georgetown vs davis

[boogah]

so i was wondering what ya'll thought about these two schools. i read a similar thread from 2004 but was wondering if anything has changed in 4 years at these schools that may give me a better perspective in how to make a decision. i am from california so would like to pursue an education out of state, and DC sounds like an exciting opportunity; despite this i have heard some negative things (?) about georgetown in other threads, and i guess the in state tuition at Davis cant be beat. any valuable input would be apprecaited!

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[drbear]

The title of your forum caught my attention as I did my undergrad at UCD and I am now currently at Gtown for med school. I had a lot of experience with the medical school and med students at Davis and I really have nothing but good things to say about the school. It will get you where you want to go and the atmosphere is open, friendly, and from what I've heard the new campus is great.


Having said that, I chose to go to Georgetown over two other CA schools because of the unparalleled opportunities not only at Gtown, but in Washington DC in general. For example, the NIH, WHO, CDC are all based in Washington and provide a lot of opportunities for medical students to get involved with some amazing research and service opportunities. In addition, I have never been a fan of Sacramento. It is a small city with big city problems yet without any of the perks that come along with living in a big city (at least in my opinion). The nightlife, cultural opportunities, and history in DC are amazing. You literally will never run out of things to do here and believe me, even though I'm sure you think (as most incoming MS1's do) that all you're going to be doing is studying but that is not the case. You're going to have a lot more time for socializing and going out than you think so you definitely don't want to get stuck someplace boring.

I could go on but I think you get the picture. Either way, good luck with med school and your career.

 

[Daydreamer2008]

Having lived in DC for two summers, I do agree with the above poster that the city of DC is amazing, not only for the social life but for the amazing opportunities that are available. DC beats Sacramento in that respect.

But you are right in that the tuition at UC Davis cannot be beat. If you have nothing keeping you tied to Cali and don't have your heart set on residency here, then I say go for Georgetown. But it would be hard for me to fork up that extra $80,000

 

[tacrum43]

Davis by a mile, IMHO.

 

[DrJD]

I think that they are both amazing schools so congratulations on having such a great choice!

In this instance, I am going to have to vote for Davis... When you factor in not only the the tuition difference as well as the cost of living difference, I just think that Davis can't be beat in this instance...

I currently live in Davis, and work for UC Davis, and my wife and I pay 1100 dollars for a 2 bed 1 bath apartment... We are moving to Georgetown next month and will be paying 1100 dollars for a studio...

Even if you'd rather live in DC (I would too personally), think long and hard about the cost difference!

Also, Davis is an awesome place, I'm not such a huge fan of Sacramento... For example though, last night my wife and I walked through Downtown Davis, there were college students milling around, and we ate Pluto's (a sandwich and salad place) out on the sidewalk listening to music and just hanging out, and it was like 80 degrees and perfect... Those are the kind of evenings I will miss when we move. You can't get experiences like that in DC, you get different, but perhaps equally, great experiences.

As far as the medical schools go, in my extremely naive opinion, it seems that they are both well respected and will get you to the same places... If you have any questions let me know!

 

[gobears2007]

just a note to clarify in case anyone gets confused -- while Davis is an awesome town, the med school is in Sacramento which is about 15-20 minutes up the freeway.


anyway OP, if you aren't interested in staying in california, then i think DC would be a great opportunity to experience the east coast. it will cost you more though, in tuition and in housing. still, i think davis would be hard to turn down. while people play down sacramento pretty often, it really is a diverse city, and i'm sure the patients you will encounter in the free clinics and hospital will reflect that.

i'm really excited about sacramento since it's close to great snowboarding and still not that far from the bay where most of my friends are at. also, it seems like the faculty at davis is really supportive, and the true p/f system eliminates most of the competition you tend to find in the UC system.

i'm sure notdeadyet or lone coyote will be in here soon enough to tell you about their experiences at davis. feel free to PM me with more specific questions as to why i chose davis if you want

 

[tacrum43]

I think that they are both amazing schools so congratulations on having such a great choice!

In this instance, I am going to have to vote for Davis... When you factor in not only the the tuition difference as well as the cost of living difference, I just think that Davis can't be beat in this instance...

I currently live in Davis, and work for UC Davis, and my wife and I pay 1100 dollars for a 2 bed 1 bath apartment... We are moving to Georgetown next month and will be paying 1100 dollars for a studio...

Even if you'd rather live in DC (I would too personally), think long and hard about the cost difference!

