Jefferson Vs. SUNY-Syracuse

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thatguyagain

thatguyagain

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Did anyone here choose Jefferson over SUNY--Syracuse or vice versa?

I just recieved an acceptance to both of their MD programs. Both schools have a unique set of pros/cons.

I'm looking to go into Surgery and having a really hard time deciding which school to go to. Any thoughts about the strength of these two programs for getting me into a really great Surgical Residency 4 years from now? Keep in mind that my current interests are vascular and plastic surgery.

Thanks for the help
 
jefferson is supposed to be known for surgery,i don't know about specifics though...
 
The thought of living in Syracuse (America's most depressing city) is scary, though the instate tution maybe hard to pass up.
 
Pompacil said:
I sincerely hope you've actually been there, let alone lived in Syracuse.
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Yes I have been to Syracuse, and I've been to a whole host of other not so great cities throughout the Northeast and Midwestern U.S. so I speak from experience :laugh:

Although in Syracuse's defense there's a nice mall there, and there's a whole host of outdoors type stuff within a 2 hour drive for you to enjoy.
 
.
 
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Simonster said:
So...you've seen Philly and you're calling Syracuse the most depressing city in the world? 😕

I've lived in Philly before, and now I'm up in Syracuse. I had a similar dilemma as Thatguy. I admit that Philly has a lot of character, but the poverty & crime sorta got to me. I finally chose Syracuse because of cost, and the thought of living in Philly again made my stomach turn. But I'm the kind of person that loves the outdoors, and dislikes being accosted by crackheads twenty times a day.

Thatguy,

I would just check the match lists for both schools instead of going by rumor. Chances are both have matched plenty grads into surgery . Also, your performance will be a bigger factor than your school when it comes to your career.

Syracuse and Philly are vastly different in terms of quality of life and cost, so I would worry about that more. As far as cost goes, in syracuse you'll be paying a lot less rent (for a much nicer apartment). Just for kicks, go to craigslist and compare prices on a 1-BR apt in each city, and then multiply the difference by the 48 months you'll be living there. Plus tuition is a lot less, even if you have to wait a year to get NYS residency. Of course, I'm assuming you'll be taking out loans..

imho if you're into the outdoors, saving your money, and don't mind living in a a smallish town, pick Syracuse.

If you need the excitement of being in a city and don't mind urban decay and taking out bigger loans, pick Philly.
If you have questions about upstate feel free to PM me. I happen to love it here 😀
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Just want to point out that Jefferson happens to be in the nicest area of Philly, much nicer than any of the other Philly medical schools. There's very low crime in this neighborhood. We are 4 blocks away from Independence Hall and the Liberty Bell. Yeah, it's "urban" but I definitely wouldn't say it's full of "urban decay"!
 
What's so bad about Philadelphia? Philadelphia is actually one of my favorite cities. It's got real character, history. Relatively mild weather, reasonable cost of living, lots to do. What's there not to like? Don't even put Philadalphia and the S Town in the same sentence, please.

In Syracuse snow is measured by the feet.
 
Llenroc said:
What's so bad about Philadelphia? Philadelphia is actually one of my favorite cities. It's got real character, history. Relatively mild weather, reasonable cost of living, lots to do. What's there not to like? Don't even put Philadalphia and the S Town in the same sentence, please.

In Syracuse snow is measured by the feet.
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Yes, but in Philly the homeless, poverty, murder rate, and drug addicts are measured in....... wait a second. We don't measure them. We just pretend those problems don't exist!

I will give props to Philly for their art/music scene though. It's hard to beat.
 
I grew up in Syracuse and now go to school in Philly so I think I have a pretty good perspective on the matter.

I do like Philly. It's a great city with a lot to do and I prefer an urban environment. But I echo what was said above. Syracuse's col is much lower. And I get the impression that people think the Cuse is farmalnd and cows. It is a city, certainly not Philly or NYC, but there's stuff to do.

And I love it when the first thing people do is whine about the snow. Bitches. To be honest, Philly's summer humidity is far more iritating than the lake effect Syracuse gets. But that's just me.

Llenroc said:
What's so bad about Philadelphia? Philadelphia is actually one of my favorite cities. It's got real character, history. Relatively mild weather, reasonable cost of living, lots to do. What's there not to like? Don't even put Philadalphia and the S Town in the same sentence, please.

