Need help deciding between Georgetown and Downstate.

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Just Applied

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I currently have an acceptance to both and would like some opinons on both school.

Downstate:
Pros: Has cheaper tutition, Decent rep (mostly around NY), A good split between the amount of competitive residencies for the graduating class. I will be closer to home with my family and friends.

Cons: Decent rep, I didn't like that area of Brooklyn too much, Match list is alright.

Georgetown

pros: Better reputation that Downstate, Most people get into very competitve specialties (at good hospitals too), Can'g go wrong with going to school in DC.

Cons: A lot of money and a lot of Georgetown hating on SDN.

Is If money was not a huge factor...would Georgetown be a good choice?

P.S. Please try not to make this into a school bashing thread. I just want some objective opinions.
 
Just Applied said:
I currently have an acceptance to both and would like some opinons on both school.

Downstate:
Pros: Has cheaper tutition, Decent rep (mostly around NY), A good split between the amount of competitive residencies for the graduating class. I will be closer to home with my family and friends.

Cons: Decent rep, I didn't like that area of Brooklyn too much, Match list is alright.

Georgetown

pros: Better reputation that Downstate, Most people get into very competitve specialties (at good hospitals too), Can'g go wrong with going to school in DC.

Cons: A lot of money and a lot of Georgetown hating on SDN.

Is If money was not a huge factor...would Georgetown be a good choice?

P.S. Please try not to make this into a school bashing thread. I just want some objective opinions.


did you just get into georgetown or something?

i interviewed at both schools this year and i just finished the smp program at georgetown. i'm no longer in the running with downstate but i'm in the competitive applicant pool at gusom. if i had the choice, i'd have a hard time choosing between the two. i liked the students i've met at both schools, more so than at other schools. in my opinion, the downstate students seemed more relaxed and seemed to like being at downstate more than the georgetown students. don't get me wrong though, i know plenty of gu students who love their school as well. the tuition is a plus at downstate. however, georgetown's location is a lot better than downstate's, in my opinion. i think one reason that georgetown gets its students into more competitive specialties is because the gu students are shooting for those specialties. downstate seemed to have a much stronger internal medicine bent. i don't think it's because one school is better or more presitigious than the other. i think in this case, you should go to the school that you think you would fit in best at (aside from the sizeable tuition differences, if that's an issue for you). good luck.
 
No matter where you go to school, you can be successful. Why not just stay home and pay close-to-nothing (in terms of med school) for tuition and living expenses? And if I get into Downstate, you'll get to see my beautiful face around kings county in a couple of years.
 
What's the price gap between these two schools?
 
Since it really sounds like you're on the fence, I'd say save the 80K and go to Downstate. Your success will depend far more on you than on the name of your medical school.

Granted, I went to a state school, so I might be a little biased.
 
Dr Buron if thats ur face in the avatar, I will withdraw right now! 😀
 
Just Applied said:
Dr Buron if thats ur face in the avatar, I will withdraw right now! 😀

I'm guessing you're not familiar with Jessica Alba?
 
:laugh: :laugh: :laugh:

at your comments to Dr. Buoro (sp??)

But aside from that, think about where you will be happier in terms of atmosphere, facilities, location, and go with your heart.

I used to think Gtown would be awesome because of its DC location, but NY has some great schools too.

This is a tough call and depends on your feeling at each school.
 
gujuDoc said:
:laugh: :laugh: :laugh:

at your comments to Dr. Buoro

I think I need to make a post for everyone to learn to spell the name correctly.
 
here's one difference that hasn't been touched on really. the curricula at these schools are really different too.

georgetown students are in class A LOT. also, courses are separate (i.e., separate physio, anatomy, histo, etc, rather than organ systems). also, there is close to no PBL - almost all lecture-based (depends on your preference - i'm more of a lecture person myself). one cool thing about georgetown's curriculum is that there are a lot of service opportunities incorporated. there are always only 2 science courses offered at any one time during 1st year. so, you're not going to get killed with like 8 science tests in one week or anything crazy like that. the grading system is H/HP/P/LP/F and it seems pretty damn competitive.

downstate has an organ systems-based curriculum and students are in class a lot less often than gu students. supposedly, the students can afford a little more responsibility in the hospital setting because kings county is such a busy public hospital. i got the feeling that downstate students are very service-minded, but i didn't notice anything incorporated into the curriculum like at georgetown. i believe the grading system is similar to georgetown's although i got the impression that students at downstate were not nearly as competitive.

so, i think the strength of georgetown's curriculum lies in its service and community opportunities. downstate's seems to lie in its clinical exposure and organ systems approach.

(hopefully i didn't seem too biased with that - i know i told you that i was hoping to get into georgetown! 👍 )

good luck and let us know where you choose to go.
 
medstylee said:
i believe the grading system is similar to georgetown's although i got the impression that students at downstate were not nearly as competitive.

This is true. I have a couple of family members at Downstate. They say the students could all care less who is at the top of the class. I think it is only 3 intervals though? : HP/P/F
 
Thanks for all your help. I guess both schools have their respective pros and cons but since the beginning I had a strong gut feeling toward Georgetown and wasnted to see if any of Downstate's aspects would over ride it. I am going to go with my gut feeling on this one a choose Georgetown, and open up a spot for someone on Downstate's waitlist. Sorry medstyle I still hope you can get an acceptance.
 
Just Applied said:
Thanks for all your help. I guess both schools have their respective pros and cons but since the beginning I had a strong gut feeling toward Georgetown and wasnted to see if any of Downstate's aspects would over ride it. I am going to go with my gut feeling on this one a choose Georgetown, and open up a spot for someone on Downstate's waitlist. Sorry medstyle I still hope you can get an acceptance.

