Hopkins vs Einstein

[cclpaftw]

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Very grateful to be in this position, but also have a difficult decision to make in the next week.

The biggest consideration is cost vs. prestige.

Einstein is a great school + free tuition, while I have no aid for Hopkins, which will cost upwards of 250k.

Einstein may be the better option for me socially, and is closer to home -- but p/f clinicals and prestige (amounting to better residency and career prospectives) at Hopkins leave me uncertain which direction to lean.

 

[JukeBoxHeroo]

See if Hopkins will match. Send them the Einstein package and hopefully they at least give some sort of aid. After that (if no more aid is given), I would say it is a personal choice. I would for sure choose Hopkins (I am willing to take out loans and repay it down the road). Just consider whether or not you are fine doing it. A lot of people on here will tell you to avoid loans, but the reality is people have different tolerances to short-term debt. Hopkins and Einstein will both get you to match, but at Hopkins you will have an easier time and better outcomes in terms of where you match. Additionally, if research is your thing, then going to Hopkins would be a game changer.

Disclaimer: I'm going to Hopkins (taking out loans) - I turned down money from other places. Also I got pre-II R at Einstein.

 

[cclpaftw]

Thanks! I have not succeeded as of yet in getting any aid/matching.

 

[sparky21]

I think everyone has different personal values/priorities- some value prestige, some value being debt free. I would expand out your pros/cons list so we can see how you feel about each school and what is important to you aside from these two factors. What specialty are you interested in? What are you looking for in a school? Etc

 

[Saturday’s Child]

Hopkins student here. Would say it’s a lot more than just prestige that Hopkins has an advantage in. These schools are in pretty different leagues in many ways. However, $250k is a huge amount of money, even if you know you’ll pay it off down the line. Being near family can also be priceless (although, to me, graded core clerkships sort of cancels this out). Hopkins will expose you to a lot of unique things and allow for unique connections, but it doesn’t really guarantee you anything down the line (eg matching in prestigious residencies in competitive specialties). The “ingredients” for your success may be there, and of a relatively higher quality, but you still have to bust your butt in the kitchen to “cook” and leverage it all to succeed at the next level. This is the reality at any program you end up at.

I understand Einstein is a solid program. If you can live with the decision and the “what if I went to Hopkins”, going to school for free at a respectable institution near home makes a lot of sense. Up to you whether you want to gamble the $250k to peek behind the curtain and be a “Hopkins med student.”

 

[crokonite]

Very difficult decision! Congrats on a great cycle!!

Hopkins is an amazing school with fantastic students and faculty. But I'll say Einstein is no slouch too and may have an "NYU" effect in the fact that their rankings/faculty/students may be comparable to other so-called "top institutions" and may gain significant prestige in the near future. Einstein even now is definitely a great institution and will likely be able to get you where you want. Both institutions have a plethora of opportunities. Still, Hopkins is THE research powerhouse and does have a big name. Essentially, I think that you'll be able to reach success at any of these schools but Hopkins does have a slight edge with regards to prestige; some may really care about the prestige and others may not. It depends on what value you place on it! Ultimately you'll be able to match well at either school!

Same sort of thing for debt - for many like me), being able to worry less about finances is a significant benefit. It's a big stressor and takes time to have to think about how to manage it effectively and compare plans and think about how you are going to handle it and how you are going to budget. For others, this may not be a worry. We will all be doctors and debt is not THAT scary but it is still a stressor. That being said, plenty of medical students graduate with debt and are totally fine so it definitely will work out fine - it's just a question of how much stress will this put on you and do you want to deal with the stress!

Last thing - do not discount the benefit of being close to home. Almost all med students I talked to wishes/enjoys having familial support nearby. Just knowing that friends and family are accessible is huge especially given how hard med school is! This is something that I have heard my med school friends say they wish they weighed more heavily. Baltimore is accessible to almost anywhere in the northeast too so that may not be a huge difference depending on where you live tho 🙂

Good luck! I hope this helps! You are going to do amazing at any school. You can't go wrong!

 

[drtobe_]

Disclaimer: I'm on the WL at Einstein

Both schools are amazing and you can definitely match into whichever specialty you are interested in. I think going through other Einstein pros cons lists from the X vs. Y posts can help you see what others think about Einstein too. I have a friend who went to JH for undergrad and he really enjoyed his time, but he did say that the are can be dangerous if you venture into areas you are unfamiliar with (but the same could probably be said with other cities). I think what matters is where you want to match too, especially for competitive specialties. Looking through past matches can help paint a better picture. I've heard that Einstein is really receptive to its students and makes changes as students see fit, so if that's something that excites you then that's a huge pro.

As for what crokonite said, I definitely agree that debt can be a stressor but there is a difference between having that much debt from any old med school and JH. You will definitely be able to pay it back but it might something in the back of your mind. It's really up to see you to decide if not going to JH would be more regretful than taking on debt. Either way these are incredible institutions and you'll do great wherever you end up!

 

[sparky21]

Would love to know what you decided- preparing to make a similar decision in case I get off a wl