EVMS vs Stony Brook

[FlyingBanana]

EVMS vs Stony Brook
OOS for both

EVMS Pros
Closer to Home
p/f, non-mandatory lecture
Better vibe from interview
Norfolk seems like a good place to live

EVMS Cons
Lower ranked than Stony



Stony Pros
Reputation - don't really know if the difference is worth it
p/f, non-mandatory lecture

Stony Cons
Farther from home
seems like a relatively boring place to live

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[Ihe2koo]

Stony! Higher ranked, more research opportunities and has home residencies in every speciality.

 

[muramasa]

I don’t think the ranking difference here is significant. I vote EVMS because of proximity to family and you seeming to prefer Norfolk.

There isn’t much going on in Long Island, but you would be able to take a train to NYC for weekends occasionally.

 

[FlyingBanana]

Thank you both for the help. I will go with EVMS, the merger with ODU I think will provide adequate research opportunities.

 

[JAK2-STAT3]

Congrats on your decision! Once you actually start medical school thinks like rankings and hypothetical research opportunities (which you should pursue only after you figure out how to be a decently-performing medical student anyways) become more abstract, while your day-to-day happiness and support system become more tangible. That's not to say that rankings and research opportunities are meaningless, but if you think you'll be happier at EVMS then you are absolutely making the right choice.

 

[Putkernerinthehall]

Thank you both for the help. I will go with EVMS, the merger with ODU I think will provide adequate research opportunities.

I think that's the smart move for you. Stony Brook is way out on Long Island, quite expensive. EVMS will have what you need and proximity to family can be important for some.

 

[premed2022hopeful]

Especially if you are in-state (which it sounds like) EVMS would be the obvious choice here. There is a negligible difference in prestige but likely a large difference in price if you are in-state.

 

[FlyingBanana]

Im OOS for both, they are within 50k of each other after calculating cost differences, so Im not worried about price. EVMS is a 5hr drive from home while stony is like 12 hours from home.

 

[SailboatJ]

Are you interested in a competitive specialty? If you think you ever will, I believe Stony will set you up better. They have home residences in every specialty (as opposed to EVMS), abundant research opportunities, and from a quick glance seem to match better.

 

[Bowel-Plumber]

I’m not sure about Virginia but I know you’ll only pay OOS tuition at Stony for the first year and then you can become an NYS resident and pay IS tuition for years 2-4. Does that change anything for you financially?

 

[FlyingBanana]

Are you interested in a competitive specialty? If you think you ever will, I believe Stony will set you up better. They have home residences in every specialty (as opposed to EVMS), abundant research opportunities, and from a quick glance seem to match better.

I want to do IM, and a later fellowship for Oncology or Cards, so no I am not interested in anything particularly competitive like derm,Ortho, neurosurg etc. I mean EVMS seems to hit it out of the park with their match list, and Stony's slightly better match list may be a function of the quality of students entering rather than the quality of the school itself in my opinion. Stony has high entering stats.

 

[FlyingBanana]

I’m not sure about Virginia but I know you’ll only pay OOS tuition at Stony for the first year and then you can become an NYS resident and pay IS tuition for years 2-4. Does that change anything for you financially?

Yeah I took that into account, 70k for Stony first year and 45k for years after, whereas it is 60k for EVMS oos for 4 years. But EVMS seems to have slightly lower COL. 35k tuition diff. Stony said they would likely provide no aid. EVMS seems like they have more aid. Even wo aid tho I feel the pros for EVMS outweigh the prestige diff.

 

[SailboatJ]

Stony's slightly better match list may be a function of the quality of students entering rather than the quality of the school itself in my opinion. Stony has high entering stats.

I disagree with the notion that better performance in the match is strictly a function of entering premed stats - networking, research, and home departments make a big difference imo. That said, it seems that you're really excited about the pros of EVMS and having a support system nearby, so 100% choose where you think you'll be happier!

 

[thefirerisen]

EVMS will not hinder you from a competitive specialty compared to Stony Brook. IMO, go where you see a better fit and is cheaper. EVMS is in a decent area (Norfolk - Virginia Beach) which is decently urban. Not sure where Stony Brook is located and whether its close to any urban centers (NYC?).

 

[Putkernerinthehall]

EVMS will not hinder you from a competitive specialty compared to Stony Brook. IMO, go where you see a better fit and is cheaper. EVMS is in a decent area (Norfolk - Virginia Beach) which is decently urban. Not sure where Stony Brook is located and whether its close to any urban centers (NYC?).

Stony Brook is quite a ways out on Long Island. You can get into NYC for a weekend (train option too) but it's at least 1.5 hours each way by train or car (given the traffic). And it's by no means inexpensive or even moderately expensive in terms of rent. I suspect Norfolk housing is notably less expensive.