Loyola vs Einstein

[Scrubs87]

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I have received a scholarship from both schools making them my two top choices. The COA difference between the two for me is within 1k so I've already thrown money out the window as a deciding factor.

A list of my thoughts about the schools. Not necessarily a pros and cons list, but just what comes to mind about each:

Loyola

-Both schools seem to have very happy students, however, the students from Loyola seem to be absolutely obsessed with their school (which is also confirmed by the AMSA surveys).
-The facilities and gym are quite a bit nicer than Einsteins.
-Students live off campus and the majority drive to class. Not sure if having to buy a car is a good or bad thing right now.
-I think its about 10-12 miles from downtown Chicago, however, I hear the traffic can be pretty bad.
-Jesuit philosophy doesn't bother me one bit.
-Although it's not a well known name in research, they have a new program designed to get students involved so I don't think I'll have any problems finding a project if I'm looking for one.

Einstein

-P/F for the first two years. I really like this about Einstein.
-Student housing is literally right across the street and its cheap.
-The Bronx certainly isn't the city, however, it doesn't bother me too much. Students still tend to make it to Manhattan every weekend.
-One of the tour guides on my interview told me Einstein had the third least number of lecture hours of any medical school. Is this true?
-The one thing that bothers me about Einstein is their focus on creating generalist physicians. If I find in med school that I'm not interested in primary care, how will this focus affect me?


Any insight would be appreciated. Thanks.

 

[Arpan5145]

i think people read into the generalist physician statement too much, every school seems to say it focuses on making physicians who care about the community and will want to do primary care. well look at every schools match results..

einstein's match list from 2009. 172 students, 24 chose peds, 4 did family practice, so ~84% of the class didn't go into a primary care specialty, so i'd guess while it may have some impact it's not exactly stopping people from pursuing other specialties...

 

[drizzt3117]

i think people read into the generalist physician statement too much, every school seems to say it focuses on making physicians who care about the community and will want to do primary care. well look at every schools match results..

einstein's match list from 2009. 172 students, 24 chose peds, 4 did family practice, so ~84% of the class didn't go into a primary care specialty, so i'd guess while it may have some impact it's not exactly stopping people from pursuing other specialties...

IM is also primary care...

I wouldn't think you'd have any more difficult time specializing from AECOM as you would from Loyola. I would read that article that the 4th year posted about AE recently though.

 

[Scrubs87]

I'm sure where Einstein's graduates end up has a lot to do with the type of people they accept anyways, so I guess I'm not really too worried about the "generalist physician" focus. It's just that I really have no idea what field I'm interested in and want to make sure I have as many options to pursue as possible and I read the post by the 4th year at Einstein saying they were relatively weak in surgical specialties (is this the "article" you were speaking of?). But I know the drill; study hard, nail Step I, and get honors 3rd/4th year and I'll be in good shape no matter what med school I go to.

That said, both schools felt like a good fit in their own ways so its a tough decision. Anyone else have some pros/cons about either school?

 

[drizzt3117]

I'm sure where Einstein's graduates end up has a lot to do with the type of people they accept anyways, so I guess I'm not really too worried about the "generalist physician" focus. It's just that I really have no idea what field I'm interested in and want to make sure I have as many options to pursue as possible and I read the post by the 4th year at Einstein saying they were relatively weak in surgical specialties (is this the "article" you were speaking of?). But I know the drill; study hard, nail Step I, and get honors 3rd/4th year and I'll be in good shape no matter what med school I go to.

That said, both schools felt like a good fit in their own ways so its a tough decision. Anyone else have some pros/cons about either school?

I was referring to the article from the 4th year who said that AECOM didn't let them leave their 4th year subI to do interviews... maybe that is the same article, I dunno.

 

[Siverhideo1985]

I was choosing between Stritch and a more "research-powerhouse"-esk university in Boston and I ended choosing Loyola.

a) Loyola knows its trying to catch up in research and they are VERY helpful to students who are interested (i.e. STAR summer stipend and honors in research track). From what students told me they ended up being able to chose their favorite project from 3-4 different ones that they were offered by professors/physicians

b) I have always found it to be of the utmost importance by what type of people I am surrounded. Loyola just has this whole air of friendliness that I found in the administration, the students, my interviewers, the physicians, and other staff around the hospital.

c) If you do decide to go with Loyola I would recommend living in Oak or Forrest Park, its along the train lines and you can get to the school via backroads (avoid traffic on the freeway)

Of course I am biased and I have no clue about anything at Einstein so this is just my two cent added to the list of things about loyola.

Best of Luck in your decision making

 

[Brent8927]

I can't comment on Einstein, since I didn't apply there (and I've never been to New York either), but I can comment on Loyola, since I will be attending this fall (err... July 🙂).

The main thing I loved about Loyola was the people--staff, students, professors, everyone! They were all so happy to be there, and I felt like they would be a wonderful group to spend the next four years with. I thought there were a lot of "good people" at Loyola, and that's a crowd I want to be around. The people you hang out with affects who you are (since you learn from them and visa-versa), and I saw myself fitting in at Loyola very easily, and getting better prepared to be the kind of physician I want to be by going there.

The Jesuit philosophy was really important to me--I'm Catholic and went to a Jesuit undergrad, and I love the way they teach. I really like that ethics/spirituality are taught/encouraged, but also that the Jesuits are open-minded. The last thing I want is to be at a school that is only full one people of one type (ie, all Catholic)--how do you learn without diversity? Of course it'll be less diverse than my undergrad, which was in the Santa Clara Valley in CA (near San Jose), but then I think almost any school in the Midwest will be less diverse.

One thing I would imagine Einstein has over Loyola is more racial diversity, due to being in New York. And if you like New York more than Chicago, that's something to consider.

Loyola is out in a suburb of Chicago, which personally I liked--I don't want to work or live in a big city, and I also don't want to go to school in one. But as you pointed out, you will probably need a car--the L doesn't get too close to the campus, so you'd still have to take a bus if you went that route.

Overall, I'd go where your gut tells you to go. It sounds like you'll be happy at either place, but you may be slightly happier at one or the other. If you liked the people at one school more than the other, and felt you'd fit in more easily, then I would take that into consideration.

Good luck!

 

[Brent8927]

I was choosing between Stritch and a more "research-powerhouse"-esk university in Boston and I ended choosing Loyola.

a) Loyola knows its trying to catch up in research and they are VERY helpful to students who are interested (i.e. STAR summer stipend and honors in research track). From what students told me they ended up being able to chose their favorite project from 3-4 different ones that they were offered by professors/physicians

b) I have always found it to be of the utmost importance by what type of people I am surrounded. Loyola just has this whole air of friendliness that I found in the administration, the students, my interviewers, the physicians, and other staff around the hospital.

c) If you do decide to go with Loyola I would recommend living in Oak or Forrest Park, its along the train lines and you can get to the school via backroads (avoid traffic on the freeway)

Of course I am biased and I have no clue about anything at Einstein so this is just my two cent added to the list of things about loyola.

Best of Luck in your decision making

Ahh, you beat me to saying it!