In Syracuse snow is measured by the feet.
Click to expand...
 
Pompacil said:
I grew up in Syracuse and now go to school in Philly so I think I have a pretty good perspective on the matter.

I do like Philly. It's a great city with a lot to do and I prefer an urban environment. But I echo what was said above. Syracuse's col is much lower. And I get the impression that people think the Cuse is farmalnd and cows. It is a city, certainly not Philly or NYC, but there's stuff to do.

And I love it when the first thing people do is whine about the snow. Bitches. To be honest, Philly's summer humidity is far more iritating than the lake effect Syracuse gets. But that's just me.
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You people need to get out. I grew up in Philly, went to Seton Hall in North Jersey and visted my best friend from undergrad several times in Syracuse. It really is disgusting. Like, all of it. The only good thing that came from Syracuse is Donovan McNabb! Jeff is in Center City, the cleanest, nicest, part of town...I couldn't see passing it up to be in Syracuse. PS- Jeff has a better rep too.
 
So you want surgery huh?...Then I truly feel Jeff is your place. We just got a new Chair of Surgery, Charles Yeo (nice name huh?) who is the man when it comes to pancreatic surgery, and is very well known. He's very energetic and has big plans. Jeff is well known for surgery and excellent clinical training in general, give it strong consideration. Can't speak for SUNY...you're not going to have time to get out anyway, who cares about the town...philly's great! :laugh:

Oh, ps...one name, Samuel Gross, father of American Surgery...where did he go? That's right, it was Jeff
 
blondMD said:
You people need to get out. I grew up in Philly, went to Seton Hall in North Jersey and visted my best friend from undergrad several times in Syracuse. It really is disgusting. Like, all of it. The only good thing that came from Syracuse is Donovan McNabb! Jeff is in Center City, the cleanest, nicest, part of town...I couldn't see passing it up to be in Syracuse. PS- Jeff has a better rep too.
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Hello? Leading scorer on the Denver Nuggets...goes by the name Carmelo...

We have a mall too.

As far as having a better rep, based on who? You? I was under the impression that Jeff was about the same level as Drexel, which both are at about the level of the SUNY schools.

Besides, rep is overrated. Go where you're COMFORTABLE.
 
Jefferson is consistently ranked around 53. So yeah, it does have a better rep (than both SUNY Syracuse and Drexel). Make of that what you will.

I had to chime in there. But I also don't like Syracuse. Granted I haven't seen as much of it as I have of Philly, since I live in Philly but have only visited Syracuse. But I still like Philly much better. Also, my brother-in-law went to SUNY Syracuse and hated the city. But I know people like it. And yeah, I will complain about the weather. It's terrible. Personally I'd take humid summer Philadelphia weather year-round just to avoid Syracuse winters. (Then again, I grew up in the South, so I'm biased.)

In-state tuition is damn hard to turn down, though.
 
bigdan said:
Yeah. You've gotta like Jeff TWICE as much, 'cause it costs twice as much.

dc
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Quality never came cheaply :laugh: Funny thing is, most of us do like Jeff at least twice as much 😉

In all seriousness, thatguy, look at the match positions from each school, for career outlook purposes, and see where the graduates go, if they go where you want to go then you decision will probably be easier. As far as the town goes, it's only 4 years, not like you have to spend your entire life there...Moreover, it depends on you to do the work and graduate...a ******* from harvard is still a *******...
 
blueyedfisch said:
Quality never came cheaply :laugh: Funny thing is, most of us do like Jeff at least twice as much 😉
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With U.S. allopathic schools, unless you're positively set on a very competitive specialty right away, you're really comparing six and half a dozen. They are all LCME-accredited. Medical school is what you make of it.

BTW, I chose to go to Upstate over a 'top-30' school. I have a very strong background in research which will help later on and, as Dan said above, the greater than two-fold higher price tag elswhere was lunacy in my mind. In the end, I felt Upstate had a better clinical program anyway - more so than the higher-ranked, research-focused school I could have gone to. Medical school is only four years long. Who cares about the night life or lack thereof.....
 
Thanks for all the help everybody. It seems I have uncovered something interesting about Jefferson though. It seems that everyone that goes there is a Die-Hard Jeff fan, but those at other institutions aren't all that impressed with Jeff. I suppose that is somewhat of a good thing for Jeff though. Student opinion says quite a bit about the quality fo education.

