Loyola vs Rush vs Ohio State vs Wake Forest

[lemonxlime]

Need help deciding on schools! I've narrowed it down to my top 4! Thank you.

Here is what is important to me:
-Having a school where I think I will succeed in their curriculum (I value structure and would prefer a systems based, traditional lecture and organized curriculum)
-Transparency
-Collaborative environment
-Emphasis on wellness
-I am completely financially independent, so cost is a major factor
-Access to an urban environment (restaurants, fun activities, treating low income urban patient population)
-Not drive far away for rotations
-Go to a school that will not hinder me from entering a competitive specialty such as urology or ENT
-Mentorship
-Make sure my boyfriend is happy with the location
-Treating marginalized patients
-Medical school emphasizes diversity and inclusion


Loyola

Pros
- Warm student body. Students who attended here have been extremely kind and I can see myself being friends with a lot of them
- Family would allow me to live in a condo with cheap rent
- Chicago (I’ve always wanted to live in a big city, but not sure with medical school I’d have the time and money to really do the things I want)
- Heard they excel in great clinical experiences during M3 and M4 years
- Faculty seems warm and welcoming
- Had a wonderful interview experience!
- Traditional lecture-based curriculum
- Research honors program and opportunities for research
- Extremely collaborative and supportive environment
- Most rotations can be done in Chicago or on the SSOM campus
- I like that the medical school and facilities are all in one campus
- Can lean on boyfriend’s family for support
- Boyfriend would be REALLY happy living here
- Both patient populations and student body seem diverse
- Campus has a gym
- Emphasized student wellness

Cons
- Moving to an 18 month pre-clinical curriculum and I’ve heard complaints about disorganization
- Not a systems-based curriculum
- Lack of transparency (they weren’t able to share match rate percentages or their average step scores when I asked them)
- Pre-clinical teaching quality is hit or miss
- Really cold winters (I hate the cold lol, but can deal with it because they have tunnels)
- Lower ranked (Not sure if this really matters, since it seems like they match into competitive specialty programs in the Midwest)
- ~66k tuition per year (SO EXPENSIVE)


Ohio State

Pros
- Students I’ve connected with seem friendly and mentioned b/c of P/F students share resources.
- Cheaper cost of living in Columbus area
- Heard they excel in great clinical experiences during M3 and M4 years
- Faculty seems warm and welcoming
- Had a wonderful interview experience! (interviewers were so sweet and both sent me very kind congratulatory emails)
- Traditional lecture-based curriculum with a systems approach
- Great opportunities for research
- Most rotations can be done on campus
- I like that the medical school and facilities are all in one campus
- Higher rank?
- Transparent about match rate and step scores
- SWEET CHEAP IN-STATE TUITION (only about ~31k first two years and ~44k last two years)
- Boyfriend would be happy moving here
- Both patient populations and student body seem diverse
- Campus has a gym

Neutral
- Gigantic campus seems a little Intimidating

Cons
- Have heard the curriculum can be hard to navigate and is more disorganized than how they present it during interview
- Younger class (I am 29 and notice the class’s average age is younger than my other schools)
- Do not have any friends in the area
- Has a reputation for a competitive student body, but I haven't gotten this vibe at all



Wake Forest

Pros
- Students I’ve connected with seem friendly and mentioned b/c of P/F students share resources.
- Warmer place!
- Beautiful campus (facilities looked great)
- Students happy with pre-clinical and clinical curriculum
- Access to both urban and rural patient populations
- Heard they excel in great clinical experiences during M3 and M4 years
- Faculty seems warm and welcoming
- Had a wonderful interview experience!
- Traditional lecture-based curriculum with a systems approach
- Opportunities for research
- Transparent about match rate and step scores
- Boyfriend would be happy moving here
- School administration and curriculum seems very organized, which I love
- Uworld is included in cost of tuition



Cons
- Expensive (similar to the price of Loyola ~64k)
- Do not have any friends in the area
- Cost of living and rent doesn’t seem cheap either
- Lack of diversity (both in student body and patient populations)
- Pre-clinical and clinical campuses are a drive from each other
- W-S is not a big city


Rush

Pros
- Students I’ve connected with seem friendly and mentioned b/c of P/F students share resources.
- Cook County Hospital
- Access to treat some of the most underserved patient populations
- Culture really emphasizes service
- Diverse patient populations and student body
- Heard they excel in great clinical experiences during M3 and M4 years
- Opportunities for research
- Can lean on boyfriend’s family for support
- Boyfriend would be REALLY happy living here
- More non-trad students
- Family would allow me to live in a condo with cheap rent
- Chicago (I’ve always wanted to live in a big city, but not sure with medical school I’d have the time and money to really do the things I want)




Cons
- Expensive (~55k)
- Faculty didn’t seem warm and welcoming
- Interview was alright. They started 15 minutes late and didn’t apologize.
- Administration seemed disorganized during the interview day
- Flipped classroom approach doesn’t sit well with me
- Condo is 35 minutes away from campus, so would have to deal with traffic
- Harsh winters
- Campus is not centralized

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[FutureDocccc]

Sounds like Ohio State is your best option with so few cons, and it's a great school. You're going to older than most of your class at any school.

 

[JohnJacobJingleheimer]

Ohio state or Rush. It’s cost & prestige vs location at that point. With being able to use your family’s condo, the total COA may be similar between the two. The other schools are not worth the difference in cost.

 

[thatonegrrl]

Completely biased, but I'd pick Rush. (Biased because it's the only school on this list that I also applied to and was one of my top 5 - and the only one I didn't get an interview at - *sad trombone*)... Ohio State would also be a great option, good reputation and so much more affordable.

 

[chilly_md]

Ohio State. Rent isn't enough to make up the cost difference at either of the Chicago schools. And I think you'll have more opportunities at Ohio State.

 

[lemonxlime]

Thank you all! This is a really tough decision. I'm taking the time to visit each of the schools and go to the second looks before I make my final decision.