northwestern or mssm

[fidelcashflow]

I'm having serious trouble deciding between the two. Love both schools, but I'm being pulled both ways by u.s news rankings and myself being from nyc.

what would you choose and why. one of them having prettier girls is an acceptable answer.

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[whacktastic]

there have been numerous debates about basing decisions on US news rankings, and the consensus is that its probably not the best idea. location, i think, is much more important since that will be where you will spend 4 years. if you like nyc, then you should go to mssm

 

[eastsidaz]

I'm having serious trouble deciding between the two. Love both schools, but I'm being pulled both ways by u.s news rankings and myself being from nyc.

what would you choose and why. one of them having prettier girls is an acceptable answer.

 

[eastsidaz]

NYC has Chicago beat in the girl department, but only by a hair. You won't be disappointed in either city

I really hope the rankings don't have any sway for you; pick the place you most want to be. You should also consider the financial aid packages once they're out.

 

[pallcare]

I know everyone says not to consider rankings, but i'm not sure. On one hand, you shouldn't go to a higher ranked school just to inflate your ego. But on the other hand, if residency directors consider rankings, then you probably should too, right?

I'm in the same boat as you. Choosing btw NW and Mt Sinai (and pitt as well). I literally change my choice everyday. I liked the environment at Mt Sinai, but I hear the administration isnt always up to par, perhaps because they are an isolated med school and not part of a larger university. As anyone who attended NW 2nd look can attest, they definitely know what they are doing. I don't know how much adminstration plays in one's medical experience, but i'd imagine when it comes to setting up unique rotations or electives you want to know your school is on top of things.

NYC has Chicago beat in the girl department, but only by a hair. You won't be disappointed in either city

I really hope the rankings don't have any sway for you; pick the place you most want to be. You should also consider the financial aid packages once they're out.

 

[fidelcashflow]

Yes, I pretty much think about it all the time..and my decision definately flip-flops everyday. My hometown is NYC, so I feel like it'd be nice to go back there. I visited NW and really loved it too though, and I agree their administration seems on top of things.

I'll probably have a new decision every day until may 15th..bleh..

 

[whacktastic]

In some aspects rankings do matter I agree, but we arent really comparing two schools here that are all that different (three if you include pitt above) for rankings. Pitt is the highest ranked, MSSM the lowest, and NU is in the middle. If you are interested in research at all, then Pitt and MSSM are probably more well known for that and will probably carry more weight. I understand you are skeptical about the way a university is run, but all schools have issues. I have a couple friends that go to Northwestern and while they all really like it, they have some issues with the administration as well. I am sure you know from undergrad experiences, that no one is every completely happy with their school. If you are looking for a med school that is part of the larger university, then probably Pitt would be best. Feinberg isn't really a part of the rest of Northwestern, especially since there are two campuses.

I wouldn't really pass up the chance to live in NYC. I think everyone should live there at some point, and its much more feasible to do so now then later on when you have a family. For fidel, I think being close (but not too close) to home is a good thing for med school. I have some experience at both schools (for research), so if you have more questions PM me. I would pick MSSM, personally.

Oh and for girls, new york wins hands down.

 

[Thundrstorm]

Of the two, I chose NU based largely on my own research interests (and other factors specific to MD/PhD stuff), but if I were choosing just an MD program, it's pretty likely that I would've gone with MSSM instead because of the location (New York, pt population, closer to home, friends in NYC, etc). You can't really go wrong here because I think both are great schools. Good luck making your decision.

 

[thegenius]

I'm having serious trouble deciding between the two. Love both schools, but I'm being pulled both ways by u.s news rankings and myself being from nyc.

Oh, how we all are affected so easily by a for-profit magazine. I really wish there was a competing, credible, unbiased, and alternate source for med school rankings. Maybe the NYT, Guinness Book of World Records, or some other body could put out their rankings. Then we would have two sources to use and to compare and to rack our brains over.

The two schools are vastly different, are they not? Does MSSM have PBL? They have really different curriculums, different locations, different student bodies (I'm sure you know about that because you interviewed at both places).

I appreciate that your decision is hard, but I don't think there are too many similarities between the schools. So you gotta make your feature priority list and decide what's most important to you. Which place will make you more happy on a day-to-day basis.

 

[thegenius]

I know everyone says not to consider rankings, but i'm not sure. On one hand, you shouldn't go to a higher ranked school just to inflate your ego. But on the other hand, if residency directors consider rankings, then you probably should too, right?

I think it's justified to want to go to the best school you possibly can, but time and time again us pre-meds are warned that our future success as physicians will almost exclusively be determined by how hard we work and what we make of our opportunities post med school. I don't know of too many schools where the school name itself can get you into the top echelons of medicine if you are an average applicant, un-motivated, and not willing to work hard.

The other problem is that we have no reason to think that the USNWR should offer the definitive list of best med schools. Who made USNWR the arbiter of deciding which schools are the best? I really wish we had another institution that ranked med schools to compete with USNWR.

 

[fidelcashflow]

I know, I don't even particularly like research and I feel stuck going by the 'research rankings' to decide what school to attend.

And this is even after everyone, even my school's pre-prof counselors say not to go by us news rankings..

 

[eastsidaz]

I know, I don't even particularly like research and I feel stuck going by the 'research rankings' to decide what school to attend.

