Does going to state school put you at a disadvantage?

[comedianintraining]

I applied to 10 schools this cycle- my only MD state school and 9 reach schools. The only school I have been accepted to is my state school, which I am very excited about, but it is not a top 50 school. I have seen posts across the internet that imply that it's better to apply again and get into a better school (which I will absolutely not be doing) than to go to a state school that does not have stellar rankings. How much will attending this school (University of Oklahoma) actually affect my chances of matching into a competitive specialty / my top residency choice? No info will change my willingness to go here, I just want to know so that I'm prepared

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[Goro]

I applied to 10 schools this cycle- my only MD state school and 9 reach schools. The only school I have been accepted to is my state school, which I am very excited about, but it is not a top 50 school. I have seen posts across the internet that imply that it's better to apply again and get into a better school (which I will absolutely not be doing) than to go to a state school that does not have stellar rankings. How much will attending this school (University of Oklahoma) actually affect my chances of matching into a competitive specialty / my top residency choice? No info will change my willingness to go here, I just want to know so that I'm prepared

There's nothing wrong with state schools as UG or med schools.

Anyone who is advising the bolded is an m0ron, case closed.

 

[Rogue42]

There's nothing wrong with state schools as UG or med schools.

Anyone who is advising the bolded is an m0ron, case closed.

^ This x1000.

Can this be copied and pasted to the home page?

 

[candbgirl]

I applied to 10 schools this cycle- my only MD state school and 9 reach schools. The only school I have been accepted to is my state school, which I am very excited about, but it is not a top 50 school. I have seen posts across the internet that imply that it's better to apply again and get into a better school (which I will absolutely not be doing) than to go to a state school that does not have stellar rankings. How much will attending this school (University of Oklahoma) actually affect my chances of matching into a competitive specialty / my top residency choice? No info will change my willingness to go here, I just want to know so that I'm prepared

There is nothing wrong with attending a state school. Whoever told you that giving up an acceptance and reapplying is giving you bad information. And guess what? You are going to be a doctor! Congratulations.

 

[GoPenguinsGo]

There's nothing wrong with state schools as UG or med schools.

Anyone who is advising the bolded is an m0ron, case closed.

To add to Goro's input, I believe there's a part of the AMCAS application where one must answer the question "Have you been accepted to medical school in the past?" Now imagine if you choose to forgo an acceptance to reapply and have to explain that to an interviewer (assuming you get that far) and your answer has to do with your desire to pursue the most prestigious medical school possible.

Not a good look, my guy.

 

[Banco]

A disadvantage how? With your current options you either go to the one medical school that has accepted you or...? Is this advisor the same person that told you to apply to only 10 schools and 90% of them be reaches?


If it makes you feel better, just take a look at the match list for Oklahoma and see how your specialty interests are represented.


To the broader discussion here, it's kind of silly that "state schools" have this bad connotation for medical school. Michigan, UCLA, UWashington are all state schools and top medical schools.

 

[comedianintraining]

To add to Goro's input, there's a part of the AMCAS application where one must answer the question "Have you been accepted to medical school in the past?" Now imagine if you choose to forgo an acceptance to reapply and have to explain that to an interviewer (assuming you get that far) and your answer has to do with your desire to pursue the most prestigious medical school possible.

Not a good look, my guy.

Wasn't planning on reapplying, just wanted to hear some more input on attending state school. Thank you!

Also, I'm a girl

 

[comedianintraining]

A disadvantage how?

With your current options you either go to the one medical school that has accepted you or...?

Hi, never intended to imply that I was looking for other options. Just wanted to hear opinions on state schools from people with more knowledge and experience than myself!

 

[GoPenguinsGo]

Wasn't planning on reapplying, just wanted to hear some more input on attending state school. Thank you!

Also, I'm a girl

Congrats sis on the acceptance, sis! (I can't do emoji's on a keyboard, so I'll have to settle for the classics)

 

[2.9GPA]

I agree with the advice here, but on my AMCAS, I was only required to disclose if I had matriculated to a medical school before. I do remember a few secondaries asking about prior acceptances.

 

[comedianintraining]

A disadvantage how? With your current options you either go to the one medical school that has accepted you or...? Is this advisor the same person that told you to apply to only 10 schools and 90% of them be reaches?


