Harvard vs. Northwestern 7 year BA/MD program

[jattpride]

Hey everyone, I'm currently a high school senior in need for some advice. I have less than one month left to decide where I will spend my next 4/7 years.

I've been accepted to Harvard Undergrad, and also to a 7 year combined medical program at Northwestern University (Feinberg School of Medicine). I know for sure that I want to be a doctor, but the problem I have is I am not sure which route to take. If I go to NU 7 year, I have the chance to apply to other med schools, but lose my guaranteed seat. I know that NU is an amazing Med School, but then again, Harvard is a pretty amazing place too. The thing is, at Harvard, I would have to distinguish myseff from geniuses and work extremely hard, and I don't know if I can..
( I have the same financial aid at both schools)

Any advice/ suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
Thank You.

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[Robizzle]

Hey everyone, I'm currently a high school senior in need for some advice. I have less than one month left to decide where I will spend my next 4/7 years.

I've been accepted to Harvard Undergrad, and also to a 7 year combined medical program at Northwestern University (Feinberg School of Medicine). I know for sure that I want to be a doctor, but the problem I have is I am not sure which route to take. If I go to NU 7 year, I have the chance to apply to other med schools, but lose my guaranteed seat. I know that NU is an amazing Med School, but then again, Harvard is a pretty amazing place too. The thing is, at Harvard, I would have to distinguish myseff from geniuses and work extremely hard, and I don't know if I can..
( I have the same financial aid at both schools)

Any advice/ suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
Thank You.

B.S. Ever hear of a thing called grade inflation?

You got into a 7 year med program AND harvard, you definitely have what it takes to succeed.

 

[Oschemi]

I personally will say NU cos you are guranteed a spot at an outstanding med school, something that you will not be guranteed if you go to Harvard Undergrad. Best of luck in whatever decision you make and congrats!!

 

[EBI831]

i'd say harvard, one year isn't that big of a deal. and i personally think northwestern is boring and a lot of the ppl i know there can't imagine 4 years let alone 7. also, harvard if you play your cards right and work hard enough will help you get into an equally good med school like northwestern. my brother goes to harvard and loves it and he's by no means a genius and he is doing well.

 

[LuckMC11]

B.S. Ever hear of a thing called grade inflation?

You got into a 7 year med program AND harvard, you definitely have what it takes to succeed.

lmao

go here

http://www.gradeinflation.org/

 

[tdd340]

I would say Northwestern, its a great school for undergrad and med school. The undergrad campus in Evanston is going to be a totally different deal than the Med campus in the loop. Plus with a guaranteed spot you can relax and have alot of fun in those 3 years and miss out on a TON of unneeded stress. Both places (Evanston and Chicago) will be great at the different stages, its really a perfect situation in my mind.

 

[baylormed]

I would go to Harvard.

A lot of people are "sure" that they want to be doctors when they go in, and yet more than 3/4 of them will change their minds by the end of freshman year.

If you happen to change your mind, you would be stuck at Northwestern when you could have been at Harvard.

Also, I've always wanted to go to Harvard (what can I say...) and I would have never turned down the opportunity to go there.

 

[cowme]

Upside of NW:

Guaranteed to goto Medical school (at a top 20 school, nonetheless)
Avoid the expensive and stressful admissions/application process.
Chicago is an incredible city, and their med school is in an unbeatable location.

Downside:

You may realize you don't want to be a doctor in undergrad, and it could be hard to drop the program (but you would know more about that than I would)
You may not want to be at NW for med school, you have no option to go elsewhere.
Very pricey, and you would have no shot at scholarships (but there arent that many of those to go around)
Patients at NW: not a very diverse group of patients, very little hands on experience due to seeing insured patients
You will be at a big10 school, yet you will have abysmal football and basketball teams...haha just had to throw that in there

Harvard upside:

Amazing diversity, and the Harvard name will stay with you for life
If you don't want to be a doc, you will have more opportunities than you would at NW
If you do want to be a doc, your chances of admission will go way up just by being at Harvard, making it easier to go where you want

Harvard downside:

You wouldn't be guaranteed admission to med school, and would have to do the horribly stressful application cycle

You can't go wrong...but if it were me I'd go combined 7 years.

 

[Oschemi]

Upside of NW:

Guaranteed to goto Medical school (at a top 20 school, nonetheless)
Avoid the expensive and stressful admissions/application process.
Chicago is an incredible city, and their med school is in an unbeatable location.

