Iowa (zero tuition) vs Einstein

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I have been extremely fortunate to be in a situation where I have been accepted to two schools, and I am having some trouble deciding on what the best option might be. Any and all input is greatly appreciated.

Iowa

Pros:

• Rent and living cost is very cheap
• Ranked 41 (both schools are very similar in rank so this is pretty irrelevant)
• Area is much safer and quieter than NYC
• Full tuition scholarship (this is the real reason why the decision is so hard for me) - this would bring my estimated debt to around 90-100k

Cons:

• Located in the midwest - I have no real ties to the midwest
• No friends or family in this area
• Good match rates, but a lot into the midwest which is not a region where I particularly want to stay after school

Einstein

Pros:

• Located in New York
• Ranked 37
• Fantastic matches into the specialties that I am interested in, to phenomenal hospitals throughout the Northeast.
• Have family not far from the area
• Better clinical affiliates
• Great hospital system, and networking/LORs will be important to me as I am hoping to pursue a surgical residency
• I just think I would be happier at this school in general, it seems like the values fit what I am looking for pretty well
• It’s NYC
• Entirely student run free clinic in the community (great early clinical exposure)
• Much more diverse patient population
• More research opportunities

Cons:

• No scholarship (kind of known for not giving the best financial packages) - my estimated debt would be around 340k
• Living is a bit more expensive, but surprisingly not by much
• Will also need to pay for parking
• Honestly, not many other cons that I can think of, I really love this school

So the question for me honestly is just figuring out the balance between finances and networking/opportunity in the Northeast (where I would hopefully like to end up). I recognize that spending my four years working with physicians in hospitals where I want to live after school is a massive plus, but does this benefit outweigh the added cost of attending that school? I am not sure, lol. Again, any input is greatly appreciated.

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[PalaceLover]

You're caught between two of the most important factors, cost, and location. Have you visited Iowa? Based on what you wrote, I say Einstein.

 

[chilly_md]

Iowa. Hard to justify paying around 240k more.

 

[deleted1158770]

Einstein is in the Bronx, which I wouldn’t mind personally, but it is not for everyone and is different than living in NYC. I don’t have much insight into what living in Iowa is like, but I would recommend visiting both places and/or talking with current students.

 

[deleted1159105]

They seem to be pretty similarly ranked schools, with such a significant price difference Iowa seems to be the easy choice. Considering ties back in the area you should have no problem matching back in the Northeast if that's where you eventually want to be.

 

[Kracin]

One piece of perspective I always find interesting. Cost difference: ~$240K. Cost of a round-trip weekend trip to NYC ~$240 (google it, these are April prices). You could fly round-trip every weekend of medical school to NYC for 50K, and save $190K.

Cost of round-trip first class flight ~$700. You could fly first class to NYC every weekend of medical school $140K. You'd still have to figure out what to do with the $100,000 you saved.

Medical school is competitive. A lot of time is spent heads-down in the books studying. A lot of clinical rotations are inflexible with your time. The schools are both good ~ go to the cheaper option.