Northwestern Vs. UofChicago

[BullsFan]

Hi,

I've been a longtime follower of this forum and it has provided a great amount of information so far. So thanks already. I'm hoping to get input on UofChicago and Northwestern. The interview experience I had at both of these places were awesome and I would be thrilled to match at either of them.

My interests are pretty board and I have not narrowed down "where i see myself in 5 yrs?" minus the fact that I know I want to do a fellowship, just not sure in what yet. I hope to continue my career in the Chicago-land area, but whether that is academics or private practice I haven't quite figured out. I loved the facilities at Northwestern, but UofChicago has a new hospital in progress that I would start working at when I match. I enjoy the idea of walking to work and not needing to own a car if I go to Northwestern. I wouldn't consider myself a researcher, but would love having the option of developing in that area. Given that I'm applying to residency, I'm ready to work long and hard hours - but I don't want to just go through the motions and minimize educational experiences. I intend to maximize intra-op learning, but I'm also interested in seeing how much out of OR time residents have to learn- whether that is in didactics or even hours to self-study.

Any input on these two programs would be appreciated. I'm also considering UIC and Rush, but I felt NU and UofC were stronger programs. Please let me know if i'm mistaken. Thanks!

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[ambiturner]

Here's my take having spent time at both:

UChicago
positives: great, well-known chair, new PD who is a great guy (although I don't know much about how he runs the program), new hospital coming, good critical care, good cardiac, good transplant, lots of big/sick cases but great schedule (often out by 3-4). Regional experience seemed good with the block resident month. Go up to Evanston too for private hospital experience.

negatives: you will absolutely need a car and will be driving both up to Evanston (about a half hour from downtown) and down to Hyde Park (15-20 mins from downtown) if you live in the desirable parts of the city. Relatively weak peds (few cases) and very little ob, but much more in Evanston. No trauma.

NU
positives: great central location (although streeterville itself is pretty sterile), beautiful existing hospital and new childrens hospital going up, peds, ob, pain all awesome. NU faculty jobs are very attractive positions as well. Better ancillary staff and more functional hospital in general. Lvl 1 trauma.

negatives: very heavy workload, a plus/minus. personally the location would be a minus for me (expensive, horrible traffic).

The feel I've got, which I've also heard from attendings, is that UC has a more academic flavor while NU is more business/PP-like. Take that for what it's worth.

With regards to after graduation, Evanston Hospital probably opens the doors to the more coveted jobs on the north shore, and for years they took lots from NU until they switched affiliations to UC. It remains to be seen if they switch hiring policies too. I would think all jobs around the city are full of grads from both programs.

 

[BullsFan]

Thank you for your help! I really appreciate your input. It has confirmed things that I picked up while there and it has also enlightened me on other aspects.

Any other input about these programs would be helpful. Thanks!

 

[DScully]

I interviewed at both places when I applied but I am a little biased...just to let you know.

Personally I would choose Northwestern over U of C. Both are great places and you will get fantastic training in either one so you cannot go wrong with your decision.

Northwestern has better ancillary staff / better facility / stronger peds / awesome location. You can literally walk to work in 10 minus (even in the snow). The location is simply amazing and you are 10-15mins walking distance away from Millenium Park, Chicago symphony orchestra, Art Institute of Chicago, let alone the lake side where you have multiple options for cruise / jogging along the lake side / etc. You could pay about ~1200 a month for a decent one bedroom / studio which in my mind, is a reasonable prize to pay given all the things Chicago can offer (good luck finding such places in Boston or NYC).

Ancillary staff, to me, personally, is also very important because the last thing I want to do when taking care of the patient is to figure out why X-ray hasn't happened or why transport hasn't shown up...

U of C has more 'academic' feel and good cards but you would definitely need a car - No question about it. There is no way you can travel between Hyde Park and Evanston with public transportation. Having a car in Chicago, on the other hand, isn't bad. You can still enjoy all the things you want in Chicago if you want to drive every day.

I have a terrible sense of direction and hate driving unless absolutely necessary so Northwestern wins in that aspect but again, you'll get a very solid training in both places and Chicago is a great city so you can take advantage of the city either way. I think it really comes down to what you think is going to make your life easier on a daily basis.

I didn't think too much about this when I applied but now that I am in residency, I realize a lot of the times, it is the little things that can make a big difference in your daily life. For example, if you want to get a car, just make sure that you have a very good parking spot - because the last thing you want to do is go home at night and stay on the street for 30mins because you cannot find a parking spot.

Residency itself is hard enough so don't make your life harder than it needs to be. Happiness, no matter how cheesy it sounds, maters a lot. Choose whichever program that would allow you to be a happy resident at the end of a long long day.

 

[Dawkter]

Bump!