Downside:

You may realize you don't want to be a doctor in undergrad, and it could be hard to drop the program (but you would know more about that than I would)
You may not want to be at NW for med school, you have no option to go elsewhere.
Very pricey, and you would have no shot at scholarships (but there arent that many of those to go around)
Patients at NW: not a very diverse group of patients, very little hands on experience due to seeing insured patients
You will be at a big10 school, yet you will have abysmal football and basketball teams...haha just had to throw that in there

Harvard upside:

Amazing diversity, and the Harvard name will stay with you for life
If you don't want to be a doc, you will have more opportunities than you would at NW
If you do want to be a doc, your chances of admission will go way up just by being at Harvard, making it easier to go where you want

Harvard downside:

You wouldn't be guaranteed admission to med school, and would have to do the horribly stressful application cycle

You can't go wrong...but if it were me I'd go combined 7 years.

Ignore this statement, this is 100% false. A false assumption that has no fact behind it except hearsay.

 

[peezyweezy]

Which one is cheaper? You are going to have to go into debt for med school, so its a HUGE advantage if you can have minimal undergrad debt.

 

[p9142]

Upside of NW:

Guaranteed to goto Medical school (at a top 20 school, nonetheless)
Avoid the expensive and stressful admissions/application process.
Chicago is an incredible city, and their med school is in an unbeatable location.

Downside:

You may realize you don't want to be a doctor in undergrad, and it could be hard to drop the program (but you would know more about that than I would)
You may not want to be at NW for med school, you have no option to go elsewhere.
Very pricey, and you would have no shot at scholarships (but there arent that many of those to go around)
Patients at NW: not a very diverse group of patients, very little hands on experience due to seeing insured patients
You will be at a big10 school, yet you will have abysmal football and basketball teams...haha just had to throw that in there

Harvard upside:

Amazing diversity, and the Harvard name will stay with you for life
If you don't want to be a doc, you will have more opportunities than you would at NW
If you do want to be a doc, your chances of admission will go way up just by being at Harvard, making it easier to go where you want

Harvard downside:

You wouldn't be guaranteed admission to med school, and would have to do the horribly stressful application cycle

You can't go wrong...but if it were me I'd go combined 7 years.

Also, disregard this statement. NU is not a top 20 school. Bwahahahaha

 

[cubbbie]

I have known people to be quite happy with the NU 7 year program. At the same time, I can't imagine why anyone would ever want to do it. The advantages (shaving off 1 year, no MCAT, no application) are slim compared to what I perceive to be significant disadvantages. As others have mentioned, how will you know 3 years from now that medicine is still the right option for you? And even if it is, how will you know that NW is the best place for you to go to med school?

Though the application process sucks, at least you get to see lots of programs and determine for yourself which one is best for you. Also, I'm not sure why you seem to think that you would be unable to work hard and succeed at Harvard. Just because NU seems to be the easy option does not make it the right option. In fact, one thing I've learned through college and beyond is that the hard option tends to be the best one. Go to Harvard. If you choose NU, you're setting yourself up for potentially a lot of regret.

 

[Oschemi]

I have known people to be quite happy with the NU 7 year program. At the same time, I can't imagine why anyone would ever want to do it. The advantages (shaving off 1 year, no MCAT, no application) are slim compared to what I perceive to be significant disadvantages. As others have mentioned, how will you know 3 years from now that medicine is still the right option for you? And even if it is, how will you know that NW is the best place for you to go to med school?

Though the application process sucks, at least you get to see lots of programs and determine for yourself which one is best for you. Also, I'm not sure why you seem to think that you would be unable to work hard and succeed at Harvard. Just because NU seems to be the easy option does not make it the right option. In fact, one thing I've learned through college and beyond is that the hard option tends to be the best one. Go to Harvard. If you choose NU, you're setting yourself up for potentially a lot of regret.

I have to agree with this sentiment, you never know what might happen three yrs from now. Good luck

 

[HDMTX]

Go to Harvard. If you have what it takes to get in there, you won't have a problem getting into med school as long as you keep on the same track!

 

[45408]

Hey everyone, I'm currently a high school senior in need for some advice. I have less than one month left to decide where I will spend my next 4/7 years.