If it makes you feel better, just take a look at the match list for Oklahoma and see how your specialty interests are represented.


To the broader discussion here, it's kind of silly that "state schools" have this bad connotation for medical school. Michigan, UCLA, UWashington are all state schools and top medical schools.

Ah, I see you've edited your comment. Not that I should have to justify anything to a random person on the internet, but I am URM with solid stats and extracurriculars. I do not have the luxury of being able to afford 30+ applications like many people on this site, which I am fine with. My stats were within the MSAR ranges for my reach schools, but they are notorious reach schools, so I did not expect acceptances, but figured it was worth a shot. I will matriculate to medical school, and I am thrilled. Thank you for your unwarranted criticism of my choices. Have a good one.

 

[Banco]

Ah, I see you've edited your comment. Not that I should have to justify anything to a random person on the internet, but I am URM with solid stats and extracurriculars. I do not have the luxury of being able to afford 30+ applications like many people on this site, which I am fine with. My stats were within the MSAR ranges for my reach schools, but they are notorious reach schools, so I did not expect acceptances, but figured it was worth a shot. I will matriculate to medical school, and I am thrilled. Thank you for your unwarranted criticism of my choices. Have a good one.

I'm glad you're accepted and happy/proud about it, as you should be (especially with the risky application strategy). I'm just confused as to what advice you want to get by making this thread. You are smart enough to get into medical school but still unable to discern very dubious advice that you've seen "throughout the internet" about giving up a state school acceptance and trying again, and you seem to keep emphasizing that you will 100% not give up the state school acceptance because you know that would be stupid, so I'm unsure what advice or perspective you want to hear that you don't already seem to know.

Your question is "I just want to know so that I'm prepared" - Prepared for what? Disappointment? If you're uneasy about the fact that you only got accepted to your one state school, don't be, you will be successful there as long as you work hard. At this point to you, the only thing that can reassure you is the match list at Oklahoma having people matching in the specialty you think you currently want.

 

[comedianintraining]

I'm glad you're accepted and happy/proud about it, as you should be (especially with the risky application strategy). I'm just confused as to what advice you want to get by making this thread. You are smart enough to get into medical school but still unable to discern very dubious advice that you've seen "throughout the internet" about giving up a state school acceptance and trying again, and you seem to keep emphasizing that you will 100% not give up the state school acceptance because you know that would be stupid, so I'm unsure what advice or perspective you want to hear that you don't already seem to know.

Your question is "I just want to know so that I'm prepared" - Prepared for what? Disappointment? If you're uneasy about the fact that you only got accepted to your one state school, don't be, you will be successful there as long as you work hard. At this point to you, the only thing that can reassure you is the match list at Oklahoma having people matching in the specialty you think you currently want.

My point in mentioning the posts giving bad advice were to give an example of people with bias against state schools (that aren’t UCLA, UMich, etc). My question in this thread was to get other people’s opinions on how prevalent that bias is in “the real world” and if it will have an effect on my career.

I’m not interested in the opinions of people who only comment on my post to insult me. Hope you’re well. Please don’t feel the need to reply.

 

[Blueprint Med School]

My point in mentioning the posts giving bad advice were to give an example of people with bias against state schools (that aren’t UCLA, UMich, etc). My question in this thread was to get other people’s opinions on how prevalent that bias is in “the real world” and if it will have an effect on my career.

I’m not interested in the opinions of people who only comment on my post to insult me. Hope you’re well. Please don’t feel the need to reply.

For medicine? State school means very little. Sure, Ivy's have their little bubble but you see movement into them all the time. If this was law school we would be having a different conversation but that US MD is pretty much golden almost no matter where it comes from.

David D, MD - USMLE and MCAT Tutor
Med School Tutors.

 

[LunaOri]

Of my classmates in state school, approximately 50% are now med school faculty, department chairs, or private practice group heads. That includes many in prestigious surgical subspecialties as well as medical specialties. You can do anything you want from state school, as long as you are willing to work hard.

 

[LizzyM]

Even 30 years ago, I noticed that graduates of state schools were well represented on the faculty of the top tier private med school where I was on the faculty. I attributed this to the lower debt these young docs had compared to our own graduates and those of other "top" schools.