Duke vs. UPenn

[Le Boudin]

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I like that Duke's pre-clinical is all P/F.
I like that Duke gets better weather. I'm from the West Coast, so depressing East Coast winters are hard on me. I also like the more suburban/rural feel of Duke, and being able to drive out on an open road and not be crowded in dense urban city.
I went to Penn undergrad, and I'd like to try somewhere new honestly, so Penn isn't an automatic "Oh yes!" for me as it may be for others.

I want a nurturing institution whose students are not selfish gunners, I've heard horror stories about struggling with personal problems in med school and lack of support from the community/institution. I know Duke has an amazing rep for its community spirit, and that's pretty much what they sold us on interview day.

I am interested in derm, and for reasons besides pay+lifestyle. I had bad acne as a teen and had plenty of derm visits (did Accutane) and I've experienced firsthand how their work can change someone's life/confidence/etc. and the field is genuinely interesting to me.

You guys have any more insight? I know Penn matches amazingly well, and Duke doesn't seem to do as well...

 

[thlaxer]

I like that Duke's pre-clinical is all P/F.
I like that Duke gets better weather. I'm from the West Coast, so depressing East Coast winters are hard on me. I also like the more suburban/rural feel of Duke, and being able to drive out on an open road and not be crowded in dense urban city.
I went to Penn undergrad, and I'd like to try somewhere new honestly, so Penn isn't an automatic "Oh yes!" for me as it may be for others.

I want a nurturing institution whose students are not selfish gunners, I've heard horror stories about struggling with personal problems in med school and lack of support from the community/institution. I know Duke has an amazing rep for its community spirit, and that's pretty much what they sold us on interview day.

I am interested in derm, and for reasons besides pay+lifestyle. I had bad acne as a teen and had plenty of derm visits (did Accutane) and I've seen how their work can change someone's life/confidence/etc. and the field is genuinely interesting to me.

You guys have any more insight? I know Penn matches amazingly well, and Duke doesn't seem to do as well...

What are your impressions of Penn Med? Apart from the familiarity factor, is there anything else discouraging you from choosing Penn? Your post makes it seem like Penn's community is more competitive?

 

[TheMightySmiter]

Seems to me like you've already made your decision. Go to Duke.

 

[protonate]

I like that Duke's pre-clinical is all P/F.
I like that Duke gets better weather. I'm from the West Coast, so depressing East Coast winters are hard on me. I also like the more suburban/rural feel of Duke, and being able to drive out on an open road and not be crowded in dense urban city.
I went to Penn undergrad, and I'd like to try somewhere new honestly, so Penn isn't an automatic "Oh yes!" for me as it may be for others.

I want a nurturing institution whose students are not selfish gunners, I've heard horror stories about struggling with personal problems in med school and lack of support from the community/institution. I know Duke has an amazing rep for its community spirit, and that's pretty much what they sold us on interview day.

I am interested in derm, and for reasons besides pay+lifestyle. I had bad acne as a teen and had plenty of derm visits (did Accutane) and I've experienced firsthand how their work can change someone's life/confidence/etc. and the field is genuinely interesting to me.

You guys have any more insight? I know Penn matches amazingly well, and Duke doesn't seem to do as well...

Looks like you've already made a decision. Even though its tempting, don't base your decision on your match list because it depends highly on the student. Let's say a high school student is choosing between colleges and looks at where students from each school end up going to med school. Let's say the student is bent on going to UPenn med school, and for a particular school he sees that a lot of students go to duke (like you), does that mean that he is less likely to get into Upenn medical school if he chooses to go to that school? If you look at it from this perspective, it doesn't make much sense to look at match lists. I would base your decision on financial aid and gut. What is important is which school's environment/philosophy do you think is most conducive to your success, and from what you are saying it looks like Duke's the obvious winner. Just wait for the financial aid information to get the complete picture though because who knows, you might be one of the lucky full tuition scholarships at Penn!