I've been accepted to Harvard Undergrad, and also to a 7 year combined medical program at Northwestern University (Feinberg School of Medicine). I know for sure that I want to be a doctor, but the problem I have is I am not sure which route to take. If I go to NU 7 year, I have the chance to apply to other med schools, but lose my guaranteed seat. I know that NU is an amazing Med School, but then again, Harvard is a pretty amazing place too. The thing is, at Harvard, I would have to distinguish myseff from geniuses and work extremely hard, and I don't know if I can..
( I have the same financial aid at both schools)

Any advice/ suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
Thank You.

Go to Harvard unless you are absolutely positive that you won't be changing your mind about what field you want to go to, in which case, take the guaranteed med school spot.

 

[neurofreak]

harvard for sure....hell, if you work hard there im sure you could get into NU for med school, and you would potentially have many other options to choose from. don't limit yourself so early in your career.

 

[thesmartazz]

I made a very similar decision before attending undergraduate (Yale vs HPME), and I suggest that you go to Harvard. I ultimately headed to New Haven because I thought that the undergraduate experience would help me sort out my interests and grow more as an individual. I've never regretted my choice (although applying to schools is a *huge* pain ).

After high school, I thought that I would major in BME and then enter a MSTP program somewhere. However, during college, I was able to do a lot of community activism and ultimately realized that I'd be happier in the field of public health. Thus, I applied straight M.D. and will also get an M.P.H. somewhere down the road. The time that I had to think about my interests and plans wouldn't have been there in a 3-year condensed BME program. Also, unless you're in a huge rush, take the time to enjoy undergrad! Looking back, it has been a great experience, and I think that I'll be a better doctor because of it.

I don't mean to say that HPME is not an excellent program, and I have 2 friends who are in the program now. Both are very happy. I just personally am very satisfied with the choice that I made. And as other people have mentioned, if you've gotten into HPME and Harvard, you should do well in college. You'll have another chance to go to Feinberg in 4 years if you'd like, but you won't have another shot at college!

(Oh, also, don't feel as if you need to ward off "geniuses" at Harvard. Just pursue your own interests in college passionately, and you'll be fine.)

 

[gujuDoc]

I made a very similar decision before attending undergraduate (Yale vs HPME), and I suggest that you go to Harvard. I ultimately headed to New Haven because I thought that the undergraduate experience would help me sort out my interests and grow more as an individual. I've never regretted my choice (although applying to schools is a *huge* pain ).

After high school, I thought that I would major in BME and then enter a MSTP program somewhere. However, during college, I was able to do a lot of community activism and ultimately realized that I'd be happier in the field of public health. Thus, I applied straight M.D. and will also get an M.P.H. somewhere down the road. The time that I had to think about my interests and plans wouldn't have been there in a 3-year condensed BME program. Also, unless you're in a huge rush, take the time to enjoy undergrad! Looking back, it has been a great experience, and I think that I'll be a better doctor because of it.

I don't mean to say that HPME is not an excellent program, and I have 2 friends who are in the program now. Both are very happy. I just personally am very satisfied with the choice that I made. And as other people have mentioned, if you've gotten into HPME and Harvard, you should do well in college. You'll have another chance to go to Feinberg in 4 years if you'd like, but you won't have another shot at college!

(Oh, also, don't feel as if you need to ward off "geniuses" at Harvard. Just pursue your own interests in college passionately, and you'll be fine.)

I agree with his advice. I'd probably go to Harvard. I don't necessarily agree with the idea of 7 year programs because it locks you in without giving you a chance to explore a lot of other opportunities a lot though not all of the times.

Talk to students at both schools if you can and try to get a feel for the undergrad programs. However, if you can cut it at Harvard, you would probably get in some of the top tier programs.

 

[nervousivy]

Hey everyone, I'm currently a high school senior in need for some advice. I have less than one month left to decide where I will spend my next 4/7 years.

I've been accepted to Harvard Undergrad, and also to a 7 year combined medical program at Northwestern University (Feinberg School of Medicine). I know for sure that I want to be a doctor, but the problem I have is I am not sure which route to take. If I go to NU 7 year, I have the chance to apply to other med schools, but lose my guaranteed seat. I know that NU is an amazing Med School, but then again, Harvard is a pretty amazing place too. The thing is, at Harvard, I would have to distinguish myseff from geniuses and work extremely hard, and I don't know if I can..
( I have the same financial aid at both schools)

Any advice/ suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
Thank You.

Go to Harvard...You do so much growing in undergrad that I think it's a bad idea to lock yourself into a 7 year program.

