MCP Hahnemann vs. Chicago Medical School

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Megan

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I have been accepted to both schools and was definitely more impressed by Hahnemann, however I have heard some bad things about what is going on with them financially after the merge and after being bought by an insurance company. I have posted on another site and only gotten that neither school is very good so it doesn't matter. Does anyone have any more helpful suggestions?

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hey megan, do you mind telling us when you interviewed and when you were accepted? thanks
 
I saw your post on TPR. :) The merger thing with MCP won't affect your education, and their money problems are in the past. It basically will come down to location and curriculum. MCP uses some PBL (?) while CMS is ultra traditional. Would you be happier in Philly or North Chicago? What kind of feeling did you get when you visited both schools?
 
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I'd say go the MCP. I read that thread on TPR too and was a bit annoyed. It seemed to suggest that since both schools were so crummy it really didn't matter much in the end. Of course it does. And you should be proud for getting into both.

MCP has gone through the wringer the past few years so I can understand your trepidation, but I really think it is the better school. As recently as 1998 they ranked in the top 50 schools receiving NIH grants, but the bankruptcy really took a toll on their faculty. But they are rebuilding and their ranking (if that matters to you) should improve. The school is not owned by a health insurance company; instead their affiliated hospitals were purchased by Tenet, a for-profit hospital chain. The same has happened at a number of med schools. Drexel University officially takes over as owner of the school in July.

You can achieve all your goals by going to Chicago Med as well, if living in the Midwest is important to you. Congratulations.
 
MCPH is not a crummy school AT ALL! It is fairly well respected in the Philadelphia area. Anyway, though it is definitely true that they have had financial problems, they are doing better every year (that's what I heard anyway). I think the Drexel take-over will be good for the school. Besides, I would prefer to be in Philadelphia than up in North Chicago.
 
Somebody actually said that the two schools are so "crummy" that it doesn't matter? What's the matter with these people?!?!
 
I interviewed at both places (and was waitlisted at MCPH, and accepted to CMS), so here's my take: I would take Hahnemann hands down (sorry Dra. Foxy) for several reasons.

1. Location - Philly vs. North Chicago to me is no contest.

2. Curriculum - CMS seems to not be particularly interested in using alternative teaching methods (PBL, etc).

3. Technology - The building at MCPH is very wired, and there appears to be good technology support. Outside of the computer rooms at CMS, I didn't see too much in that arena.

As far as I know, Hahnemann is perfectly fine financially (the bankruptcy is now ~5 years in the past), and the merge with Drexel is supposed to be virtually transparent to the students, other than a name change. It just allows the schools to combine financial aid, accounting, etc. depts.
 
are both schools medschools?
 
I have a little more to add:

I would personally choose MCP because I have family in the area and prefer the East coast to the midwest. (and Philly is much cooler than North Chicago, although I think I might enjoy Chicago more in the last 2 years) However, I think I would like Finch's curriculum better. Since I only got into Finch, I'm perfectly content with going there :D Let me know if you end up there!

Good luck with your decision! And Welcome to SDN :D

p.s. gh: they are both medical schools :)
 
I think I can offer some information about this decision. For background purposes, I was accepted to MCP Hahnemann and one of my best friends attends Finch University of the Health Sciences/The Chicago Medical School (CMS).

Listening to my friend, I would say one major complaint about CMS is that they use a grading system. He believes the classes are consequently more difficult than they need to be. The curriculum is also VERY traditional. MCP Hahnemann, on the other hand, is Honors/Pass/Fail. MCP also offers PBL-based style of learning. Based on these few differences I have listed, I think I would be able to make the decision of going to MCP. I think you would be better served at this institution, which would offer so many opportunites during all four years of training in Philadelphia. In other words, I think your first two years at CMS will not be too enjoyable in North Chicago. Just my two cents. Good luck with your final decision.
 
Thanks for your comments, everyone. I interviewed with MCPH in November of last year and it took them until mid February to get back to me. I interviewed with Finch in April and heard back about a week ago. I am definately leaning towards MCPH. I really liked the fact that everything was so modern, and on the tour the faculty and students all seemed so friendly and helpful. One of my majors in college was literature, so the fact that they have a Medical Humanities Program is really interesting to me. My husband is in advertising though, so we're hoping that Philadelphia is a large enough market for him to find a job in, since the economy is in such a slump. That will probably be the ultimate deciding factor, but I'm really hoping for MCPH. Thanks so much for all your help!
 
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