MCW vs Penn vs Davis vs Irvine

[Gust]

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Which one would you recommend to attend and why? Assume CA resident.

 

[Gust]

and I mean Penn state not Upenn

 

[BlackBox]

It all depends on what food you like:

MCW: cheese curds
Penn State: chocolate
Irvine: seafood
Davis: close to wine country?

😉

 

[Ja3ger]

I'll assume that money is a factor, and that you'd like to return to CA for residency.

It's between UCI and UCD. I don't know much about either. Which is closer to family/friends/support network?

I thought I read somewhere on here that Irvine has required attendance or doesn't record lectures, but that may be completely wrong.

 

[kevinus]

Irvine does have 80% required attendance, but the lectures are recorded. I heard that shadowing is considered a legitimate excuse for absences, so it doesn't count toward missed classes.

 

[Gust]

if its between the two CA schools, which one would you recommend in that case? pros/cons of the two institutions?

 

[Ja3ger]

if its between the two CA schools, which one would you recommend in that case? pros/cons of the two institutions?

If Irvine has 80% mandatory attendance, I would probably pick Davis unless there's also something about Davis that sucks, or if there's something amazing about Irvine.

 

[sdfoijffdso]

Congratulations! I think that attending medical school in northern california would be pretty neat.

 

[swift3y]

If I were given those options, I would choose UC Davis. I honestly don't know much about MCW and Penn State, but I am not a big fan of UCI. Also I would think that you would see a much more diverse patient population in Davis as compared to Irvine.

 

[Acosi]

.

 

[Lazyluke]

Definitely Davis. Friendly, happy, down-to-earth students. Hospital right next to campus. Good, cheap housing options. Nature nearby. New education building. Looooaaads of academic support.

 

[Gust]

in terms of preparing for boards and residency, is the program at davis or irvine better?

 

[SilentSoldier]

Davis, Davis, Davis. And I'm not just saying that because I'm bitter my alma mater rejected me pre secondary while Davis accepted me. Nothing like that at all 😛

Well to be serious, there was this great positive vibe I got from my interview day at Davis. The students were happy and the faculty seemed very invested in the well being of the students. The hospital is right next to the campus, the classroom facilities looked great. The cost of living is MUCH cheaper than in Orange County. UC Davis' commitment to community based medicine is top notch and IMO exceeds that of Irvine's. Closer to the new Niners stadium (hey every little bit counts 😛 ). No mandatory class attendance, no mandatory class attendance, no mandatory class attendance.

 

[Acosi]

.

 

[Gaboon]

if its between the two CA schools, which one would you recommend in that case? pros/cons of the two institutions?

UCI MS4. Check out the UCI thread for a bunch of info I've posted about the school & attendance policy. PM with any questions!

For what it's worth - I also interviewed at Davis and was very enthusiastic about the program and the vibe I got from the people there (to echo others on this board). It came down to location for me, since I'm originally from SoCal. You can't really go wrong with either place...

 

[joeshmo27]

I visited both on the interview trail and much preferred Davis, but that may have just been because of the 40 people at the Irvine interview and the 30 minutes it took for everyone to say an interesting fact and the three hours it took to go over financial aid, why choose Irvine, student panels, etc 😛. A student at the pizza dinner told me the 80% mandatory attendance essentially means 100% mandatory attendance, because they usually have four classes a day and if I recall correctly, it is 80% per day, not over the course of the whole block/semester/etc. So if you have 4 classes a day and miss one, you are already at 75%, lower than the 80% threshold.

I also did not like the distance from the campus to the hospital.

The students at Davis all seemed genuinely happy to be there, and the admissions staff was incredibly welcoming, which hopefully is indicative of what it is like to be a student there.

No, 80% per course, not per day.