 

[Da Nealson]

I would pick the NW program in a heartbeat. First of all, a member of family goes to the NWU program and he had PLENTY of chance to grow. He got to travel abroad, do things he would never have done, etc.. He is a 2nd year med and is extremely happy. He got to skip a useless year of college (yes, 4 years can be kind of uncessary). Also, I was in a guaranteed program and lost my spot and it has been the worst decision to happen in my life. It has been stressful and depressing, never knowing what will happen. Feinberg is an amazing school and I know how hard it is to get into (i got into similar guaranteed programs, like brown etc..). If you know you want to be a doctor, and i know you must have had tons of clinical exposure to get into a program like htat, chances are you are going to be want to be doctor. Chicago is rgiht next door and there are tons of things to do there. Northwestern as an undergrad is also amazing, so i would def pick NWU Gmed over regular harvard.

 

[GoBlueMD83]

I would pick Harvard. The amount of opportunities there dwarf northwestern, and should you choose to pursue a field other than medicine after a few years of growing and learning about yourself in college, you'll be in a great position coming from Harvard. You can plan out your life and still have a great time, go abroad, and learn about many different things while at Harvard. It is possible - don't be in a rush to get through undergrad. I could have finished in three years, but I am so glad I did four years. You'll learn so much about yourself in that amount of time. I also agree that its a bad idea to lock yourself into a 7 year program. You'll have a great shot at getting into med school coming out of harvard. Also, its probably easier than northwestern, given the fact that harvard's grade inflation is crazy. Northwestern is a very stressful environment, from what I've heard (the Quarter system there runs the undergrads ragged). Good luck with your decision! If you're smart enough to get into harvard, I wouldn't lock yourself into NW's 7 year md program, you will most certainly have other opportunities if you work hard.

 

[stiffany]

So six years ago I had a somewhat similar dilemma: Take an 8 year Baylor College of Medicine program (with Baylor University in Waco though - which is not nearly as cool as Chicago! but a top 10 med school) versus a full ride to the University of Pennsylvania. I chose to attend Penn because I felt I'd have a lot more cool experiences, I liked not having to take out loans (Baylor was only a partial scholarship but med school would have been much cheaper...granted I only thought about those first four years at the time) during undergrad, and I really wanted to try something new and get out of Texas.

Penn was absolutely amazing and I don't think I would have been able to do nearly as many interesting things and meet people as diverse had I gone to Baylor University. Still, I regretted this decision a few times over the past several years, first when I was struggling through my premed courses and then when I was busting my bum in postbac classes, and finally when I was waiting to get into medical school. Now that I'm finally in "again", I'm completely comfortable with my decision since I had an amazing undergrad experience, but I definitely felt really anxious as a result of "turning down a spot." I think if you can handle the possibility of that anxiety and would feel happier at Harvard (based on the location, freedom of doing whatever you want as opposed to being in the BA/MD route and having red tape to drop it if you do decide it's not for you, and your gut feeling), do that. Otherwise, if you're really worried about getting to med school in the future, like Northwestern a lot, and are comfortable with living in the same place for 7 years and being slightly out of sink with both the undergrads and med students as someone in an accelerated program, take the Northwestern 7 year program and run! Regardless though, congratulations! This is really a great place to be in!

 

[45408]

He got to skip a useless year of college (yes, 4 years can be kind of uncessary).

Senior year of college was one of the greatest years of my life. Leaving college after three years is like leaving a party at 8pm.

 

[pyrois]

I'd never take a "guaranteed med school" program for 1 simple, albeit uncertain, reason.

I know that if I had a "guaranteed" spot at a decent med school, I would have slacked off a great deal more in college. All 3 of my friends who took up BA/MD programs now have less than a 3.5 GPA (but just above a 3.0 so they stay in their program).

In all honesty, you could have so much more potential at Harvard, or even at Northwestern WITHOUT the 7 year combined program.

That's just my personal opinion and observations of others who have taken the "guaranteed med" route. It never seems to turn out so hot.

 

[cheesegirl]

i'd say harvard, one year isn't that big of a deal. and i personally think northwestern is boring and a lot of the ppl i know there can't imagine 4 years let alone 7. also, harvard if you play your cards right and work hard enough will help you get into an equally good med school like northwestern. my brother goes to harvard and loves it and he's by no means a genius and he is doing well.

