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I'm so thankful to be in this position, but I'm really stuck. I just got off these and have to pick between Miami Miller with a full tuition scholarship or Albert Einstein by Thursday. I'm an Iowa resident, went to undergrad in St. Louis. I've said I'm primarily interested in Emergency Medicine and Psych, but I'm not married to these specialties and considering shooting for a more selective specialty like Anesthesiology and then falling back on EM or Psych, really not sure though. Recently visited my M1 friend in Miami and did a bunch of activities with his classmates and it was a blast (outdoor sports, beach, nightlife), seems like a great collaborative bunch. Albert Einstein on the other hand, I have no ties or insider perspective, and I haven't had the time to go on a tour or anything like that. I think the schools are pretty similar in prestige and curriculum so most of my considerations are lifestyle based (let me know if you think otherwise).
Miami Miller
Pros
Cons
Albert Einstein
Pros
Cons
Miami Miller
Pros
- Weather is magnificent, something important to me as I recharge best in the outdoors, especially with all the opportunities to do outdoor sports, beach, etc...
- Live with close friend from college who I've previously lived with in undergrad and is currently an M1.
- Work/life balance seems impeccable.
- Get to put my Spanish minor to use.
Cons
- No support system other than my close friend who's an M1. (I don't really know if I need more than that though, I went to undergrad 4 hours away from my parents and I didn't utilize that).
- Expensive housing, 1600 monthly rent with my friend.
- Miami culture is not my thing, extremely wealthy, superficial, influencer, obsessed with aesthetics. But I love the cuban aspect and the med school bubble may be just enough to not have to interact with those people too much.
- I DO NOT see myself practicing in Florida at all. They do seem to match well around the country though, ideally east or west coast sounds great to me.
- I'm single and I don't think I'll find much wifey material in Miami outside of the student population...
Albert Einstein
Pros
- Great name recognition especially on the east coast allowing for more comfort knowing I'll match somewhere I'll want to be. It's ranking and prestige will only get higher with time due to recent free tuition for all.
- Its NYC, perhaps the best city in the world... I've never visited or been to NYC or the East Coast but I know the culture aligns more with who I am. I know that I do well in big cities despite my absolute love for nature as I've spent my great gap year in Chicago. So much to explore and experience, but will I just get choice overload and feel lost?
- Sister works in Philly (about 2-3 hours away by train?) and I will have a close friend who will be attending Columbia Vagelos (about hour away).
- Subsidized housing means I'll probably be paying around 600-800 for rent!
Cons
- Not actually directly in NYC, hour commute to Manhattan. The immediate location in the Bronx seems pretty isolated, not much to do, do kids either hang out on campus or do the 40 minute commute to the rest of New York City? That kind of seemed like the vibe I was getting.
- I don't have a real idea of what student happiness is like at Einstein or what the typical work/life balance is there, as opposed to knowing that everyone's having a blast at Miami.
- I've heard some things about how infrastructure is kind of old and rundown?
- Opportunities to play sports will all be indoors at the rec, as someone who loves getting active outside, this is maybe one of my biggest cons. I have a bike, not sure if that would be a feasible thing to do from the Bronx.
