Einstein vs Stony Brook vs Hofstra

[ny2mi]

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These are all amazing schools and I know I could do very well at any one of them 😍. However, only one will be the absolute BEST fit for me and I want to everything I currently can to get an answer. Like any of you, I want to make the best decision possible about where it is I will call home for the next four years.

If you were/are in this this position and had/have to make a decision between any two of these three schools, I especially want to hear from you. What decision did you make and why?

If you don't know about these schools specifically, then I'd appreciate some advice on factors to consider. I made a list of things important to me, graded each school, generated an overall score and had no success in finding a significant advantage at one school over the other. I would post my data, but it is very subjective lol and I don't think it'll help others. What are some things you compared between the schools you were accepted to before finally deciding on which to attend?

In case it comes up, price is important but it isn't THE MOST important factor. I am lucky enough to have a private scholarship.

Like I said, attending any of these medical schools would be a blessing for me. I just want to make the most prudent choice. Thank you all in advance for your help! 😀

 

[kautionwirez]

These are all amazing schools and I know I could do very well at any one of them 😍. However, only one will be the absolute BEST fit for me and I want to everything I currently can to get an answer. Like any of you, I want to make the best decision possible about where it is I will call home for the next four years.

If you were/are in this this position and had/have to make a decision between any two of these three schools, I especially want to hear from you. What decision did you make and why?

If you don't know about these schools specifically, then I'd appreciate some advice on factors to consider. I made a list of things important to me, graded each school, generated an overall score and had no success in finding a significant advantage at one school over the other. I would post my data, but it is very subjective lol and I don't think it'll help others. What are some things you compared between the schools you were accepted to before finally deciding on which to attend?

In case it comes up, price is important but it isn't THE MOST important factor. I am lucky enough to have a private scholarship.

Like I said, attending any of these medical schools would be a blessing for me. I just want to make the most prudent choice. Thank you all in advance for your help! 😀

what I liked about Hofstra is that they have clinical experience right from the get go. The blocks are tied to preceptors where as if you are studying embryology, you are assigned to an ob/gyn doctor and follow that patient throughout until the baby is born. Then you follow the baby along. Having the blocks tied to preceptors is brilliant and will enhance medical students' experiences compared to other traditional schools. That was the major selling point for me. The also have a huge amount of doctors to choose from (and I believe you get to choose) for rotations and each student is assigned their own doctor. Hofstra has great potential and I do believe they will gain a good amount of prestige over the years.

My personal cons about Hofstra is that it is ways away from Manhattan and isn't exactly NYC. I expected it to be closer but my assumptions were wrong. I didn't like the fact that the learning facility was far from the medical education building. There also wasn't on campus housing for couples I believe.

 

[Hoya2009]

I go to Hofstra now. The above isn't totally accurate.
You are assigned five physician preceptors in August, primary care, surgery, Peds, OB/Gyn and Psych that you will work with over the first two years. You have five preceptors, and you are their only medical student. There are assigned weeks with each specialty and they attempt to follow the curriculum, but it isn't perfect. I have a colorectal surgeon and we just covered the gut and abdomen, so I had a lot of overlap. Now that we're on to heart/lungs/kidneys, I won't have all that much.
There is definitely a longitudinal patient component, though, which is cool. You pick a patient to follow in each specialty and work their visits and your schedule around each other so you can see their progression through their disease and all of their contacts with the healthcare system.
The early and significant clinical experience was really important to my choice. I also wanted to be in NYC or LI, so location was a plus for me.
I know a little about Stony Brook -- I did an MS there and worked in a lab in the med school building. I had a lot I contact with the medical school faculty. It's a Pretty standard curriculum when I was there ( till May 2011). I am not in love with long, all day lectures or breaking up classes as anatomy, physio, path, etc... Tests were OSCEs 🙁 I got a bigger wow factor from Hofstra, by a lot. I liked the chance to do something new and the way learning is organized at Hofstra made a lot more sense to me. Also, straight pass/fail at Hofstra was a huge plus.

I don't know anything about Einstein except its in the city, so I can't speak to that.

 

[powerincarnate]

I think Einstein based on Match results, research capabilities, top physicians, and general ranking of the school is the number 1 chose. The exception being if money really is a major factor in your decision. In that case, if you live in New York, then Stony Brook is not a bad number 2. Good in research, generally in the 50s as far as overal ranking. Hospital is right there close to you. Safe, and so forth.