BS!!! I go to Northwestern for undergrad and it is FAR from boring. I love love love it. One thing to consider is that even if you go to NU for the 7 year program, you can still apply out to other med schools if you decide you don't want to say for med school. You can also defer for a year if you aren't ready to jump in right after undergrad. I don't know too much about harvard but make sure the excitement over its name isn't what draws you--NU is great!

 

[thatslife]

Definitely definitely go to Harvard.

The people who posted above have made some very good points for why you should go to Harvard. Here is one other:

Think about it from NU's perspective. There is no reason for NU to admit you out of high school unless they know for sure that they were going to admit you later out of college. The direct programs attract superb applicants and lock them with guaranteed admission. They are counting that you are willing to trade the effort that it will take to go through your pre-med classes and take the MCAT, for a guarantee to a school that have a good chance of getting into after college. That is of course if you keep up the work that's gotten you here in the first place.

Anyway, I'd say don't sell yourself short. Go to Harvard

 

[stiffany]

Senior year of college was one of the greatest years of my life. Leaving college after three years is like leaving a party at 8pm.

Agreed hands down!

 

[cheesegirl]

One more thing--I turned down a 7 year program for all of the reasons all of you have brought up:
-What if I don't want to be a doctor and am then stuck?
-What if I miss out by being at undergrad only 3 years?
-What if I want to go somewhere else?

FORGET all of these reasons. You are by no means contractually bound to go to med school if you decide you don't want to, you can take an extra year for undergrad at NU and STILL go to Feinberg through this program (they hold your spot for the next year), and you can always apply out (while still holding on to your spot). If you love Harvard, then go to Harvard. But make sure you know the facts about accepting the 7 year program--it is not as restrictive as you think it would be.

And the med school is downtown Chicago (while the undergrad campus is in Evanston). Two totally different locations so you do get a change after undergrad.

 

[NonTradMed]

Tough decision, but you can't go wrong with either program. Since you can 'opt out' of NW's program, going to NW won't prevent you from growing as a person etc. In exchange for a name brand school, you get less certainty about medical school (having to go through MCAT etc). However, I also realize that many, many students change their minds about med school once they're in college so going to Harvard may be a better option for someone who is so young.

The only thing is, you may not get into a med school of NW's caliber if you choose to do Harvard. Med school can be finicky and many top candidates are denied acceptances even though their stats look fine. However, the bigger picture is trying to figure out what you want to do with life and given similar financial aid package, Harvard seems the better deal (no offense to NW!). Besides, you can always finish college in three years at Harvard and apply to NW again, along with many other med schools. Do you really want to narrow the next seven years of your life down at this point?

 

[medstylee]

wow, i guess i must have slipped through the cracks on this one... by some power of the almighty i managed to enjoy my college experience and northwestern was unsuccessful at its attempts to stifle any chances i had to grow as an individual or to see the world. phew!

 

[Marquis_Phoenix]

This thread is funny.

The choice is obvious.

Harvard.

The variety and breadth of people you'll meet that are the best in their field is unsurpassed. Northwestern has nothing to compare to Harvard. Harvard is top five in virtually every department, should you decide to change. Your course selection will be VASTLY more fascinating than Northwestern. You can cross-enroll at MIT course-wise.

You got into Harvard for undergraduate. You can get into an Ivy League school for medical school if you play your cards right. Don't let people mislead you into thinking it's random. People obsess over medical school too damn much.

People will say you're gambling - well that could be said about any decision in life. In this case, I think the calculated risk falls clearly in favor of Harvard. I don't even know why you're chickening out. To be among the best, learn with the best, aspire with the best - that should be the attitude - not fear.

What I would advise you to do - talk to students at Harvard, talk to students at Northwestern. Get a feel for both schools, and then see where your heart leans. Here you're going to get the opinions of paranoid obsessors over medical school.

 

[The Buff]

I was/am in NU's 7-year program (currently an M2 at Feinberg) and just wanted to dispel some rumors floating around in here. There is no such thing as 'locked in' as far as the HPME program goes. Don't want to be a doctor anymore? The deans might be a little mad, but they will be ok. Want to take a fourth year of undergrad? No one will even blink, lots of people do it.

I made the exact same choice when I was a senior, and I can honestly say that going HPME was probably the best decision I ever made. The advantages of the program are endless. The main one being you are able to enjoy your undergrad years without stressing over your GPA (got a B in orgo? who cares!), destroying the MCAT, applying to a ton of schools (although you can if you really are a gunner and are not happy with a top 25 school), and geting all those volunteer hours at the local ER. You can major in whatever you want (and thus you can 'grow', since people think that is important here), and do more outside of class that is important/fun to you since you won't have to slave away in the lab or library if you don't want to.

