Current Hopkins student. Will try to answer as objectively as I can!
Hello! I'm so grateful to have these choices, but I am struggling to make a decision between my top 3, and I’d love any input or insight. I have family in both Chicago and near Baltimore and I’m undecided specialty-wise. Financial aid hasn’t come out so its a non-factor for now.
Feinberg
Pros
- Location is (by FAR) my favorite. I’ve always envisioned myself living in Chicago specifically and think I would be very happy living downtown. I also have a lot of extended family in Chicago and who have worked for/attended NU in the past.
Chicago would offer certain big city amenities but is also significantly more expensive and far from safe. Not sure whether you have prior experience living in a comparable city, but I would ask the students what daily life (on a med student budget) is really like there and whether it’s everything they envisioned coming in. It could be awesome and pros > cons, but ask around to get honest opinions!
- Curriculum seems flexible and prioritizes free time which I love. There seems to be a lot of cool student groups and activities
Student groups/activities are nice, but med school is not undergrad. You’ll likely find that you want to fill your (more limited) free time doing more personal activities, hanging with friends, etc as opposed to filling it up with club meetings and events like you may have in undergrad. Those activities are also only relevant in your pre clinical phase, as you’ll likely be too busy when rotations start. Don’t pick a school based on the student groups.
- I really love the concept of ECMH
Cons
- Bigger class size? Does this matter?
- Around 4 people have independently told me that the environment here is competitive and “gunner” - not sure if this is true at all, but it didn’t sit well with me
- Most expensive COL
- Not the most diverse patient population
- More of a Mid-Western match list which is not the biggest deal at all, esp since im sure a lot of it is because of preference, but I’m just not sure if I personally would want to end up matching in the midwest
Bigger class size isn’t a huge deal, gives you more chances to find people you mesh with. Gunner vibes warrant exploration—all these schools will have uber-accomplished and inherently competitive individuals. Some are good about staying in their lanes and supporting each others’ success, whereas others get greedy/intimidated and become a toxic presence. Not sure if the curriculum here is P/F, but that can play a huge role in overall culture and gunner-ness.
Pritzker
Pros
- Also close to Chicago and my family and kind of balances the big city vibe with a smaller community
- SUCH an AMAZING vibe on my interview day. I loved their community and the faculty I spoke to. Seems like such a supportive and warm administration
- I value the focus on social justice, community health, and health equity and they have so many student-run clinics
- Smallest class size (kind of neutral)
They definitely do a great job conveying warmth/support on interview day. I’d suspect this has a minimal impact on your actual experience as a student, but ask current students. Social justice and community health are also major focuses here, but again, time will be more limited than you think for related student groups or clinics.
Cons
- I get the sense that its slightly less prestigious than the other two
- Not directly in Chicago; for me this is less preferable than Feinberg for example
- I’ve heard feedback from current students that the smaller class size has made things “cliquey” here.
UChicago is a well-known institution but does carry less “lay prestige” outside of the Midwest. Small class sizes definitely present that risk.
Hopkins
Pros
- Biggest name. I know prestige and name-recognition isn’t everything, but I can already feel the power of the “benefit of the doubt” that comes with it, especially as residency applications seem to increasingly value the school you come from.
The name can certainly help with residency, but it’s not the end-all be-all. Matching really boils down to who you are and who you know, and a lot of it also depends on the specialty you’re applying into. Hopkins has many big names in many specialties, so that can help to slightly open some doors when you apply. However, handfuls of people at Hopkins still fail to match (for various reasons), so it’s not perfect there. I also know people who have matched well in competitive specialties from schools a tier or two below these… and if you’re considering these programs, you would likely have success wherever you go. No program would look down on you for attending uchicago or northwestern.
- I’m undecided if I want to pursue academic medicine and I don’t even know what specialty I want, so I appreciate how strong Hopkins is across the board and the opportunities it may open up for me, given I choose something competitive. Many of the students I’ve talked to have expressed that the clinical training here is in a league of its own and I want to be the best doctor possible for my patients.
That is undeniably true. Strong across the board, and learning from some of the world’s best physicians, surgeons, and educators at all times is pretty special. However, med school is ultimately about exposure and practice. You start to lay the foundations of the type of doc you’ll be, but residency is where you really grow into that.
- I grew up in Maryland and the other half of my family lives there so I would still have a support system (I could go home on the weekends if I really wanted haha). Also my partner is most likely going to go to medical school on the East Coast.
These would both be huge. Having support nearby and being reasonably close to your partner are big-picture quality of life and life path considerations.
- I’ve had very positive interactions with current M1s - someone even went out of their way to connect me with multiple people who were choosing between the same schools! To be fair, I have not reached out to as many Pritzker or Feinberg students because I will be attending their second looks and not Hopkins.
- P/F preclinicals and core clerkships (for now!)
P/F is the best. I don’t anticipate it changing anytime too soon.
Cons
- Baltimore. I’ve seen it; I’m unimpressed, especially comparing it to Chicago, a city I’ve always wanted to live in. To be fair, I haven’t fully explored the nicer areas of Baltimore but it does feel unsafe. The thought that keeps weighing on my mind is the idea that I’d “waste my 20s” in a city that I’m not excited about
but maybe I'm not giving it enough of a chance
It’s far from perfect. The area immediately around the hospital is not great, but they manage to keep it relatively safe. It’s a small city as well. There are definitely multiple nicer pockets with more to see, do, eat/drink, etc than you’d think. Very affordable. It’s a solid place to be a student and grows on most people, although it’s not a place many people are dying to stay in forever (4 years goes by quickly). The handful of people I’ve seen dread living here were diehard New Yorkers who felt like nothing could ever compare to their beloved Manhattan, or lifelong west coasters who just got homesick and weren’t used to it not being 70 and sunny year-round. Others seem to adapt.
- No free clinics - seems like this is not one of their priorities compared to research which is disappointing
- Has been described as “old school” to me which I’m not entirely sure the meaning of but rubs me the wrong way
You will have plenty of opportunities to serve a similar population that you’d be serving at free clinics. You’ll also have other structured one-on-one clinical training time during your pre-clinical years, typically in a primary care clinic. Also never heard of it being referred to as “old school,” and if that’s true then idk what places would be considered “new school”??
Ultimately, it’s a tough call. Seems like you love the idea of Chicago, but your fam and partner may be closer to Baltimore. I totally respect wanting to spend a chunk of your 20s in a city you’ve dreamed of, I’d just be sure to do your homework on whether it’ll live up to those dreams. Baltimore is far from perfect but tends to grow on people. Hopkins is in a league with very few others with respect to clinical training, research, and prestige, and you only get one med school experience and name on that degree. Don’t know your financial situation, but if all else is equal and Hopkins is less than 75k greater than the others, I say go Hopkins. You can always move to Chicago for residency or as an attending with more $ to enjoy it.