Also, Davis is an awesome place, I'm not such a huge fan of Sacramento... For example though, last night my wife and I walked through Downtown Davis, there were college students milling around, and we ate Pluto's (a sandwich and salad place) out on the sidewalk listening to music and just hanging out, and it was like 80 degrees and perfect... Those are the kind of evenings I will miss when we move. You can't get experiences like that in DC, you get different, but perhaps equally, great experiences.

As far as the medical schools go, in my extremely naive opinion, it seems that they are both well respected and will get you to the same places... If you have any questions let me know!

Well, you can go to Jetties (a sandwich place near the Georgetown med school) and sit outside and watch the preppy-types mill around. Actually, they have really good sandwiches, even if there is an overabundance of pale yellow sweaters draped over people's shoulders. In the summer.

 

[nick_carraway]

Also, Davis is an awesome place, I'm not such a huge fan of Sacramento... For example though, last night my wife and I walked through Downtown Davis, there were college students milling around, and we ate Pluto's (a sandwich and salad place) out on the sidewalk listening to music and just hanging out, and it was like 80 degrees and perfect... Those are the kind of evenings I will miss when we move. You can't get experiences like that in DC, you get different, but perhaps equally, great experiences

While I miss evenings like that in Davis too, let's be honest that most med students will be living near the medical center in Sac. Ambience like that can't be found so easily without hopping into your car and onto the freeway.

The housing won't be as cheap either, although I'm certain that it's still cheaper than housing around Georgetown.

Personally, I'd go with DC. Both schools have a similar reputation in the field (UCD is better known for EM, Georgetown is better known for IM). The facilities in Sac are newer, but also have pretty run down buildings just like Georgetown.

In terms of the opportunities, however, Georgetown is still better. UCD is unfortunately the oft-forgotten campus in Northern California. You wanted to get out of California anyway, so you'd be paying a lot more in tuition even if it wasn't Georgetown that accepted you.

If you had wanted to stay close to home, I'd suggest Davis but that's not what you want.

 

[guitarologist]

While I miss evenings like that in Davis too, let's be honest that most med students will be living near the medical center in Sac. Ambience like that can't be found so easily without hopping into your car and onto the freeway.

The housing won't be as cheap either, although I'm certain that it's still cheaper than housing around Georgetown.

Personally, I'd go with DC. Both schools have a similar reputation in the field (UCD is better known for EM, Georgetown is better known for IM). The facilities in Sac are newer, but also have pretty run down buildings just like Georgetown.

In terms of the opportunities, however, Georgetown is still better. UCD is unfortunately the oft-forgotten campus in Northern California. You wanted to get out of California anyway, so you'd be paying a lot more in tuition even if it wasn't Georgetown that accepted you.

Actually...housing is much cheaper (way more bang-for-your-buck) in Sac than DC. And I completely disagree that UCD is the "...oft-forgotten campus in Northern California." All of the UCs are awesome...and Davis has awesome opportunities (stem-cell research, student-run clinics, international opportunities, ways to get involved in policy (due to being so near the state capitol), etc., etc.)

 

[2docornot2doc]

i agree that davis is the way to go. its relatively close to SF and its really not that terrible location-wise. cheaper is better.

 

[Dulcina]

davis!!! but im in love with california and want to do my residency here =)

 

[boogah]

hrm, thanks for all your input guys, its very valuable. i definitely am still having a difficult time deciding. having lived in california all my life, an opportunity on the east sounds exciting. but yea, an extra 80k over 4 years is a heavy opportunity cost to live/go to school in DC. any other input?

 

[sylar86]

georgetown and davis are almost identical in rank, meaning the greater than 300K of debt you'll incur at gtown isn't justified. seriously, unless you're actually getting something tangible in return for that HUGE extra amount you're paying, going to gtown is not worth it. gtown has almost no financial aid so the huge debt you'll incur will seriously cause you problems down the road.

 

[tacrum43]

georgetown and davis are almost identical in rank, meaning the greater than 300K of debt you'll incur at gtown isn't justified. seriously, unless you're actually getting something tangible in return for that HUGE extra amount you're paying, going to gtown is not worth it. gtown has almost no financial aid so the huge debt you'll incur will seriously cause you problems down the road.

I seriously doubt it would be over 300K. 265K, maybe. But still, the DC schools are very expensive for the average student.

 

[notdeadyet]

any other input?

If the costs were the same, I'd say they're comparably reputed schools, so go with whether you wanted a west coast or east coast residency. But since the price difference is $80K, I'd say go with Davis. That's close to a house by the time you pay all your interest on it over the years.

And you can move to any city any time after residency. With a lot more time to enjoy it than you'll have in med school or residency.