Northwestern is a top undergrad institution as well, so I don't think Harvard blows it out of the water or anything there. Granted, Harvard med carries more weight than Feinberg, but I think the guaranteed spot in med school w/o playing any of the stupid pre-med game was worth it 1000x over.

Feel free to PM me if you want more info.

 

[kelvin81]

I was/am in NU's 7-year program (currently an M2 at Feinberg) and just wanted to dispel some rumors floating around in here. There is no such thing as 'locked in' as far as the HPME program goes. Don't want to be a doctor anymore? The deans might be a little mad, but they will be ok. Want to take a fourth year of undergrad? No one will even blink, lots of people do it.

I made the exact same choice when I was a senior, and I can honestly say that going HPME was probably the best decision I ever made. The advantages of the program are endless. The main one being you are able to enjoy your undergrad years without stressing over your GPA (got a B in orgo? who cares!), destroying the MCAT, applying to a ton of schools (although you can if you really are a gunner and are not happy with a top 25 school), and geting all those volunteer hours at the local ER. You can major in whatever you want (and thus you can 'grow', since people think that is important here), and do more outside of class that is important/fun to you since you won't have to slave away in the lab or library if you don't want to.

Northwestern is a top undergrad institution as well, so I don't think Harvard blows it out of the water or anything there. Granted, Harvard med carries more weight than Feinberg, but I think the guaranteed spot in med school w/o playing any of the stupid pre-med game was worth it 1000x over.

Feel free to PM me if you want more info.

Agreed with this post. Call me the conservative if you want but I'd rather take a guranteed opportunity. If you have experienced the whole med school application process, which involves a lot of luck and randomness, you would agree this process SUCKS. I would go to NW and stay away from the emotional roller coaster. Save your stress for studying for board exams, not for sitting at the computer and checking emails 10 times a day.

 

[etf]

Northwestern is a top undergrad institution as well, so I don't think Harvard blows it out of the water or anything there.

yes, it does. probably not in the realm of medicine, where name doesn't matter as much, but everywhere else it's no contest. but you've convinced me that had i had this same choice in high school, i probably would have went with northwestern, as i could have spent a lot of time doing things i wanted to instead of doing things i thought i had to.

 

[gujuDoc]

I'd be curious to find out what the OP decides to do.

To the original poster,

Please let us know what you utimately decided.

 

[4whom]

Unless you are getting some fat grants/scholarships from Harvard and if you know for sure you want to be a doc, go to NW. Personally, I think you are too young to know for sure you want to be a doctor, so maybe Harvard would be better.
​

 

[lord_jeebus]

Harvard. That degree will open doors for the rest of your life, more than most people here would think is justified.

 

[jattpride]

thank you so much for all of your replies. all of your points are really great, and I will definitely take them into consideration..

I am planning on going to the Harvard Prefreshman Weekend, so hopefully that will help make my decision easier..

I hear from so many premed students that it is extremely exhausting to go through the entire process... so thats what makes the 7 year so appealing.

any other advice would be really helpful..

thank you once again!

 

[Zippership]

I also, like many others, think Harvard would probably the best choice. While you might now consider medicine to be your absolute career goal, you might very well change your mind in college. Harvard will give you an unbelievable advantage to this end whatever your chosen career. Moreover, if you decide that NU medical school is not necessarily the best place for you, going to Harvard will afford you the possibility of going elsewhere. A word of advice in general about college: surrounding yourself by world experts does not mean you will get a good education from them. Often at a big research university, while the professors may be well known, they are not necessarily the best teachers. What matters ultimately are the students. Do you like the students you meet at each place? Will the caliber of your fellow students challenge you to develop intellectually and emotionally? I've learned far more outside the classroom in college than inside it, and I don't consider my experience to be all that unique in this regard.

thank you so much for all of your replies. all of your points are really great, and I will definitely take them into consideration..

I am planning on going to the Harvard Prefreshman Weekend, so hopefully that will help make my decision easier..

I hear from so many premed students that it is extremely exhausting to go through the entire process... so thats what makes the 7 year so appealing.

any other advice would be really helpful..

thank you once again!

