Dartmouth vs. Vanderbilt

[calebho501]

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Hey guys, I just wanna get some advice. I got accepted to Vanderbilt and that's where I'll go if I don't have anymore acceptances.

Today I got an interview offer from Dartmouth. The only thing holding me back is the airticket money (Los Angeles to Manchester round trip is about $300). So I want to see if it's worth the $$ to check out the school.

I know in terms of research ranking, Vanderbilt is higher, but how about public health opportunities? Curriculum? Clinical Exposure? compared to Vanderbilt?

 

[Petitpois]

Dartmouth has exellent opportunities for public health. There something at the school called (I think) the Center for Evaluative Clinical Sciences that I would check out. They do cutting edge research on public health policy. The students at Dartmouth also get excellent clinical training and a lot of attention from faculty.

The only question is, do you/can you live in a small New England town? This school is in a very beautiful town, but it won't be like what Vanderbilt can offer in terms of stuff to do around the school and ethnic diversity of patients.

 

[Bones2008]

Dartmouth is in a very, very rural environment. Vandy is in a much more urban setting. Without revealing my bias, I'll just say that there's some major differences in what you're exposed to and they kind of medicine you're able to see. It may take a visit to Dartmouth to find out if it's for you or not. Good luck.

 

[calebho501]

Well in terms of location, neither Nashville or Hanover will totally satisfy me--I'm a NYC or Chicago type of person 🙂

I really don't mind going to Dartmouth just to check it out, just because I'm done with finals on the interview dates they offer me. But of course airticket is a big issue....$300 from LA to Manchester. Plus I need to take a bus from Manchester airport to Hanover, which is another $20 or so. Due to the long flight distance, most likely I can't leave right after the interview, so that means staying in hotel for 2 nights. Things do add up!

 

[tennesseejed]

I am also applying to Dartmouth but didn't get my application in until 10/30. I was just wondering when you were verified and when you got your secondary back to them.

 

[calebho501]

Originally posted by tennesseejed
I am also applying to Dartmouth but didn't get my application in until 10/30. I was just wondering when you were verified and when you got your secondary back to them.

I completed my app back in mid-August, but got the interview offer on Oct 30. Dartmouth seems to review certain applicants' files before others so I have no clue how it works.

 

[boomuntilnoon]

to freeze or not to freeze?

 

[VCMM414]

Yes Dartmouth is rather rural and COLD in the winter. Well, so is Chicago, but Chicago also bustles with life... Hanover, on the other hand, seems to be the polar opposite of LA (which you may prefer). Have you ever lived outside of SoCal? If not, maybe you can try interviewing at Dartmouth during the winter months to see if you mind the weather.

Speaking of public health, looking at your list of schools, I think both Emory and Columbia offer excellent public health opportunities. Have you interviewed at both? What are your impressions of them? Emory has a combined MD/MPH program available with internship opportunities at the CDC, plus it's in a large-sized city (not quite NYC or Chicago though), so it may be to your liking.

 

[calebho501]

Originally posted by VCMM414
Yes Dartmouth is rather rural and COLD in the winter. Well, so is Chicago, but Chicago also bustles with life... Hanover, on the other hand, seems to be the polar opposite of LA (which you may prefer). Have you ever lived outside of SoCal? If not, maybe you can try interviewing at Dartmouth during the winter months to see if you mind the weather.

Speaking of public health, looking at your list of schools, I think both Emory and Columbia offer excellent public health opportunities. Have you interviewed at both? What are your impressions of them? Emory has a combined MD/MPH program available with internship opportunities at the CDC, plus it's in a large-sized city (not quite NYC or Chicago though), so it may be to your liking.

I had interviewed at Emory and liked it, but I haven't heard from them yet. I also interviewed at Columbia, but I won't know until next year. My UCLA interview is coming up, which also has strong MPH program. The bottom line is, I haven't been accepted to any of these schools yet...

