Is US News Medical School Compass worth $30/year?

[optimistic3]

http://www.usnews.com/usnews/store/medical_school_compass.htm?src=peel&int=97ed08

It says you get:

MCAT Scores
Find the MCAT score you need to get in to all medical schools. We provide the average MCAT scores as well as the average undergraduate GPA for enrolled students.

Expanded Profiles
Get the whole picture for each of the 150+ medical schools within the U.S. News Best Medical Schools rankings. You'll get expanded data for all programs.

Student Indebtedness
U.S. News lists the average student debt upon graduation as well as key financial aid contacts at the program.

Residency Information
Find out which residencies are most popular at each school, as well as how many students get into their first-choice residency.

Advanced Search
Search all schools and programs based on test scores and other expanded search options.

The residency info is interesting to me. I wonder if they have DO schools as well as MD.

I do already have the MSAR, btw.

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[breakintheroof]

MCAT Scores
Find the MCAT score you need to get in to all medical schools. We provide the average MCAT scores as well as the average undergraduate GPA for enrolled students.

This part is useful. MSAR has these numbers for accepted students, not enrolled (matriculated) students. If you are interested in that kind of detail, it's worth it.

 

[snowflakes]

I actually liked it more than MSAR. It gives data on number of applicants, number of interviews granted, number of acceptances, and number of matriculants--all broken down by IS/OOS and gender. I found this data incredibly useful in figuring out in-state biases, and how much different schools weigh the interview. Also, it gives you the Step1/2 average scores for each school, which may or may not be useful to you when you're choosing where to matriculate.

 

[LizzyM]

compare it to the price of one secondary. If you save yourself one bad choice, you've more than made your money back.

 

[wiloghby]

It is absolutely, absolutely worth it! Grad Compass has information in in-state vs out-of-state interview invites and acceptances, which alone is helpful in figuring out what your best bets are with out of state schools.

I bought it last year around this time and have used it a bunch.

 

[optimistic3]

Thanks, everyone! I just bought it and I love the out of state info and residency info. The MSAR is more concise and organized and the ads and whatnot on US News are annoying but it's still a good purchase.

 

[orangeman25]

I'm a little confused. What does US News have that MSAR doesn't? US news shows the number of OOS applicants, how many were interviewed, and then eventually accepted - but so does MSAR?

Also I know that US News shows accepted gpa/MCAT data but can't you just go on the schools website to see that?

 

[kyamh]

I'm a little confused. What does US News have that MSAR doesn't? US news shows the number of OOS applicants, how many were interviewed, and then eventually accepted - but so does MSAR?

Also I know that US News shows accepted gpa/MCAT data but can't you just go on the schools website to see that?

Not all websites have this information. US News gives you a bit more insight about the strength of particular programs (primary care vs not) at different schools. You can also see the average board scores. While we know that MCAT/GPA is only loosely correlated with Step scores, I thought it was impressive to see low MCAT/GPA and high average Step scores...just as it seemed less impressive when a school takes super MCAT/GPA students and has a relatively lower average Step scores.

 

[LizzyM]

I'm a little confused. What does US News have that MSAR doesn't? US news shows the number of OOS applicants, how many were interviewed, and then eventually accepted - but so does MSAR?

Also I know that US News shows accepted gpa/MCAT data but can't you just go on the schools website to see that?

A school's website will give you the gpa/MCAT of matriculants, those who choose to attend there whereas other sources might give you the stats for those who are accepted. Schools might accept people with higher grades/scores so if you go by stats for matriculants you may be over estimating your chances with that school... yeah, the average gpa of matriculants might be 3.68 but the average of accepted applicants might be 3.78 but the average drops when more of the 3.95-4.0 applicants choose to go elsewhere.

 

[mimelim]

The best way to think about it is, "Will this changes what I do?" If you are going to apply to the same schools, fill out the same applications and interview the same way you would if you didn't have that information, then it isn't worth it. If it will potentially change what you do, I can think of a lot of worse ways to spend $30.

Personal opinion: Yes, it gives more detail, but I can't imagine how it would affect your decisions. You should be able to figure out if you are competitive or not at most schools without it.

 

[masaraksh]

Little known secret: the USNWR Med School Compass is the only thing that will point you to the "north" Harvard pole. Without it you may find yourself on a path to the Carribean.

I do think it is worth $30

 

[Plecopotamus]

Residency Information
Find out which residencies are most popular at each school, as well as how many students get into their first-choice residency.

The residency info is interesting to me. I wonder if they have DO schools as well as MD.

Do they say how they are getting this residency information?
I do not believe NRMP is disclosing this information. When students report it to their own schools, it is voluntary, which means plenty of students don't participate and others might fudge the info. I would take any reports of "% of students matching into first choice residency" with a gigantic boulder of salt unless and adcom comes on here and clarifies that NRMP is now providing that data.

Similarly, I am under the impression that Step scores are also self-reported by schools, and accordingly how a school factors failures/retakes into the average is up to them.