 

[eternity1115]

I was also admitted to HPME this year, but thankfully I didn't have to consider Harvard. My other top choices are Penn and Duke, but I am almost certain that I will attend Northwestern next year. I think all the stuff about the life experiences at Harvard are just BS. The reason HPME exists is to allow Northwestern undergrads the flexibility to pursue any field of study they want. I believe you are convinced that you want to become a doctor, otherwise it would have shown in your interviews. And you don't HAVE to finish undergrad in 7 years. In fact, I'm pretty sure that I will go for 8 years. And if after three years, you come through with a 3.8 GPA and a 38 on the MCATs, you will be able to apply to Harvard Med or Johns Hopkins Med, and the only consequence would be that you lose your guarunteed spot in Feinberg. If you go to Harvard, you may regret your decision for a long time and put a lot of pressure on yourself. And there will also be a chance that you won't regret that decision later on. I think Northwestern will allow you more of an undergrad experience than Harvard because you will have the ability to pursue the things you love, rather than killing yourself to pad your resume for med school apps at Harvard.

 

[weathertalk]

A thing to remember, is that not all Harvard undergrads survive the premed path. There is less grade inflation in the sciences so many students end up getting trounced by the prereq classes. Even if they do survive and decide to apply med school, their GPA will be quite mangled. Granted, many med schools will probably be somewhat lenient on Harvard students with weak numbers. However, people overestimate the advantage the Harvard name gives you. Not only is there little difference between Harvard and a school like Michigan, for example (excellent school, but with less name cachet) in the eyes of admission committees-- you will also be compared to other Harvard students. Believe me, I come from a school that prides itself on "no grade inflation" and hear a lot of pre meds say "Oh, I have a 3.3, but I think med schools will add a few points to my GPA because I attend __________." This is hubristic optimism. No matter how tough or prestigious your school, plenty of people still pull 3.8+ GPAs.

If none of what I've said so far has been convincing, consider this... The acceptance rate at Feinberg is 6.5%. I don't have the exact numbers, but their average GPA/MCAT is somewhere around a 3.7-3.8 and a 35 (~95%ile). It is exceedingly difficult to match those numbers-- and even if you do get a 3.8 and a 35, you are by no means guaranteed an acceptance to NW even if you come from Harvard, Oxford, or the Sorbonne.

 

[Homer Simpson]

I went to Harvard for undergrad but didn't become premed until I was a senior, so of course I never applied to programs like NU's HPME. But if I had been 99% sure I wanted to go into medicine as a high schooler, I probably would have chosen HPME over Harvard. It would allow you much more time to pursue interests, take classes for fun, and save you A LOT of time, money, and stress since you wouldn't have to go through the whole application cycle. I've had a pretty good application cycle (got into Feinberg among other top schools), but the Harvard name doesn't really give you much of an advantage (I got rejected/waitlisted by some top 10 schools even though my numbers were quite a bit above their averages). Northwestern is also a great school, so even in the off chance that you end up deciding medicine is not right for you during undergrad, there are still tons of opportunities in diverse fields. What I'm saying is, Northwestern has a very reputable undergrad and med school, so it wouldn't hurt you to go there. If you were talking about Hollywood Downstairs Undergrad and Hollywood Upstairs Medical College, then my vote would go to Harvard.

 

[FemalesCANTDriv]

Downside:

You may realize you don't want to be a doctor in undergrad, and it could be hard to drop the program (but you would know more about that than I would)
You may not want to be at NW for med school, you have no option to go elsewhere.
Very pricey, and you would have no shot at scholarships (but there arent that many of those to go around)
Patients at NW: not a very diverse group of patients, very little hands on experience due to seeing insured patients
You will be at a big10 school, yet you will have abysmal football and basketball teams...haha just had to throw that in there

Harvard upside:

Amazing diversity, and the Harvard name will stay with you for life
If you don't want to be a doc, you will have more opportunities than you would at NW
If you do want to be a doc, your chances of admission will go way up just by being at Harvard, making it easier to go where you want

Harvard downside:

You wouldn't be guaranteed admission to med school, and would have to do the horribly stressful application cycle
You can't go wrong...but if it were me I'd go combined 7 years.

1) I know you may think you know everything about yourself and your future right now... but trust me and anyone else who is already in college... things change a lot

2) Don't go to NW just cuz you don't wanna do the application cycle. It is not that stressful. Everyone has to do it. Really, ppl make it out to be way worse than it is.

If I were you, I say go to Harvard, meet interesting ppl, find yourself, pwn the MCAT, and go wherever you want afterwards.

