the same. Philly is obviously much cheaper than NYC but that may not matter depending on your situation (I live with my SO so COL factors into our decision as we may not be able to just rely on subsidized student housing or tiny dorms).
I had to delete my initial info because people could recognize who I was. It’s for privacy reasons, my bad.
Sorry I didn't mean to say that Philly is a small city. My bad. Philly is definitely one of the largest metros in the US. What I tried to say is that when you compare Manhattan vs Philly, you are really comparing a HUGE, world-renowned metro vs a big metro. Living in Manhattan on the UES is going to be a very different experience compared to living in Philly. Just food for thought for anyone who is lucky enough to be deciding between these programs
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I understand what you meant, I was just feeling a bit pedantic. I haven't spent a ton of time in Manhattan or Philly, but there is certainly a noticeable difference. I went to a high school where they used to give the opening day of deer season off from school and I once saw people in camo dresses at McDonald's on prom night, so I tend to get a kick out of comments like that. Anyway, OP is super fortunate to be able to choose between both of these excellent institutions. I think your original advice was a solid place to start.