Hofstra is much closer to NYC if that is a factor being it and Stony Brook. The new Curriculum is nice, no question about that, but I'm not sure about the distance to the clinical skills and various other hospitals. It does have a huge North Shore LIJ system so clerkship years should be interesting. The actual school is quite small. And I wasn't a fan of the No real Gross Anatomy class. Instead, it is set up where the professor already does the cut for you and you come in and see it, talk about it, do minor tweaks, but you don't get the 4-6 per body experience of a true Gross anatomy class. The early clerkships in Hofstra may or may not be a bonus depending on your perspective on this issue. The students at Hofstra sure liked it, at least that was my impression during my interview there. But older M3, and M4 folks from other universities generally view early patient contact as a PR stuff, but in actuality felt it wasn't too beneficial as you don't really know much, and will often shadow more than you actually do anything. (again, this is NOT what the folks at Hofstra said). Finally as a new school, we just don't know how they will do with matching for residencies. We know Einstein is excellent and Stony Brook is good, but we don't know Hofstra.

 

[Hoya2009]

I actually like not having a full dissection in our anatomy course. It's obviously all I know, though. We get right to what's important and look at it in the cadaver and on imaging (X-ray, CT, MRI, histo slide). We have dissection projects, but a full dissection would not fit into a two-year course integrated with imaging, the physical exam and pathology.
We don't do shadowing during the first two years. We're expected to take histories and do physicals. There is a course, August to October dedicated to taking a complete history and a head-to-toe basic physical exam. We're tested on it every exam week, too.

If you're coming to second look, I'll see you there. Or you can PM me if you want to know more about Hofstra. I'd be happy to answer whatever questions you have.

 

[nyc1718]

I go to Hofstra now. The above isn't totally accurate.
You are assigned five physician preceptors in August, primary care, surgery, Peds, OB/Gyn and Psych that you will work with over the first two years. You have five preceptors, and you are their only medical student. There are assigned weeks with each specialty and they attempt to follow the curriculum, but it isn't perfect. I have a colorectal surgeon and we just covered the gut and abdomen, so I had a lot of overlap. Now that we're on to heart/lungs/kidneys, I won't have all that much.
There is definitely a longitudinal patient component, though, which is cool. You pick a patient to follow in each specialty and work their visits and your schedule around each other so you can see their progression through their disease and all of their contacts with the healthcare system.
The early and significant clinical experience was really important to my choice. I also wanted to be in NYC or LI, so location was a plus for me.
I know a little about Stony Brook -- I did an MS there and worked in a lab in the med school building. I had a lot I contact with the medical school faculty. It's a Pretty standard curriculum when I was there ( till May 2011). I am not in love with long, all day lectures or breaking up classes as anatomy, physio, path, etc... Tests were OSCEs 🙁 I got a bigger wow factor from Hofstra, by a lot. I liked the chance to do something new and the way learning is organized at Hofstra made a lot more sense to me. Also, straight pass/fail at Hofstra was a huge plus.

I don't know anything about Einstein except its in the city, so I can't speak to that.

hofstra is incredible. everything from the curriculum to the clinical experience. Also in the end they simplify the repayment of loans (as I'm sure you know) so you're not going to be stuck with a huge debt

 

[ppfizenm]

I think Einstein based on Match results, research capabilities, top physicians, and general ranking of the school is the number 1 chose. The exception being if money really is a major factor in your decision. In that case, if you live in New York, then Stony Brook is not a bad number 2. Good in research, generally in the 50s as far as overal ranking. Hospital is right there close to you. Safe, and so forth.

Hofstra is much closer to NYC if that is a factor being it and Stony Brook. The new Curriculum is nice, no question about that, but I'm not sure about the distance to the clinical skills and various other hospitals. It does have a huge North Shore LIJ system so clerkship years should be interesting. The actual school is quite small. And I wasn't a fan of the No real Gross Anatomy class. Instead, it is set up where the professor already does the cut for you and you come in and see it, talk about it, do minor tweaks, but you don't get the 4-6 per body experience of a true Gross anatomy class. The early clerkships in Hofstra may or may not be a bonus depending on your perspective on this issue. The students at Hofstra sure liked it, at least that was my impression during my interview there. But older M3, and M4 folks from other universities generally view early patient contact as a PR stuff, but in actuality felt it wasn't too beneficial as you don't really know much, and will often shadow more than you actually do anything. (again, this is NOT what the folks at Hofstra said). Finally as a new school, we just don't know how they will do with matching for residencies. We know Einstein is excellent and Stony Brook is good, but we don't know Hofstra.

