I'm interested in how people are choosing which school to go to, for those of us fortunate enough to have a choice. I'm having trouble coming up with anything substantial besides location and vibe...any thoughts?
how to chose a school
- Thread starter nmbutah
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Cost.
You're gonna hear alot of that
You're gonna hear alot of that
Sorry, cant help you there!- Joined
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I looked at your mdapplicants profile so here are questions to ask:
1) M.D. or D.O. I'm assuming you did some research on this given the number of D.O. programs you applied to. This narrows down your list.
2) Do you want to go into the military? If so, then that makes one school very, very appealing. If not, you can eliminate it.
3) Location, location, location. Where do you want to be the next 4 years? Where do you want to be after that. Some schools have a very good local match. If you want to live in a certain area, I'd go there.
4) Cost: How much is the average debt? Are you comfortable with this amount? What is the cost of living (high in NY, low in AZ for example).
5) Cirriculum: What learning approach is used. Are people generally happy with how their professors and how they are taught.
6) Family: Where do you have family ties? Where would you want to start a family (assuming you do)?
7) Housing: If you know you want to live in the same town you go to medical school, it might be feasible to buy a place instead of rent and sell at the end. If the cost of living is low you can do this. In a place like NY you would be forced to rent.
Based on the above, for me (assuming I had your choices): I would lean toward Touro - Mare Island (all my family is in CA, I want to live in CA, my girlfriend wants to move to and live in CA and I would likely buy a house here). I'd take USC over it if I got off the waitlist. USU is out as I don't want to be in the military. Albany is out (upstate NY sucks, my girlfriend went to med school at SUNY Upstate). I like Touro Henderson, but would not pick it above Mare Island. Arizona is a great place (but for me, CA would be better). I don't know anything about Creighton and NYMC would be my choice if I felt very strongly about M.D. over D.O. (but I do not).
1) M.D. or D.O. I'm assuming you did some research on this given the number of D.O. programs you applied to. This narrows down your list.
2) Do you want to go into the military? If so, then that makes one school very, very appealing. If not, you can eliminate it.
3) Location, location, location. Where do you want to be the next 4 years? Where do you want to be after that. Some schools have a very good local match. If you want to live in a certain area, I'd go there.
4) Cost: How much is the average debt? Are you comfortable with this amount? What is the cost of living (high in NY, low in AZ for example).
5) Cirriculum: What learning approach is used. Are people generally happy with how their professors and how they are taught.
6) Family: Where do you have family ties? Where would you want to start a family (assuming you do)?
7) Housing: If you know you want to live in the same town you go to medical school, it might be feasible to buy a place instead of rent and sell at the end. If the cost of living is low you can do this. In a place like NY you would be forced to rent.
Based on the above, for me (assuming I had your choices): I would lean toward Touro - Mare Island (all my family is in CA, I want to live in CA, my girlfriend wants to move to and live in CA and I would likely buy a house here). I'd take USC over it if I got off the waitlist. USU is out as I don't want to be in the military. Albany is out (upstate NY sucks, my girlfriend went to med school at SUNY Upstate). I like Touro Henderson, but would not pick it above Mare Island. Arizona is a great place (but for me, CA would be better). I don't know anything about Creighton and NYMC would be my choice if I felt very strongly about M.D. over D.O. (but I do not).
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1. Cost
2. Location (ie. Family/Friends)
3. Cost
That's all that matters.
An example Chicago:
Rush - MD - ~$50k/yr
CCOM - DO - ~$50k/yr
UIC (Non-Chi) - MD - ~$30k/yr (2-3 hrs away)
This situation, it would be easy..UIC away campus.
2. Location (ie. Family/Friends)
3. Cost
That's all that matters.
An example Chicago:
Rush - MD - ~$50k/yr
CCOM - DO - ~$50k/yr
UIC (Non-Chi) - MD - ~$30k/yr (2-3 hrs away)
This situation, it would be easy..UIC away campus.