And this is even after everyone, even my school's pre-prof counselors say not to go by us news rankings..

The other thing to remember is that rankings can fluctuate a lot--Emory dropped 6 spots this year alone. So making decisions based solely on current rankings can, in theory, come back to bite you.

 

[pallcare]

Actually, what are the big differences btwn the two schools?

They are both in urban environments, both stress the limited class time ( i think i remmeber that about mssm, def true about nw).

Housing is different in that mssm has dorm housing.

what are the other similarities/differences?

Oh, how we all are affected so easily by a for-profit magazine. I really wish there was a competing, credible, unbiased, and alternate source for med school rankings. Maybe the NYT, Guinness Book of World Records, or some other body could put out their rankings. Then we would have two sources to use and to compare and to rack our brains over.

The two schools are vastly different, are they not? Does MSSM have PBL? They have really different curriculums, different locations, different student bodies (I'm sure you know about that because you interviewed at both places).

I appreciate that your decision is hard, but I don't think there are too many similarities between the schools. So you gotta make your feature priority list and decide what's most important to you. Which place will make you more happy on a day-to-day basis.

 

[thegenius]

I know, I don't even particularly like research and I feel stuck going by the 'research rankings' to decide what school to attend.

And this is even after everyone, even my school's pre-prof counselors say not to go by us news rankings..

I'll tell ya where I think it matters (which school you go to): bragging rights among the lay people in our world. I was recently at a party for my wife's friends, and I was talking to some grandparents about this and that. It came out that I am going to med school this fall, and they asked where? I told them I am deciding between a few schools, including Cornell and USC. When I mentioned "Cornell" their eyes lit up and were really impressed.

So, that's it. I felt good at that moment. I felt like I was smart.

It lasted about 3 minutes.

I've got a whole theory about rankings which is pretty self evident but if I find the time and the desire to type it up, I will.

 

[premeder8]

I am in a similar situation, except I am also deciding between Vandy. Any thoughts? I realize it is a personal decision but I would appreciate input.

 

[eastsidaz]

I am in a similar situation, except I am also deciding between Vandy. Any thoughts? I realize it is a personal decision but I would appreciate input.

Vandy is AMAZING. I'd go there in a heartbeat.

disclaimer: Vandy was my top choice until they rejected me. I also like country music.

disclaimer: I'm on Northwestern's waitlist.

disclaimer: All I know about MSSM is what I've heard (good things though).

 

[whacktastic]

vandy is an awesome school....and very hard to get into. Congrats!

 

[pnasty]

I'll tell ya where I think it matters (which school you go to): bragging rights among the lay people in our world. I was recently at a party for my wife's friends, and I was talking to some grandparents about this and that. It came out that I am going to med school this fall, and they asked where? I told them I am deciding between a few schools, including Cornell and USC. When I mentioned "Cornell" their eyes lit up and were really impressed.

Yeah its also tough to make decisions on that awe factor too because a lot of schools have prestige that is limited to its region. For example, I am from the midwest and Cornell wouldn't really impress that many people, just because not as many know that much about it. Although, I guess it made its way out to California (im guessing that party you were at was in SF), so maybe it just skipped over the midwest.

How are you deciding between Cornell and Northwestern? That's a somewhat similar decision that the OP is making, at least location wise.

 

[remedios]

Northwestern definitely is one of the more attractive schools

Looking at the facebook this year, I was initially worried that the M1s are not as attractive as previously. It turned out that they were horrible photos because the orientation day had them play treasure hunt or some such thing right before the face book pictures were taken, so everyone was sweaty and disheveled (this being late august). Then I met the M1s and they were as attractive as ever

In terms of residencies, the prestige of the school you come from definitely matters. The other thing would be to see whether you think you'd fit in with the people at the school and get along and make friends for the next four years. I hope you went to Second Look and that helped you get more of a sense of what Northwestern is about and how it combines great clinical training and good quality of life.

If anyone have more specific questions about Northwestern feel free to PM me. (End of 4th year is pretty chill...)

 

[fidelcashflow]

I've definately noticed what thegenius means about dropping a name like 'cornell' in front of people with limited knowledge about medical schools.

I have a lot of friends outside the pre-med world who are a lot more impressed with the 'Northwestern' name mostly because its well-known for its undergrad and other graduate schools. There is no reason for them to have really heard of a school like 'Mt. Sinai'.

I think this could be true for a lot of schools, definately why a grandparent would react more to a school like Cornell than USC without knowing anything about medical rankings.

 

[remedios]

You can always compare the matchlist and reach your own conclusions.

My impression is that Northwestern is pretty competitive and can open some doors come 4th year. I don't know how Mt Sinai compares, though I want to say ranking/prestige NWU is similar to Cornell, and definitely not as good as Columbia. It's been a while since I worried about medschool rankings though.

 

[whacktastic]

You can always compare the matchlist and reach your own conclusions.

My impression is that Northwestern is pretty competitive and can open some doors come 4th year. I don't know how Mt Sinai compares, though I want to say ranking/prestige NWU is similar to Cornell, and definitely not as good as Columbia. It's been a while since I worried about medschool rankings though.

i would say cornell's reputation among those who are in the medical community is higher, but i agree columbia is way above