Everyone will tell you not to go to one school over another based on match results b/c the really don't tell you much besides where students go. Not where they wanted to go, not if the program they got into was their first choice, ect. Also Stony Brook and Einstein are ranked pretty similarly. Both are the supposed "mid tier" schools. The research at both is good. I know Stony Brook is going through a pretty massive expansion at the moment in most of their departments and bringing in a lot of new faculty and building new labs. For me it would come down to whether or not you want to be in the city or not and whether being in the city was worth it over the higher tuition cost of Einstein.

 

[YPDCC]

Honestly, if I had to choose between these three schools I would choose Einstein based on the match lists (http://myalbert.einstein.yu.edu/aecom/students/match/2011.php). Hofstra may be a reputable school in ten years, but until we see where that first class matches we will never know. Do you really want to be the guinea pig for a new school when you have the proven results of both Stony and Einstein? Last year's class chose Hofstra over other schools because of the serious financial advantages (ranging from 1/2 tuition to full tuition scholarships). You have great options. Don't sell yourself short by believing everything you're told by a school that is trying to make a name for itself. I have interviewed at a couple of schools of the caliber of Einstein, and I would full-heartedly choose those schools over Hofstra if given the opportunity.

 

[Hoya2009]

I can't speak for everyone, but I would have gone here even without the financial incentive. I really wanted to go to this school, even though I had other options at established places.

I never looked at a match list to compare schools, because I figure my performance and preferences will affect where I match and which specialty, not the school.
Go where you think you'll be happiest today and in four years.

 

[EK601]

How cool! I'm making the exact same decision!

Finances aside, I have completely no way to pick between them because they are all so different. From what I can tell:

Einstein
+ great (mandatory!) research
+ Pass/Fail
+Cheap, close housing. For me, this is big. No hassle of looking for an apartment, getting a car etc.
+ Incredible global health opportunities

- In the bronx (it's not unsafe it's just a bit boring)
-I don't think the class is as diverse as other school's I have seen but this is based on a single day visit and the MSAR

Stony

+Also great research
+Incredible reputation for a public school, I have even heard people discuss it in Asia
+Location is quiet but I really like the pace of life (and the proximity to the beach!)

- I've heard the class is really competitive and not P/F
- Lectures not recorded

Hofstra

+ Loved the curriculum, and clinical opportunities
+ Really liked the building and how it was designed as well as the philosophy of the school
+ "gut" feeling was for hofstra

- Never had graduates. As much as I loved the place, this is probably the dealbreaker.
- Location is not the best

 

[freeski]

How cool! I'm making the exact same decision!

Finances aside, I have completely no way to pick between them because they are all so different. From what I can tell:

Einstein
+ great (mandatory!) research
+ Pass/Fail
+Cheap, close housing. For me, this is big. No hassle of looking for an apartment, getting a car etc.
+ Incredible global health opportunities

- In the bronx (it's not unsafe it's just a bit boring)
-I don't think the class is as diverse as other school's I have seen but this is based on a single day visit and the MSAR

Stony

+Also great research
+Incredible reputation for a public school, I have even heard people discuss it in Asia
+Location is quiet but I really like the pace of life (and the proximity to the beach!)

- I've heard the class is really competitive and not P/F
- Lectures not recorded

Hofstra

+ Loved the curriculum, and clinical opportunities
+ Really liked the building and how it was designed as well as the philosophy of the school
+ "gut" feeling was for hofstra

- Never had graduates. As much as I loved the place, this is probably the dealbreaker.
- Location is not the best

M1 at Stony Brook here, just wanted to correct a few things 🙂. In the last few days, we received word that SB is switching over to a P/F system for next year. They are still deciding whether it will be P/F or H/P/F, but either way it is an improvement over the old system, especially for 2nd year (2nd year is currently graded on a curve).

Also, all lectures are indeed recorded. Medical students are responsible for video taping lectures, but the noteservice people are currently working on implementing a more sophisticated system.

Competitive students- I have to say I don't really feel that way at all, about my class anyway. Every class is going to have there gunners, but for the most part people go out of there way to help others. The elimination of the curve in 2nd year should foster even more cooperation. I do know that 2nd years felt that the curve made people more competitive with each other, but that is no longer in the equation.

