Medical School Reputation and Consequences for Future Career

[DirkN]

Thanks for all of your comments!

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[DermViser]

 

[TooMuchResearch]

No.

 

[Psai]

No one cares about ranking, what matters is reputation
academics will care, patients wont

 

[DirkN]

No one cares about ranking, what matters is reputation
academics will care, patients wont

I suppose that is exactly my point. Is it really "all in the name?"

 

[mcloaf]

My question then, is this: do you believe that the reputation and prestige of your medical school will have a positive/negative consequence on your future career, outside of the match?

As a second year medical student, "outside of the match" isn't really an arena I think about. Ever.

 

[alpinism]

Hey everyone. After holding a friendly discussion with an old pal of mine (anesthesiologist resident) and not really receiving any clarity on the matter, I decided to field my question here.

Due to high average USMLE scores at basically all U.S. MD programs, similar accreditation standards and high level staff and faculty, everyone likes to preach the relative unimportance of the medical school you ultimately attend. Even unranked schools have strong match lists, and some of the most highly-sought residency spots are often filled by students from unranked schools.

My question then, is this: do you believe that the reputation and prestige of your medical school will have a positive/negative consequence on your future career, outside of the match? Potential patients (often ignorantly) judge their physicians based on where they received their education, and interactions with colleagues/power dynamics in the workplace may inevitably reduce to the quality of one's medical education. We often hear about this in terms of the DO vs. MD debate, but what about between different allopathic educational backgrounds?

For what it's worth, I am really not trying to push anyone's buttons, and I personally believe that an incredibly medical education is achievable at any medical university in the U.S. and can thus lead to a successful career. Just trying to hear everyone's thoughts.

Per the bolded:

Look up any unranked med school's match list and compare it to Yale's. If you can't tell the difference between the 2 and think both lists are "strong" then I'm not sure anyone on here can help you.

At the same time, of course you can have a successful medical career from any US med school.

 

[radkat101]

Dealing with the types of patients that actively seek out grads from prestigious schools seems like it would be a disadvantage of attending those schools.

 

[TooMuchResearch]

Dealing with the types of patients that actively seek out grads from prestigious schools seems like it would be a disadvantage of attending those schools.

One thousand thumbs up for you.

 

[PL198]

What does the statement mean " even unranked schools have strong match list." By nature, that's not possible. Everyone can't have a strong match list. Just because you say " oh that looks good doesn't mean it actually is.

 

[notbobtrustme]

The top students from any med school will be competitive for anything, anywhere.

However, that's like 10 students in a class of 200.

For the average student, where you go has a substantial impact on where you match and what you match into.

 

[Señor S]

I don't think it will have much effect given my ambitions. Obviously the upper echelons of medicine are going to be incestuous and prefer their own. If that's your aim, or you're trying to work your way into high society in NYC or Boston or SF, then yes, I'm sure it matters a great deal.