 

[thegenius]

I was/am in NU's 7-year program (currently an M2 at Feinberg) and just wanted to dispel some rumors floating around in here. There is no such thing as 'locked in' as far as the HPME program goes. Don't want to be a doctor anymore? The deans might be a little mad, but they will be ok. Want to take a fourth year of undergrad? No one will even blink, lots of people do it.

I made the exact same choice when I was a senior, and I can honestly say that going HPME was probably the best decision I ever made. The advantages of the program are endless. The main one being you are able to enjoy your undergrad years without stressing over your GPA (got a B in orgo? who cares!), destroying the MCAT, applying to a ton of schools (although you can if you really are a gunner and are not happy with a top 25 school), and geting all those volunteer hours at the local ER. You can major in whatever you want (and thus you can 'grow', since people think that is important here), and do more outside of class that is important/fun to you since you won't have to slave away in the lab or library if you don't want to.

Northwestern is a top undergrad institution as well, so I don't think Harvard blows it out of the water or anything there. Granted, Harvard med carries more weight than Feinberg, but I think the guaranteed spot in med school w/o playing any of the stupid pre-med game was worth it 1000x over.

Feel free to PM me if you want more info.

I go to NU Med school as well, I'm an M1. Not an HPME. I agree with my fellow M2 poster. There are so many people out there who think that Harvard is just vastly superior to other institutions, what an unprovable and sophomoric statement to make. I understand that high schoolers get wrapped up in rankings and prestige, hell I did that too when I applied to colleges some time ago.

But the differences between Harvard and NU undergrad are minimal for most intents and purposes. Both attract top talent, and not every single genius professor or MD is on the Harvard faculty such that you'll be able to learn from them. They go elsewhere.

I don't understand the notion of "if you change your mind during undergrad you're screwed if you go to NU". What can Northwestern do if you decide to change your mind and don't want to become a doctor? They can't fire you. They can't expel you. They can't sue you. They will be disappointed and it will be an unpleasant 10 minute conversation but that's it.

Top medical students at FSOM rival the top medical students from all other top 20 med schools. No doubt about that. If that wasn't the case, then Mass General would fill 75% of their residency positions with Harvard med school graduates.

Obviously, that doesn't happen.

 

[jattpride]

Do Medical schools, like Harvard, give preferance to applicants from their undergraduate institution. Does anyone have the stats on the make up of Harvard med school, like where kids come from? (especially how many northwestern undergrads are in the harvard med school)

thank you

 

[thesmartazz]

Do Medical schools, like Harvard, give preferance to applicants from their undergraduate institution. Does anyone have the stats on the make up of Harvard med school, like where kids come from? (especially how many northwestern undergrads are in the harvard med school)

thank you

Students aren't given preference, per se, but there's a fair amount of cannibalism. Yale's medical school class, for instance, is usually at least 10% Yalies. In a class of less than 100 people, that's pretty significant! It's not so much that there's a preference for an institution's own undergrad students, but think about how well-defined your reasons for wanting to say would be if you have four years to think about the city and resources at an institution. Applying to Yale Med was easy for me because on the secondary application question ("why Yale?"), I was able to write down several reasons in 15 minutes.

That said, seriously consider whether or not you'll be happy at Harvard. As a Yalie, I'm obligated to tell you that Hahvahd is lame . But in all seriousness, if it feels right to you during their prefrosh weekend, you should probably go!

 

[SpiresAAC]

Go to Harvard. I have several friends who went to Harvard, and it's amazing how many doors open for them...including medical school doors. Plus, there's really no rush in becoming a doctor. Enjoy a fourth year of college and go to Harvard.

 

[dr2be111]

i'm currently a northwestern undergrad as well. and i think there are a great number of opportunities here that can help you find your true passion, be it medicine or something else.

to say that harvard's experience will be so much better than northwestern's purely because of its name is foolish.

regardless, you should go to the place that will make you happy. personally, i know of a couple of hpme's ahead of me who weren't sure if they wanted to stay at feinberg, and applied out. and i am pretty sure it did not affect their guaranteed spot in feinberg, as they ended up at feinberg after choosing it over other schools they got into. (someone correct me if i'm wrong)

doesn't seem like you can go wrong with either decision, best of luck.

 

[dr2be111]

there seems to be a recurring theme that most of the posters are missing. hpme does not require you to finish your undergrad. degree in 3 years. a good amount of my friends who are hpme took the normal 4 years.

 

[neom3x11]

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