I found some interesting Match stats on Jeff and SUNY-Syracuse. Even though I'm the one that started the thread, I'd thought I'd share for all to see.

SUNY-Syracuse:
http://www.upstate.edu/studentorgs/aoa/Match Results by Year.htm

Jefferson:
http://www.jefferson.edu/jmc/admissions/05_JMC_prospectus.pdf

Also, for the sake of completeness, this thread seems to have a pretty good listing of the most covited General Surgery Residency programs:
http://forums.studentdoctor.net/showthread.php?t=31734


I just found all this info though, so I havn't had a chance to go through and scrutinize each schools match qualities. Maybe someone more enlightened than I could do that. I'm not completely privy to the strengths of each surgical program yet.
 
thatguyagain said:
Thanks for all the help everybody. It seems I have uncovered something interesting about Jefferson though. It seems that everyone that goes there is a Die-Hard Jeff fan, but those at other institutions aren't all that impressed with Jeff. I suppose that is somewhat of a good thing for Jeff though. Student opinion says quite a bit about the quality fo education.
Click to expand...

Jefferson is definitely a better name than Syracuse. But SYracuse does not suck to live in, I used to live in the area. If you have someone paying for you, I would go Jefferson. If not, syracuse. Money is the biggest issue I see. Surgery isnt impossibly competitive from either school. BUt still jefferson is better imo. Its hard to compare using match lists that dont include AOA status. Its more telling when NON-AOA people get into tough residencies. Everyone wants AOA kids from anywhere.
 
Hoya11 said:
Jefferson is definitely a better name than Syracuse. But SYracuse does not suck to live in, I used to live in the area. If you have someone paying for you, I would go Jefferson. If not, syracuse. Money is the biggest issue I see. Surgery isnt impossibly competitive from either school. BUt still jefferson is better imo. Its hard to compare using match lists that dont include AOA status. Its more telling when NON-AOA people get into tough residencies. Everyone wants AOA kids from anywhere.
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OK dude, I'm an incoming MSI and I hear all this AOA talk. I'm sure it's a no brainer, but for 2 weeks I've been trying to figure out what the heck AOA is. What is it? The only things I can come up with is "American Ortho. Assoc." and "American Osteopathic Assoc.", but I know it's not either one.

I do know one thing though. Those crazy kids on the "Surgical and Surgery Subspecialties" seem to think that it matters less and less every year--check out some of their previous posts. But like I said, I don't even know what it is. 😳
 
thatguyagain said:
OK dude, I'm an incoming MSI and I hear all this AOA talk. I'm sure it's a no brainer, but for 2 weeks I've been trying to figure out what the heck AOA is. What is it? The only things I can come up with is "American Ortho. Assoc." and "American Osteopathic Assoc.", but I know it's not either one.

I do know one thing though. Those crazy kids on the "Surgical and Surgery Subspecialties" seem to think that it matters less and less every year--check out some of their previous posts. But like I said, I don't even know what it is. 😳
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Alpha Omega Alpha....medical school honor society. It's overrated. Study hard in school and for the boards and you won't go wrong.
 
Yeah its a med school honor society, as if being in med school alone wasnt enough. Id say its like the top 10-20% of your class or less?? Not 100% sure and I dont care at all what the actual criteria is as Im sure I dont meet it.
 
Hoya11 said:
Yeah its a med school honor society, as if being in med school alone wasnt enough. Id say its like the top 10-20% of your class or less?? Not 100% sure and I dont care at all what the actual criteria is as Im sure I dont meet it.
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It's usually about the top 25% that's eligible, and then from that group you have to be elected by your peers.

FYI, Jeff matched a bunch of both AOA AND non-AOA people in ortho the last several years. I haven't checked other surgical specialties though.
 
anymore info on this topic would be GREATLY APPRECIATED.

thx
 
newdude said:
anymore info on this topic would be GREATLY APPRECIATED.

thx
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I grew up in Oswego and spent alot of time in Syracuse. In short, I don't mind going home to visit mom, or seeing my old friends once in a while (alot of whom have migrated to the 'cuse), but everything these anti-Cuse people are saying is true: it sucks there.

