LECOM-Erie vs TUCOM-CA

[Trying_again]

I have put my deposit down at LECOM but recently got accepted to TUCOM as well.

LECOM
Pros:
-closer to home (from NYC, so still not very close, ~8hr drive)
-cheaper
-more clinical opportunities on east coast

Cons:
-graded
-mandatory lectures
-dress code
-reputation of not much support for students
-PBL pathway so real cadavers aren’t used, it’s virtual


TUCOM
Pros:
-P/F
-lecture not mandatory
-use real cadavers
-warmer weather
-hold clinical locations in NY if I want to return to east coast

Cons:
-more expensive (tuition and cost of living)
-far from home (doesn’t bother me too much)
-reputation of being in not the best area

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[chilly_md]

Hard to beat the cost at LECOM.

 

[Mr.Smile12]

Have you visited Erie? It's not NYC. COA will be less, but it's not impossibly far from NYC... but it's not NYC.

Is good student support worth the cost difference?

 

[Trying_again]

Have you visited Erie? It's not NYC. COA will be less, but it's not impossibly far from NYC... but it's not NYC.

Is good student support worth the cost difference?

I have visited Erie, haven’t gotten the chance to visit TUCOM. I did my undergrad in a very rural area so I’m used to the small town setting at Erie. But I am willing to pay more if it means my experience as a student will be better. Taking cost out of it, there are aspects of TUCOM that I like better (P/F, no mandatory lectures, real cadavers) but it’s hard to know how much of a difference that will make. I know most of my experience will come from what I put into it.

 

[FarmHand]

I personally don't have experience with these schools but I can definitely say that P/F and optional lectures do wonders for stress management and help with the adjustment to the intensity of medical school. I can't really imagine learning anatomy without a cadaver especially since there is a lot of normal anatomical variation between cadavers in the lab but at the same time cutting into a cadaver is a big time sink so I can see benefits to not having mandatory labs.

 

[Goro]

Which do you like more, Napa wine, or.., well, whatever cuisine Erie, PA is famous for.

 

[drthedude]

I personally don't have experience with these schools but I can definitely say that P/F and optional lectures do wonders for stress management and help with the adjustment to the intensity of medical school. I can't really imagine learning anatomy without a cadaver especially since there is a lot of normal anatomical variation between cadavers in the lab but at the same time cutting into a cadaver is a big time sink so I can see benefits to not having mandatory labs.

gonna agree with this sentiment, if the school I attended didn't have cadavers or was P/F, life would have been a whole lot harder