Also: would you mind commenting on the competitive nature at Upenn because I am also considering Upenn as an option

 

[Le Boudin]

What are your impressions of Penn Med? Apart from the familiarity factor, is there anything else discouraging you from choosing Penn? Your post makes it seem like Penn's community is more competitive?

I think Penn Med is great. Their student body seems to be a bit older on average, and while that isn't me, I think it might be a great opportunity for my personal growth to join a class of more mature older students. I don't knwo if it's more competitive, I've heard it's quite nurturing as well, that once you get in, they carry you thru to the finish (if only medical school were like that), but I know they aren't P/F for all basic sci, only the first half year. I just don't like the pressure and think grades might get in the way of building the most solid inter-class relationshihps possible.

Seems to me like you've already made your decision. Go to Duke.

I haven't really... maybe my post has some bias to it, I feel bipolar these days as I decide X Y or Z would be best fo rme.


I honestly want a car too, to have that freedom and autonomy, to be able to take a camping trip with friends on the weekend if I want, etc.--and having a car in Philly is just a pain. Then again, Duke seems a little TOO out there, I've heard all about how boring it is.

 

[thlaxer]

I think Penn Med is great. Their student body seems to be a bit older on average, and while that isn't me, I think it might be a great opportunity for my personal growth to join a class of more mature older students. I don't knwo if it's more competitive, I've heard it's quite nurturing as well, that once you get in, they carry you thru to the finish (if only medical school were like that), but I know they aren't P/F for all basic sci, only the first half year. I just don't like the pressure and think grades might get in the way of building the most solid inter-class relationshihps possible.

I'm worried about the grading as well. I guess that's a question we can ask during second look. The current students who have been reaching out through email seem pretty friendly though. Do you know if there's a cap on how many students can honor a rotation?

 

[Le Boudin]

Nope dunno bout that, I find that most ppl look into significantly greater detail than I do.

Looking at general trends it seems Duke matches over to the West Coast slightly better than Penn does... I looked at competitive specialties like derm and rads, Penn grads tend to stay around the Northeast: PA, NY, MA, etc.

 

[justgo]

Thinking about Duke being "out there".....I think it is helpful to remember that Durham is one of three sister cities and that each have a nice flavor. You might need to drive to one of the others (a whopping 10-20 minutes away) but you can get big city things in the area. Also, Washington DC is only 3 hours away and you can take a train directly so as to avoid plane or car hassles on both ends.

I'm accepted at Penn as well but already decided not to go. Duke is one of my top choices. I think a very nice group of students are attracted to Duke and because of my research interests, I'd like to be one of them.

As to matching....you never really know why students went where they went. Both are fantastic schools with fantastic match histories that will get you where you want to go assuming you do your part and score well on boards and get some positive attention in the clinics.

The research year at Duke might allow you to publish something in your specialty of interest and add a little something to your packet that you wouldn't have as a Penn grad (at least not in 4 years).

 

[drizzt3117]

Nope dunno bout that, I find that most ppl look into significantly greater detail than I do.

Looking at general trends it seems Duke matches over to the West Coast slightly better than Penn does... I looked at competitive specialties like derm and rads, Penn grads tend to stay around the Northeast: PA, NY, MA, etc.

Penn grads stay in the NE because they're mostly FROM the NE. Believe me, I ran into Penn seniors all over the rads interview trail (much more so than Duke on the west coast)

 

[lo215]

I'm worried about the grading as well. I guess that's a question we can ask during second look. The current students who have been reaching out through email seem pretty friendly though. Do you know if there's a cap on how many students can honor a rotation?

I was told by an MS3 friend of mine that grades are based on cut off scores, and there is no cap on students per grade, meaning its not graded on a curve.

 

[Se7eN]

Penn

 

[thlaxer]

I was told by an MS3 friend of mine that grades are based on cut off scores, and there is no cap on students per grade, meaning its not graded on a curve.

Thanks for this info 🙂.

 

[varsityblue]

I'd go to Duke if that's where you feel you'd be happiest.