Good luck! Pass on your power of acceptance to me please.
 
Just Applied said:
Sorry medstyle I still hope you can get an acceptance.

haha, no prob. congrats - maybe i'll see you there in a month.
 
DrBuro said:
I think I need to make a post for everyone to learn to spell the name correctly.


Sorry, I keep forgetting. But I'll remember from now on.
 
I'd go with Downstate. The clinical experience at Kings County Hospital would be fantastic for a med student.

Save the 80K and go to Downstate. The reputations are about the same nationwide for both schools.
 
Just Applied said:
Are you waiting on certian schools Dr. Buro?


I'm not Dr. Buro, but I don't think they have applied yet.
 
Just Applied said:
Are you waiting on certian schools Dr. Buro?

No, I'm not applying until next year, as you can see from my 2007 graduation year. I think I may apply to Downstate early acceptance though, either there or Stony Brook. I'll just have to see what happens by next summer. I really feel like I have the best chance at one of these two schools and figured applying early acceptance would improve my chances a bit.
 
DrBuro said:
No, I'm not applying until next year, as you can see from my 2007 graduation year. I think I may apply to Downstate early acceptance though, either there or Stony Brook. I'll just have to see what happens by next summer. I really feel like I have the best chance at one of these two schools and figured applying early acceptance would improve my chances a bit.


Are you in NY????? Have you taken the MCAT yet or when do you plan on doing so??????

Just curious.
 
gujuDoc said:
Are you in NY????? Have you taken the MCAT yet or when do you plan on doing so??????

Just curious.

Yes, I'm from Long Island and have lived there my entire life (except undergrad). I was going to take the MCAT this August, but decided not to because I have very little background in bio and chem and need to learn the material for these first. So instead, I'm taking it April 2006, granted that I am scoring near the average for the schools' scores. I think I have a good shot at Downstate since I have some family alums and I live right near the area (Downstate only has housing for half of their students so they need people that can commute or will have no problem finding alternative housing). I also think state schools interview almost everyone from their state that applies early decision as long as their app is reasonable, especially a big school like Downstate that has almost 200 people per class. Not to mention, I really do not care when I start med school, since I am working as an engineer in the meantime, so being turned down once would be no problem with me.
 
DrBuro said:
Yes, I'm from Long Island and have lived there my entire life (except undergrad). I was going to take the MCAT this August, but decided not to because I have very little background in bio and chem and need to learn the material for these first. So instead, I'm taking it April 2006, granted that I am scoring near the average for the schools' scores. I think I have a good shot at Downstate since I have some family alums and I live right near the area (Downstate only has housing for half of their students so they need people that can commute or will have no problem finding alternative housing). I also think state schools interview almost everyone from their state that applies early decision as long as their app is reasonable, especially a big school like Downstate that has almost 200 people per class. Not to mention, I really do not care when I start med school, since I am working as an engineer in the meantime, so being turned down once would be no problem with me.


Oh ok. That's cool. NY, like Fl, is one of the better states to be a premed in due to having so many med schools that take mostly in state residents.

Actually, that is one of the places I wouldn't mind living if I had a chance. I've heard and seen great things about NY.

And I agree, better to take the MCAT when you are fully ready. Good luck next year.
 
gujuDoc said:
Actually, that is one of the places I wouldn't mind living if I had a chance. I've heard and seen great things about NY.

Yeah, I love Brooklyn and NYC in general. I'm not even going to bother applying to Upstate or Buffalo bc upstate NY is not even close to being as cool.
 
DrBuro said:
Yeah, I love Brooklyn and NYC in general. I'm not even going to bother applying to Upstate or Buffalo bc upstate NY is not even close to being as cool.


Funny you mentioned Brooklyn as the other city you love as much as NYC. I was gonna say that those are the 2 cities I've heard the greatest things about in NY.
 
gujuDoc said:
Funny you mentioned Brooklyn as the other city you love as much as NYC. I was gonna say that those are the 2 cities I've heard the greatest things about in NY.

Well I'll explain because many people outside of NY are unaware. NYC is not only manhattan. NYC is 5 boroughs: manhattan, queens, brooklyn, bronx, and staten island. So when I say NYC in general, I meant I love all of the 5 boroughs, especially brooklyn and queens because I like right near them.
 
Just Applied said:
Thanks for all your help. I guess both schools have their respective pros and cons but since the beginning I had a strong gut feeling toward Georgetown and wasnted to see if any of Downstate's aspects would over ride it. I am going to go with my gut feeling on this one a choose Georgetown, and open up a spot for someone on Downstate's waitlist. Sorry medstyle I still hope you can get an acceptance.

YAY! GTOWN! It's a GREAT school. I'll be apart of the Class of 2011!!! I'll see you there!
 
DrBuro said:
Well I'll explain because many people outside of NY are unaware. NYC is not only manhattan. NYC is 5 boroughs: manhattan, queens, brooklyn, bronx, and staten island. So when I say NYC in general, I meant I love all of the 5 boroughs, especially brooklyn and queens because I like right near them.


Oh Ok. That makes more sense. :laugh: :laugh:
 
Just Applied said:
Thanks for all your help. I guess both schools have their respective pros and cons but since the beginning I had a strong gut feeling toward Georgetown and wasnted to see if any of Downstate's aspects would over ride it. I am going to go with my gut feeling on this one a choose Georgetown, and open up a spot for someone on Downstate's waitlist. Sorry medstyle I still hope you can get an acceptance.


Congrats on your decision and good luck next year.
 
Thanks for everyones kind words. Yeah I am happy about my decision and may hopefully come back for residency in NYC if I will be able to. If I end up going somewhere else, NYC is definitely where I want to end up as a physician.
 
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