The standard of living compares to lovely places such as Flint, MI or Youngstown, OH. There is a ton of crime. There are bullet holes in doors at the local high schools. Sales tax is 8 percent. There isn't anything to do except for going to the mall and hanging out in the SU bubble. You can't go anywhere without a car, but you can't drive your car 6 months out of the year since it snows. Oh, and you measure the snow with a yardstick up there, not a ruler... unless you are measuring every 3 hours. I got the hell out of there and I love it here (here could really be anywhere that isnt there).
 
kingcer0x said:
I grew up in Oswego and spent alot of time in Syracuse. In short, I don't mind going home to visit mom, or seeing my old friends once in a while (alot of whom have migrated to the 'cuse), but everything these anti-Cuse people are saying is true: it sucks there.

The standard of living compares to lovely places such as Flint, MI or Youngstown, OH. There is a ton of crime. There are bullet holes in doors at the local high schools. Sales tax is 8 percent. There isn't anything to do except for going to the mall and hanging out in the SU bubble. You can't go anywhere without a car, but you can't drive your car 6 months out of the year since it snows. Oh, and you measure the snow with a yardstick up there, not a ruler... unless you are measuring every 3 hours. I got the hell out of there and I love it here (here could really be anywhere that isnt there).
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This sounds horrible. When I was in Syracuse for my SUNY Upstate interview, a lot of students claimed to really like Syracuse. What do you say to that? DO you think they were all lying to see the school? I doubt it. Things can't be as bad as you say, you sound like you are exaggerating.
 
I will be going to SUNY Upstate and have never been to Philly, but I will comment on Syracuse. I was born and raised 1 hour west of Syracuse in the Finger Lakes Region. I have been to Syracuse countless times and the weather is not like other posters have made it sound. Yes it rains and snows, but it is nothing to cry about. Syracuse has always had these weather conditions and for this reason they have a great system of snow removal and it is quite efficient. The city is not the most appealing, but Upstate and Syracuse University create a micro-environment that is nice. I kind of find it ridiculous that somebody would rule out a school because of snow and rain. They make umbrellas and winter apparel for such conditions. Anyways, Upstate is the friendliest campus that I visited and that more than makes up for any tears that might be shed over the weather.
 
People, I have no incentive to lie. The weather is much worse in Syracuse than it is in the finger lakes region because of the lake effect. If you are 1 hour west of Syracuse, you are in the rochester area, which isn't as bad when it comes to lifestyle. Its not just the snow in winter... its the complete lack of sunlight. Lake effect clouds block out about 90% of it from December until the lake freezes over. You might be able to handle it without getting Seasonal Affective Disorder compared to people from warmer climates. The crime data IS staggering. Look it up for yourself. There IS nothing to do outside of the Hill and the Carousel mall. People drink themselves silly because of this. Don't believe me? Suit yourself. Granted you will be too busy to care so maybe it isnt so relevant.

Anybody you meet on interview day is going to love their school, and they should... its a great school from what I hear, as are the hospitals. My family gets their teritiary care neds met in the Cuse. 18k per year for tuition sure is good and because the place sucks to live in the rents are cheap. I am not saying anything about the school... its top notch. I am just speaking from LONG experience in the area: you better get a script for some SSRIs b4 going 🙂
 
Philly has it all. Cheestakes, city life, Donovan Mcnabb, and the ANSWER. What else do you need?
 
CTSballer11 said:
Philly has it all. Cheestakes, city life, Donovan Mcnabb, and the ANSWER. What else do you need?
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It also has the most humid summers and some very shady/unsafe/high crime neighborhoods. And the fattest people in the nation. 🙄
 
So if i were to ask "Which school will put me me in the best position for residency?" Regardless of cost, location and anything else.

What are your thoughts?

Thx again


P.S. anyone know the board score for these two schools?
 
Go to Jeff! You'll have a lot more opportunities. Plus, the cost may not be that much of an issue.... Jeff has a lot more scholarship money to give out that SUNY Upstate. 👍
 
Jeff does give out a lot of scholarship money. I got one that covered about 72K for the four year total. Just enough to make it roughly equal to what a SUNY school (sans scholarship) would cost.


dc
 
star22 said:
Go to Jeff! You'll have a lot more opportunities. Plus, the cost may not be that much of an issue.... Jeff has a lot more scholarship money to give out that SUNY Upstate. 👍
Click to expand...

agreed. also, Jefferson is in the BEST part of Philly. If I were going to live anywhere in Philly, I'd live near Jeff.
 
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