Mt. Sinai vs Dartmouth

[conrad123]

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Firstly, I realize I am very fortunate for this decision. I am usually very decisive, but this is a big decision and the two options are quite different so I thought I should take my time to decide (not too much time I will withdraw as soon as decided). And others' perspective might be very helpful.

Monetarily, it is similar with Dartmouth being around 5-10k cheaper per year.

What's better for:

1. Future job in academia?

2. Hands on experiences? I have an image of NYC being so crowded that med students do more than just watch. A friend at a small rural-ish med school complained about the 3rd year being only observatory.

3. Prestige of name? Repuation in medical community? In regular community? It won't sway me, but interesting to know.

4. Does patient actually diversity matter? Medically speaking.

5. Better education? (I realize, a stupid question.)

6. Other?

I view the situation as: a challenging adventure (Sinai) or a great, very comfortable academic/collegiate (sp?) experience.

Any thoughts/opinions would be appreciated. Best of luck to everyone else.

Thanks,
Conrad

 

[mdeast]

Firstly, I realize I am very fortunate for this decision. I am usually very decisive, but this is a big decision and the two options are quite different so I thought I should take my time to decide (not too much time I will withdraw as soon as decided). And others' perspective might be very helpful.

Monetarily, it is similar with Dartmouth being around 5-10k cheaper per year.

What's better for:

1. Future job in academia?

2. Hands on experiences? I have an image of NYC being so crowded that med students do more than just watch. A friend at a small rural-ish med school complained about the 3rd year being only observatory.

3. Prestige of name? Repuation in medical community? In regular community? It won't sway me, but interesting to know.

4. Does patient actually diversity matter? Medically speaking.

5. Better education? (I realize, a stupid question.)

6. Other?

I view the situation as: a challenging adventure (Sinai) or a great, very comfortable academic/collegiate (sp?) experience.

Any thoughts/opinions would be appreciated. Best of luck to everyone else.

Thanks,
Conrad

1. Sinai. It's a well respected research powerhouse, with top people in many fields.
2. Would have to ask 3rd/4th year students at each school. No one on here outside of current or past Sinai/Darmouth students will be able to answer that with an real conviction. Do this on second look, maybe? Or send some emails.
3. Dartmouth probably has a higher name recognition in the national community. Sinai greater in NYC. In the medical community spheres, Sinai is more respected than Dartmouth among academic circles.
4. Patient diversity does affect the type of diseases you see, the way in which patients seek treatment for those diseases, the support systems/life situations that influence those diseases and their general health.
5. Hard to assess. Both are great schools. Dartmouth benefits from having the rest of the Dartmouth College community (Business, graduate schools, etc.) if you're interested in interdisciplinary pursuits. Sinai isn't connected directly with a university.

 

[jbz24]

Firstly, I realize I am very fortunate for this decision. I am usually very decisive, but this is a big decision and the two options are quite different so I thought I should take my time to decide (not too much time I will withdraw as soon as decided). And others' perspective might be very helpful.

Monetarily, it is similar with Dartmouth being around 5-10k cheaper per year.

What's better for:

1. Future job in academia?

2. Hands on experiences? I have an image of NYC being so crowded that med students do more than just watch. A friend at a small rural-ish med school complained about the 3rd year being only observatory.

3. Prestige of name? Repuation in medical community? In regular community? It won't sway me, but interesting to know.

4. Does patient actually diversity matter? Medically speaking.

5. Better education? (I realize, a stupid question.)

6. Other?

I view the situation as: a challenging adventure (Sinai) or a great, very comfortable academic/collegiate (sp?) experience.

Any thoughts/opinions would be appreciated. Best of luck to everyone else.

Thanks,
Conrad

In a way I feel obligated to respond to these posts but keep in mind I am a fourth year student at Sinai, so you should definitely ask some Dartmouth students as well 👍. I'll mainly talk about Sinai's strengths because I don't know much about Dartmouth.

1. Future job in academia - this is a tough question to answer but Sinai is regarded as an academic/research institution. It's not a Harvard or a Hopkins but it's considerably better than a Dartmouth for academia. Also keep in mind that your med school does not matter as much as your residency for your career in academia (although your med school may affect where you go for residency).

2. Hands-on - definitely not observatory, I've done many ABGs, paracenteses, lumbar punctures, central lines, etc. However, it's also variable even in NYC, not all of my classmates have done all of these things, so you have to be proactive. I believe the same will be true at Dartmouth.

3. Dartmouth is a well-regarded name for undergrad. Mount Sinai is a much more well-known name across the nation, even the world, as compared to Dartmouth for medically-related things.

4. Diversity is a selling point of many schools although I wonder if it means much for your education. However, you won't get more diverse than NYC in terms of diversity.

5. Can't really comment on the better education because I don't know what it's like at Dartmouth. Let me know if you want more specific details on Sinai's education.

 

[calvinhobbes]

Congrats on both.

To be honest, Mt. Sinai is the far superior choice, but as others have said, it's not about the medical school, it's about the residency and where.

Good luck.

Oh, and don't forget its NYC and you also have NYU and Columbia and tons of hospitals with diverse opportunities for clinical rotations. Do Mt. Sinai, you won't regret it man.

 

[bookfreak89]

I would choose Mount Sinai for the reasons that were previously mentioned. 🙂

 

[oze]

1. Sinai. It's a well respected research powerhouse, with top people in many fields.
2. Would have to ask 3rd/4th year students at each school. No one on hear outside of current or past Sinai/Darmouth students will be able to answer that with an real conviction. Do this on second look, maybe? Or send some emails.
3. Dartmouth probably has a higher name recognition in the national community. Sinai greater in NYC. In the medical community spheres, Sinai is more respected than Dartmouth among academic circles.
4. Patient diversity does affect the type of diseases you see, the way in which patients seek treatment for those diseases, the support systems/life situations that influence those diseases and their general health.
5. Hard to assess. Both are great schools. Dartmouth benefits from having the rest of the Dartmouth University community (Business, graduate schools, etc.) if you're interested in interdisciplinary pursuits. Sinai isn't connected directly with a university.

you just made a Dartmouth College alum cry. like nails on chalk board.

 

[ApoK]

I'd take DMS. MSSM take at home tests or w/e would weird me out too much lol. Both are great schools though...

 

[conrad123]

Mdeast and jbz24,

Thanks for your very helpful input. I think Sinai is where I'll be heading.

I think I should give it one more look though and I'd like to before May when the 2nd Look Day is...I imagine one can just call/email the admissions office and tell them you'll be in the area to check out the school again. Or just wander around on your own.

-Conrad

 

[mdeast]

you just made a Dartmouth College alum cry. like nails on chalk board.

ACh sorry. Forgot about that. I always think with a Medical School and Business School you guys really should be referred to as a university.

 

[flip26]

Factor in the cost of a car at DMS for comparison to MSSM.

And ask about how far flung your MS 1/2 preceptorships and MS 3/4 rotations are at DMS...lots of driving, meaning time and expense, involved at DMS.

And in the winter, that can really suck.

 

[loljkttyl]

Definitely go with Sinai!

 

[drizzt3117]

I'd probably go with sinai just bc of location, but I think these schools are pretty evenly matched in a lot of ways. I actually really liked DMS when I interviewed there, though.