I don't think you can go wrong between any of these schools. Einstein and SB are awesome, and I don't know much about Hofstra but it seems to have a bright future in store. Personally, I chose SB because I was not willing to gamble on a new school. I am very very happy here at SB, very happy with students, professors, administration, etc.

Best of luck, feel free to PM me if you have any further questions.

 

[EK601]

M1 at Stony Brook here, just wanted to correct a few things 🙂. In the last few days, we received word that SB is switching over to a P/F system for next year. They are still deciding whether it will be P/F or H/P/F, but either way it is an improvement over the old system, especially for 2nd year (2nd year is currently graded on a curve).

Also, all lectures are indeed recorded. Medical students are responsible for video taping lectures, but the noteservice people are currently working on implementing a more sophisticated system.

Competitive students- I have to say I don't really feel that way at all, about my class anyway. Every class is going to have there gunners, but for the most part people go out of there way to help others. The elimination of the curve in 2nd year should foster even more cooperation. I do know that 2nd years felt that the curve made people more competitive with each other, but that is no longer in the equation.

I don't think you can go wrong between any of these schools. Einstein and SB are awesome, and I don't know much about Hofstra but it seems to have a bright future in store. Personally, I chose SB because I was not willing to gamble on a new school. I am very very happy here at SB, very happy with students, professors, administration, etc.

Best of luck, feel free to PM me if you have any further questions.

Thanks for the reply - I couldn't remember where it was audio recording or not recorded, my mistake!

 

[ny2mi]

Thanks for all the excellent responses!

Can anyone talk about the professors at each school? During undergrad even, we all remember professors who were great teachers and those who were just experts but not really teachers. Some were so bad that they were much more interested in spending time with their own research stuff than say office hours for students etc. In other words, what can you say about how invested the professors are in the success of their students (mentoring etc), if anything?

EK601, I'll see you at second look, hopefully. Check your PM inbox 😉

Finally, diversity is a big thing. However, even though Einstein's class isn't as diverse as Stony's, racially speaking, would anyone be able to talk about their diversity in other aspects? (background, experiences, etc). Much of my satisfaction with my undergrad comes from the fact that my thoughts and opinions were constantly challenged by colleagues and it made me happy. I look forward to a similar experience in medical school.

Thanks all!

 

[iniquus]

Thanks for all the excellent responses!

Can anyone talk about the professors at each school? During undergrad even, we all remember professors who were great teachers and those who were just experts but not really teachers. Some were so bad that they were much more interested in spending time with their own research stuff than say office hours for students etc. In other words, what can you say about how invested the professors are in the success of their students (mentoring etc), if anything?

EK601, I'll see you at second look, hopefully. Check your PM inbox 😉

Finally, diversity is a big thing. However, even though Einstein's class isn't as diverse as Stony's, racially speaking, would anyone be able to talk about their diversity in other aspects? (background, experiences, etc). Much of my satisfaction with my undergrad comes from the fact that my thoughts and opinions were constantly challenged by colleagues and it made me happy. I look forward to a similar experience in medical school.

Thanks all!

Stony's class is diverse and you'll have thoughtful conversations and have your opinion respectfully challenged. I have friends at several other schools that feel like their whole class is cut out of the same mold. I have met some really amazing people here that have helped develop different sides of my personality--sounds cheesy I know.

Don't get me started on the professors, they're all EXPERIENCED. There's no new professor who's just trying to get tenure. The professors here care about the students and the material and more importantly, listen to student and course feedback for further improvement.

Honestly, not to knock on Hofstra, but it's way too new for me to base where I will learn to be a doctor for the next 4 years of my life. Your decision is between Einstein and Stony Brook. The difference is location, culture and finances. You'll match well if you put the work in anywhere.

 

[Hoya2009]

It's easy to discount Hofstra because it's new, but that's a short-sighted assessment, but North Shore LIJ is well-established, enormous and takes in more than $6 billion every year. The school and approach is new, but the medical education infrastructure has been in place a long time and is currently expanding.
A big selling point for me on Hofstra was the chance to get into a very large hospital system early in my career. The school is new and it is much easier to establish contacts and relationships with faculty/attendings/directors that would help me later in my career, since I'd like to stay in NYC/LI. You can't get that anywhere else right now.


...I can think of at least one young professor at Stony without tenure that teaches med school classes, btw

 

[Se7eN]

einstein