Duke v. Weill Cornell v. UMich v. Wayne ($)

[Pax7]

---

Members don't see this ad.

Hi everyone, long-time lurker here. I've been lucky enough to be accepted at each of these schools. Help me pick? I'm interested in surgery if that's important.

Duke: Cost of attendance: 40k/year
+ Weather
+ Research year
+ Prestige
- Sort of stuck-up vibe from some of the students on interview day
- Concerned about my ability to do well on Step 1 after only 1 year of class

Weill Cornell: Unknown cost of attendance. Estimated at ~50k/year
+ Location
+ Great vibe from the students
- Concerned about the PBL-based learning style.

U. Michigan: Cost of attendance: 38k/year
+ Great vibe from the students. Will reassess after second look.
- Boring location/wouldn't mind leaving MI.
- Weather

Wayne State: Cost of attendance: 23k/year (!)
+ Low cost!
- Little name value compared to other options
- Concerned about community in class of 300 students.

And the other secret option:

Georgetown: Estimated Cost of attendance: 50k/year. Planning to withdraw unless someone convinces me otherwise.

I'm tentatively leaning away from W. Cornell due to the higher cost and the PBL-based curriculum. I liked the feel at Michigan most, I think, though I think I prefer Duke's curriculum. I almost withdrew from Wayne since I considered it a back-up school, but the prospect of leaving medical school with only ~100k in debt is compelling. Any help?

 

[JPA178]

Michigan is the way to go. Low(er) cost compared to every school except Wayne, great school, great hospital, great prestige. Michigan's surgery program is very highly regarded. UM's GS residency ranked #3 in the country according to Doximity, above Brigham and UCSF and certainly all your other schools; Duke is the next highest at #9.

And Ann Arbor is NOT a boring location! I don't know where you get that idea, especially since you're from MI. Unless you're a NYC type of person and love that fast-paced lifestyle, your quality of life will be the highest in Ann Arbor out of any of your other options.

 

[Pax7]

Michigan is the way to go. Low(er) cost compared to every school except Wayne, great school, great hospital, great prestige. Michigan's surgery program is very highly regarded. UM's GS residency ranked #3 in the country according to Doximity, above Brigham and UCSF and certainly all your other schools; Duke is the next highest at #9.

And Ann Arbor is NOT a boring location! I don't know where you get that idea, especially since you're from MI. Unless you're a NYC type of person and love that fast-paced lifestyle, your quality of life will be the highest in Ann Arbor out of any of your other options.

Thanks for the reply. I did an internship in Ann Arbor a while ago and didn't love the town. Maybe I should give it another chance!

 

[JPA178]

Thanks for the reply. I did an internship in Ann Arbor a while ago and didn't love the town. Maybe I should give it another chance!

I think you definitely should. Football and basketball season at Michigan are especially great times to be in town. There is no experience quite like a Michigan football Saturday - from tailgate to the game at the Big House - and as a med student you qualify for student tickets! Even if sports aren't your thing, Ann Arbor is filled to the brim with great arts, culture, restaurants, you name it. Ann Arbor beats other cities of its size and even larger cities in terms of the many great things it has to offer. As a Michigan grad I'm happy to answer questions and provide recommendations. Your opportunity to attend UM for medical school is a great honor and one that many people would take in a heartbeat over any other school in the country.

 

[onceawolverine]

Based on your pro's cons list, I would knock Cornell off the list. It's too expensive compared to other, better offers imho.

In the same vain, I think the extra 15-17k a year for UMich or Duke isn't a big enough "con" to those schools to warrant keeping Wayne State on the list. No disrespect to Wayne, it's a great school! But I don't think that the cost there is a big enough perk to consider going there over other, relatively cheap, better options.

So between Duke and UMMS, given your list, I think you gotta compare students (that seems to be a source of some contention in your list) and location. A note about Duke, I do not think you have to take step 1 after 1 year preclin. I'm pretty sure students take it after their second year, after having visited the wards. Thats a huge perk in my book - duke kids seem to crush the boards. I think AA is a great place to live, but Durham honestly reminds me a lot of AA except with slightly better weather (but requires a car to get to a lot of places). As far as students go, I want to put in my anectdotal 2cents and say that the kids I met at Duke during interview and second look were some of the coolest/nicest/smartest/friendliest/etc that I met anywhere. That's a pro for Duke in my own decision-making.

If you really hate Ann Arbor, then Durham might be the place for you. If you really hated the students at Duke, then UMMS might be the place for you. Based on YOUR pros and cons, those are the factors I would weigh most heavily in making your final decision.

 

[SpartanWolverine]

Agree that UM is the way to go. No contest in my mind.

 

[drrrrspaceman]

UM all the way. My friend is an MS1 there and he loves it and loves Ann Arbor. Either way looks like a great list, can't go wrong with any of your choices.

 

[hosur]

Michigan....though i'm biased as hell. I'm on the waitlist at Duke 🙂

 

[DielsAlder]

Go to Cornell if you never lived in a big city or UMich if 12k less a year is more important to you. I have the highest respect for Duke, but I was also concerned about 1 year preclinical curriculum. Cornell also gets bonus points for the MSKCC and HSS connections, which is great if you are planning on a career in oncology, ortho, and rheumatology.