 

[SarahGM]

At Dartmouth, you will be surrounded by one of the most beautiful environments one can find in the country. I can't speak too much for the social life of the med students there as I just graduated from the College, but if you're at all into developing your outdoorsy side-- go for it! Dartmouth owns much land in the state of NH, and is sooooo close to Killington and other major ski areas. You're close to Montreal, Boston, and 5 hours from NYC (weekend trip!)... but what *major* cities is Vandy close to?

Also, keep in mind that Dartmouth focuses on rural medicine- is that the direction you want to take/focus on in your career?

 

[UCLAMAN]

Dartmouth is literally a one street town. The public health opportunities will most likely differ from Nashville in that at least Nashville is a bigger city. Dartmouth is very rural. The busride from Manchester airport is a fairly long ride if I remember correctly. I think the demographics would also differ between the cities.

If I were in your shoes I would go Vandy. But if you can spend the money for a plane ticket Dartmouth may be worth a visit.

I would've gladly gone to Dartmouth had I not gotten in here. 🙂

 

[elias514]

I interviewed at Dartmouth on Oct. 14th. I had a crazy experience. Some advice: Do not let any chinese guy in a public transit bus take you to the bus depot for Vermont Transit (the bus that runs from Manchester to Hanover). Also, do NOT schedule a return flight in the morning; you have to take a bus from Hanover at 3 AM! It sucks ass.

My weird experiences with the bus system notwithstanding, I had a great experience in Hanover. The landscape was beautiful: when I arrived the trees were at "peak foliage," meaning that the hills were a wonderful motley of orange, red, yellow, and green. Absolutely gorgeous setting. The town itself is very small, but surprisingly sophisticated and cosmopolitan (must be all the rich folks who send their kids to Dartmouth College). The undergraduate campus is really nice--a heckuva a lot nicer than my UG campus was. Lucky bastards. The preclinical facilities at Dartmouth (the classrooms, labs, etc.) were fairly nice. The Dartmouth-Hitchcock Clinic looks like a mall; I'm not kidding. The dude who designed the clinic also designs malls. At any rate, the hospital is top-notch--excellent facilities.

The best thing about Dartmouth Medical School is the class size and quality of the faculty. DMS students really do get a first-rate medical education because of all the attention they get from faculty members. They do really well in the Match.

 

[topherius]

to add to all this mess,

I didn't apply to Vandy (I'm from the South and am ready to get out) but I loved Dartmouth when I interviewed there. The rural nature of the place didn't bother me all that much. Dartmouth has a fairly unique twist to their curriculum in that they offer lots of opportunities to do third-year rotations elsewhere. (I know of lots of schools that let you do 4th year electives at other hospitals, but not many that do it in the 3rd year.) They have programs in Hartford, Key West, New Mexico, and Orange County (LA). I think they know that a lot of students could get turned off by the homogeneity of the patient population in New Hampshire, so they did this to increase the breadth of your experience. I think I heard a stat that the average Dartmouth student does about a third of his/her rotations at other hospitals. Also, they factor the travel costs for this into their projected budget, so financial aid covers it.

Just throwing that fact in there...my $.02: if you can swing it, it's worth a trip, if just for exposure to another med school.

 

[calebho501]

Wow thanks for the input. I think if I can coordinate another interview around the Boston area, then I may as well go for the Dartmouth interview.

 

[DMBUGA34]

See if flying to Boston is cheaper. I'm flying to Boston from ATL for 200 (it was around 350 to Manchester) and taking the Dartmouth Coach for 55 dollars round trip. They pick-up at logan every 2 hrs from 8:45am to 8:45pm. From Hanover to Logan, they pick up every 2 hrs from 5:45am to 5:45pm. However, it's a 3hr ride.

I'm also going to have to stay 2 nights. You can stay with a student for one of those nights and find a cheap motel for the second night. I'm planning to go out the 2nd night to see if there's any sort of night life (which I doubt)

Goodluck!

 

[SarahGM]

Your nightlife options (aside from greek houses):

Check out main street's 5 Olde Nugget Alley and Murphy's. Hanover has an ordinance that says there can't be any bars, only taverns (a higher proportion of food to alcohol).

You might also check out the 7 Barrel Brewery in West Leb.