Mayo AZ vs. Northwestern

[undecidedpremed12]

Hello!

I previously made a post on reddit, but since then the financial situation has changed, so I was hoping for some thoughts from the SDN community! I honestly loved the interview day and second looks at both schools...I'm really agonizing over this decision

I'm currently considering mid-level competitive specialties but want to keep my options open.

Mayo AZ

Pros:

-Gave me a significant scholarship (about 80K cheaper than Northwestern over four years)

-Mayo curriculum seems to generate very high step scores (no AZ data yet for step though), but they have the same curriculum at both campuses.

-Amazing reputation in medicine (better than Feinberg??)

-I like the small class size and large amount of faculty interaction

-Selectives seem great for mental health/ability to explore my interests

Cons:

-It's a new campus, no idea how they'll match as I don't know how residency PD's will view the school

-Prefer downtown Chicago over Scottsdale

-Have to wear business formal a lot

-Required attendance at class


Northwestern Feinberg

Pros:

-I really like their curriculum and competency-based evaluation by portfolios

-Gave me a scholarship similar to Mayo

-I like downtown Chicago

-I like the diversity of clinical sites (Northwestern Memorial is great but also they have a lot of community clinics med students go to)

-More established school, confident I could match well from here compared to the question marks at Mayo?

-I have connections to current MS1 and 2's, which could help me as I go through med school.

-Don't have to attend all lectures

Cons:

-larger class size (3x the size of Mayo) and thus less individual attention

-80K more expensive in total CoA over four years

-it's cold.

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[puahate]

Very tough. I'd pick Mayo

 

[CarpeDiem1993]

Wow, very difficult. If you were looking at Mayo MN I would say to go...but Mayo AZ is still rather new. Like you said...no match lists, just not a lot of history to look at. I get that it's got all the support of the home institution and is just a "different campus" but still...I do not know if residency directors will view it that way.

Personally, I would probably swing for Northwestern!

You also get the leg up of getting strong connections to match back into the Chicago area at two phenomenal institutions: NWestern and UChicago. And Chicago is lit. Cold...but still lit haha.

 

[Dwan]

Mayo AZ's amazing reputation doesn't extend to the residency programs, although the med school is debatable and likely to be superior to their residencies (most probably won't be staying - just judging by the quality of students they're getting). For example, Mayo AZ's IM fellowship match is more like a low-mid tier and nothing in the realm of Mayo-Mn or NW. The concern is that some of that (negative) reputation may extend to its medical school. I think NW would be the safer option if you're looking for a competitive match.

 

[ArdorAyurveda]

Is Northwestern in downtown Chicago?

I think you’ll be more satisfied with Northwestern because the cons you listed for Mayo are central to their culture (mandatory class, business professional wear). NW is also the “safer bet” when it comes to residency.

If your heart says Mayo, though, don’t let fear of PDs stop you from picking Mayo. Do an away rotation at your top choice locations and show the PDs that you deserve to be there

 

[undecidedpremed12]

OP here. Thank you all for your replies so far. Yes, Northwestern is in downtown Chicago. After attending second looks, if you asked me to pick simply based on my "gut feeling" I would *slightly* lean towards Mayo because I felt I meshed well with my future classmates. However, my main concern (and the reason I made this post) was due to the lack of history and how PD's would view Mayo AZ. The central advice here seems to be that Northwestern is the safer option as there is the risk that PD's will view Mayo AZ with a mid-/low-tier reputation. I'm just so conflicted.

 

[seagerco1]

What did you end up going with and why if you don't mind me asking? Stuck in a similar dilemma as yourself.

 

[BritainKittenMittens]

For others considering the two with the same pros/cons, I'd personally pick Northwestern. If you really prefer Chicago to AZ, go Northwestern to make you happier. 80k is not much to pay down. The rest (Northwestern's prestige in and outside of medicine), is just icing on the cake.