How much should rank really matter?

[spunky41882]

---

Members do not see this ad.

I am in a bind, as many of you are. I have been accepted to two school and waitlisted at one. Now I have to decide which to go to. My choices are between emory and BU for acceptance.

Here is my dilema. I love everything about BU and the only reason I haven't totally withdrawn my application from Emory is that I don't know if the higher ranking of Emory really will make that much difference when it comes to applying to residency programs ( I am interested in ID (epi specifically) which both schools are strong in)

Thanks for your help

 

[Medikit]

Are you talking about the US News ranking?

 

[spunky41882]

I don't know how the two compare reputation-wise so US news ranking is my only basis of comparing them in the macrocosm of med schools

 

[superdevil]

I am in a bind, as many of you are. I have been accepted to two school and waitlisted at one. Now I have to decide which to go to. My choices are between emory and BU for acceptance.

Here is my dilema. I love everything about BU and the only reason I haven't totally withdrawn my application from Emory is that I don't know if the higher ranking of Emory really will make that much difference when it comes to applying to residency programs ( I am interested in ID (epi specifically) which both schools are strong in)

Thanks for your help

seems to me that if you're interested in ID/epi, it would be a slam-duck choice to go to emory. after all, the HQ of the CDC is in atlanta. plus, it is regarded more highly in terms of academics than BU (incl. USNews rankings). but BU is a very good school, and if you "love everything about BU" then only you can make this decision (duh).

good luck.

 

[linuxizer]

after all, the HQ of the CDC is in atlanta.

IIRC, the HQ of the CDC is on Emory's campus, not just in Atlanta proper.
Ari

 

[themann]

Go with whatever school you think you will be happier at. Rankings don't mean a whole lot unless we are talking about top 5 (maybe not even that). Of course I don't go to a top 10 school so I might be inclined to think otherwise if I did. I know people that went to Emory and they really enjoyed it. I am less familiar with BU's med school but I am sure it is quite good. Look at the whole package... school, students, area (can you see living there for four years). There really is a lot that goes into deciding what school is right for you.

 

[skypilot]

The difference between Emory and BU is negligible. Do you want to live in ATL or BOS?

 

[kgm4]

i don't know anything about bu, but emory students seemed super stressed. my interview host told me that she has anxiety attacks quite often, and emory encouraged all students to see mental health professionals as it is normal. wtf? besides that, emory uses letter grades, and the joints seem unnecessarily stressful, though students claim to love it. i dunno...

 

[pillowhead]

i don't know anything about bu, but emory students seemed super stressed. my interview host told me that she has anxiety attacks quite often, and emory encouraged all students to see mental health professionals as it is normal. wtf? besides that, emory uses letter grades, and the joints seem unnecessarily stressful, though students claim to love it. i dunno...

as a current emory student, i can tell you that the deans are very supportive. What would you rather have them say to a student having panic attacks---you're freaking out and being stupid and you're the only one who that's happening to?! I mean, med students are the type of people to stress about almost anything, and hey, med school is stressful no matter where you are.

seriously, many of my classmates are stressed out, but that varies hugely depending on how close we are to a joint exam. The week or so after a joint, we are as laidback and relaxed as can be. We just had out Cadaver Ball last night, and I can say everyone there was pretty darned relaxed. The joint system is great (and I am ending my second year and so have plenty of experience with it).

If you're really interested in ID, Emory is an awesome place to be. The CDC is literally right next door. Many of our professors work at the CDC and it's very easy to spend some time there if you want to. I have. That said, I believe location is probably one of the most important factors in picking a med school, and although I love Atlanta, if your heart is that set on Boston, maybe that's where you should go. Atlanta is definitely cheaper to live in though, and I believe our tuition is lower.