Established school vs new school

[faith0115]

I know there has been threads on this subject before, but they are a little outdated and don't exactly apply to my situation. I'm posting this thread here instead of on the school specific forum because I want to get some general opinions on the Pros and cons of going to a new school, but please feel free to move my post there if you guys feel it is more appropriate.

I was recently accepted off the wait list at Quinnipiac (netter) and I currently hold an acceptance at NYMC. Netter's curriculum and programs fit my career goals and interests better but I am afraid that going to a new medical school that does not have a match list yet will hold me back or limit me in residency placements. I am not considering any competitive residencies at this point but I hope to be heavily involved in public health in the future through academic medicine and/or working at agencies like CDC and WHO.

Netter
Pros:
- Capstone projects (One of the concentrations is global, public, community health- it's directly relevant to my career goals)------> major pro
- faculty who really care about teaching
- Possibility of collaborating with Yale Faculties
- Smaller class size
- EDIT: Pass/fail 🙂

Cons:
- New school; no match list----> major con
- Not close to any major cities
- lack of student housing
- Does not have its own hospital-> less places to rotate at

NYMC
Pros:
- Established school with a solid match list------> major pro
- Proximity to New York City
- Student Housing
- Various hospital affiliations-> more choices when it comes to rotations

Cons:
- lack of public health emphasis-------> major con
- Not Pass/fail 🙁


Unfortunately, financial aid information mostly likely will not be available in time for me to make my decision. I would appreciate any comments/opinions, whether it is school specific or regarding the pros and cons of going to a new school. Thanks!

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[Mansamusa]

My vote is NYMC. You don't need a capstone project to focus on public health. You can choose to do public health research on your own. NYMC will easily allow you to work with a multicultural and underserved population. They have a clinic in Harlem and a hospital in NYC.

Unless your public health goals are about improving health care in suburban America, in which case Netter would be better.

If collaborating with Yale is a plus for Netter, then collaborating with Einstein and Columbia should be a plus for NYMC.

NYMC also has its own residency programs in good areas for public health (and in every specialty you may consider). It is also more established so you have more of a chance of getting residencies in other areas.

Edit: Capstone projects and teaching focus are both sales pitches. Many schools have teachers who care and are completely dedicated to their classes and capstone projects are actually probably more restrictive than finding research on your own. During the lunch at the Netter interview, the med students said that they saw the capstone project as a chore that just needs to get done.

 

[faith0115]

My vote is NYMC. You don't need a capstone project to focus on public health. You can choose to do public health research on your own. NYMC will easily allow you to work with a multicultural and underserved population. They have a clinic in Harlem and a hospital in NYC.

Unless your public health goals are about improving health care in suburban America, in which case Netter would be better.

If collaborating with Yale is a plus for Netter, then collaborating with Einstein and Columbia should be a plus for NYMC.

NYMC also has its own residency programs in good areas for public health (and in every specialty you may consider). It is also more established so you have more of a chance of getting residencies in other areas.

Edit: Capstone projects and teaching focus are both sales pitches. Many schools have teachers who care and are completely dedicated to their classes and capstone projects are actually probably more restrictive than finding research on your own. During the lunch at the Netter interview, the med students saw the capstone project as a chore that they just need to get done.

The capstone project/concentration is appealing to me also because of the classes I could take as a part of the concentration(Eg. Classes on infectious disease, outbreak control, population health...etc.) and the connections I could make through the concentration adviser. Do you think that these benefits would outweigh the fact that Netter is a new school?

 

[Mansamusa]

The capstone project/concentration is appealing to me also because of the classes I could take as a part of the concentration(Eg. Classes on infectious disease, outbreak control, population health...etc.) and the connections I could make through the concentration adviser. Do you think that these benefits would outweigh the fact that Netter is a new school?

You'll have ID in med school and can use coursera to supplement your knowledge if you feel like it's lacking. Mostly all schools require electives, so you may be able to take those classes.

NYMC also has a public health/community health/global health dept where you can make contacts and NYMC would actually have you working with those populations. So if those are your reasons for choosing Netter, I'd say no those benefits do not outweigh the cons. If there are reasons like you would be miserable at NYMC and you know 100% that you want primary care, then I would say that maybe Netter would be a better choice.

Capstone projects are just a forced, structured path to doing something you can do at any school. In the end, you'll turn out fine either way you.


Oh, and NYMC has a tuition freeze right now, while Netter will probably reach $59-60K tuition next year

 

[Terror Billy]

Don't overthink it for the capstone project, chances are residencies don't give a rats @ss about that stuff (they care more about publications, real experience etc..). NYMC is your best option IMO as long as costs of living in NY are pulling you away...