Harvard Medical School vs UCLA DGSOM
Hi, I am a first generation student who doesn’t really have anyone to ask for help. Please don’t roast me for my dumb questions, I am really trying to learn about this whole process as I go through it. I am tremendously grateful to be in this situation and never would have thought this would be a decision to consider. I am from Los Angeles, my family and my partner of 5 years will be staying in LA. I would like to match in a competitive specialty in LA.
UCLA (Geffen scholar- full tuition + 37k stipend)
Pros:
- very close to friends, family, and partner
- vibe at UCLA seems chill. People seem happy and go to the beach, surf, and play sports
- Weather is amazing
- I want to do residency in Los Angeles and CA residencies favor CA med school students
- similar to point above, i can make connections in LA for future residencies and future jobs
- new curriculum allows for one year to do research or masters within the 4 years which would help match in a competitive specialty
- also new curriculum would allow once a week rotation for a year in any specialty
- Geffen scholarship is a well known merit award
- will finally be able to save money for the first time ever and be comfortable financially (this will be the most money I’ve ever had)
Cons:
- family, friends, partner can also be distractions (may need to support my family more if I stay)
- does not seem to have the academic and career mentoring support that Harvard has (as a first gen this may be important as I discover the “hidden curriculum”)
- NEW curriculum. Literally will be the guinea pig with new one year preclinical
- new curriculum means there will be an overlap between old curriculum students and new student during rotations
- not world renown like Harvard (I’m not sure if this matters but dropped from #6 to #21 in rankings)
- graded clinical rotations
Harvard (full tuition + 20k stipend)
Pros:
- P/F preclinical AND clinical classes
- established curriculum with time built in for extra electives
- great academic support for residency apps
- best medical school in the world opens doors and undeniably will be useful on resume for future jobs (connections)
- will be easier to match into competitive specialties
- will finally feel ~safe~ about my future and family’s future
Cons:
- will be away from family and partner for 4 more years (did long distance in college)
- most students take a 5th year for research or dual degree (I want to start working to support my family ASAP)
- never been outside of CA so will be a hard adjustment
- weather will be an issue
- students seem more stressed
- put more weight on students to teach themselves
- may have a harder time matching specifically in Los Angeles than I would as a UCLA student (?)
- will have at least 50k in loans (which I am still very grateful for)
Thank you so much!
Hi, I am a first generation student who doesn’t really have anyone to ask for help. Please don’t roast me for my dumb questions, I am really trying to learn about this whole process as I go through it. I am tremendously grateful to be in this situation and never would have thought this would be a decision to consider. I am from Los Angeles, my family and my partner of 5 years will be staying in LA. I would like to match in a competitive specialty in LA.
UCLA (Geffen scholar- full tuition + 37k stipend)
Pros:
- very close to friends, family, and partner
- vibe at UCLA seems chill. People seem happy and go to the beach, surf, and play sports
- Weather is amazing
- I want to do residency in Los Angeles and CA residencies favor CA med school students
- similar to point above, i can make connections in LA for future residencies and future jobs
- new curriculum allows for one year to do research or masters within the 4 years which would help match in a competitive specialty
- also new curriculum would allow once a week rotation for a year in any specialty
- Geffen scholarship is a well known merit award
- will finally be able to save money for the first time ever and be comfortable financially (this will be the most money I’ve ever had)
Cons:
- family, friends, partner can also be distractions (may need to support my family more if I stay)
- does not seem to have the academic and career mentoring support that Harvard has (as a first gen this may be important as I discover the “hidden curriculum”)
- NEW curriculum. Literally will be the guinea pig with new one year preclinical
- new curriculum means there will be an overlap between old curriculum students and new student during rotations
- not world renown like Harvard (I’m not sure if this matters but dropped from #6 to #21 in rankings)
- graded clinical rotations
Harvard (full tuition + 20k stipend)
Pros:
- P/F preclinical AND clinical classes
- established curriculum with time built in for extra electives
- great academic support for residency apps
- best medical school in the world opens doors and undeniably will be useful on resume for future jobs (connections)
- will be easier to match into competitive specialties
- will finally feel ~safe~ about my future and family’s future
Cons:
- will be away from family and partner for 4 more years (did long distance in college)
- most students take a 5th year for research or dual degree (I want to start working to support my family ASAP)
- never been outside of CA so will be a hard adjustment
- weather will be an issue
- students seem more stressed
- put more weight on students to teach themselves
- may have a harder time matching specifically in Los Angeles than I would as a UCLA student (?)
- will have at least 50k in loans (which I am still very grateful for)
Thank you so much!