NYU vs Hopkins vs UCSF vs Stanford vs Yale

[mangowolf]

What? Are you saying HMS/Hopkins are a tier below NYU/Sinai?

no I’m saying HMS and Hopkins are god tier, a tier above NYU and Sinai, which are still amazing schools.

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[mangowolf]

God damn....

NYU for reals might be out, Jesus.
OK, Im going to Baltimore soon - if I enjoy it there, I'll go Hopkins.
I'll try to fly out to SF...

what if I hate both Baltimore and SF though

Jeez.

if you really hate Baltimore and SF it’s not like NYU is the wrong decision. You’ll be in a city you love with people you love and have no debt. you’ll be a doctor and likely a neurosurgeon or whatever other specialty your heart desires, plus or minus a lot of hard work and grinding (which will be present no matter where you go, just in different amounts). just think about how much would you have to hate Baltimore and SF to want to give up true P/F. No one else knows where that line is except you. But again, there’s no wrong decision. I was running into this same wall as you are with my med school decision. List out all the pros and cons, think it through carefully and methodically, but at the end of the day listen to your gut. SDN can only advise you so much, this is your decision.

 

[Poprockets]

if you really hate Baltimore and SF it’s not like NYU is the wrong decision. You’ll be in a city you love with people you love and have no debt. you’ll be a doctor and likely a neurosurgeon or whatever other specialty your heart desires, plus or minus a lot of hard work and grinding (which will be present no matter where you go, just in different amounts). just think about how much would you have to hate Baltimore and SF to want to give up true P/F. No one else knows where that line is except you. But again, there’s no wrong decision. I was running into this same wall as you are with my med school decision. List out all the pros and cons, think it through carefully and methodically, but at the end of the day listen to your gut. SDN can only advise you so much, this is your decision.

appreciate it mango

yeah, I think I would have to *hate* it location wise significantly for me to not choose one of the two.
I keep reminding myself of that though - there is no wrong decision here...kinda?

 

[Dogruffle01]

appreciate it mango

yeah, I think I would have to *hate* it location wise significantly for me to not choose one of the two.
I keep reminding myself of that though - there is no wrong decision here...kinda?

You’ll be good no matter where you go. Remember, you have won the game of life. If you so choose you can pass all your classes and have a 99% of matching, you will make at least 200k a year until you retire and you’ll live better than 90% of Americans and 99% of the world….all this extra stuff is just overtime.

 

[doctarwho]

am I started to get blurred vision with all this prestige talk...?

I’m just a random person on an internet forum but yes, it does sound like you are getting blurred vision. All of the programs you are considering are great. Go where you’ll be happiest; you’ll be most successful in that environment.

 

[4pf]

Due to multiple full COA offers, I'd lean towards Hopkins. I'd only consider UCSF if you also receive full COA, because I don't believe any tangible benefit of UCSF over Hopkins will be worth monetary investment. And I am saying this as a person heavily considering NYU.

However, if NYC is the place for you, you love your family, and want to end up in NYC, I see no reason not to heavily consider NYU

UCSF NSGY matched 3 residents this year. They attended UCSF, UCSD, and University of Missouri - Kansas City. I know you want to end up on the east coast, but I'm just saying that 2/3 med students that just matched at perhaps the top nsgy residency program in the country attend schools that are below the tier of NYU. If you work hard, regardless of where you attend, you WILL match well. Keep that in mind

 

[mangowolf]

appreciate it mango

yeah, I think I would have to *hate* it location wise significantly for me to not choose one of the two.
I keep reminding myself of that though - there is no wrong decision here...kinda?

There is no wrong decision. Once you make your choice, things will also get a lot easier. You’ll stop looking behind you (well, maybe not til classes start) and be much more preoccupied with your new friends! Maybe a new apartment! Learning how to be an actual doctor!! The ****ty part is right now where it feels like everything is the wrong choice because they’re all such amazing choices lol. You have like five beautiful cakes in front of you and you can only eat one but you can’t choose so now you’re miserable and hungry and wishing you could have a slice of all of them. On April 30 a cake will be chosen or maybe it will be forcibly stuffed into your mouth because of prestige or cost or curriculum differences but either way you’ll be eating good 😂 and remember that 99% of premeds across the country would be dying for a single acceptance at any of these schools you got into. please forgive my dorky little analogy lmao

 

[srirachamayonnaise]

Due to multiple full COA offers, I'd lean towards Hopkins. I'd only consider UCSF if you also receive full COA, because I don't believe any tangible benefit of UCSF over Hopkins will be worth monetary investment. And I am saying this as a person heavily considering NYU.

However, if NYC is the place for you, you love your family, and want to end up in NYC, I see no reason not to heavily consider NYU

UCSF NSGY matched 3 residents this year. They attended UCSF, UCSD, and University of Missouri - Kansas City. I know you want to end up on the east coast, but I'm just saying that 2/3 med students that just matched at perhaps the top nsgy residency program in the country attend schools that are below the tier of NYU. If you work hard, regardless of where you attend, you WILL match well. Keep that in mind

I believe 5 nsgy matches this year.

 

[srirachamayonnaise]

appreciate it mango

yeah, I think I would have to *hate* it location wise significantly for me to not choose one of the two.
I keep reminding myself of that though - there is no wrong decision here...kinda?

All New Yorkers have a hard time imagining leaving the city and yet all my friends made the move and are happy. NYC is very magical and I know very block in Manhattan… and I miss it all the time. But I know I will just be fine when I go back soon. Life is so much more than living in NYC. All my friends learned how to drive after they left the city lol. It will be good for you to take a little break from the city.

 

[4pf]

I believe 5 nsgy matches this year.

I meant that UCSF nsgy received 3 new residents this year. However, 5 students graduating from UCSF did match nsgy

 

[mangowolf]

I believe 5 nsgy matches this year.

i think 4pf is talking about the people who ended up at ucsf residency, vs. where did ucsf or hopkins med students match for nsgy is a whole different story.

historically, it's hard to argue that ucsf & jhu have much better nsgy matches than NYU does. this year, no one from NYU matched nsgy whereas UCSF had 5 matches at UCLA, UCSF, Penn, Stanford. Hopkins also had great matches this year at Hopkins, Stanford, Barrow, etc. maybe it was just chance that no one at NYU was interested in nsgy this year, but the year before NYU only had one nsgy match at NYU; the year before that they had 4 at NYU, Baylor, Northwell, Cedars-Sinai. in comparison, Hopkins matched at Mayo/Barrow/Stanford/UPMC in 2021, Hopkins/Stanford in 2020; Hopkins/Barrow/UCLA in 2019; and so on. you can keep going back further and further through the years to compare match lists, but it's kind of hard to deny that Hopkins/UCSF generally match at stronger programs than NYU students. was it because those students were better to begin with? did it have to do with the resources/connections/name brand that Hopkins and UCSF got to leverage? sure, it's not impossible for a star student at NYU to match at a tippy-top nsgy residency if they really tried...but based on the data, it seems like it might be much more difficult, or at least less likely, compared to a student at Hopkins or UCSF.

I think it's also a good exercise to talk to current med students at all these schools. Ask M4s if they think they received interview invites at certain programs solely because of the school they attended. Some of them have insights such as "I know a student at another med school who had better board exams than me/better research and yet I got more interviews because I had faculty who called attendings at that program and pulled strings for me." This happens a lot at schools like UCSF/HMS from what i've heard. or, maybe they just have this feeling: "a lot of my peers got interviews at great programs despite having not stellar board scores." or, "some of my amazing peers with sky high STEP 2 scores and tons of research pubs still couldn't match into their top choice." This will probably give you more information than trying to peel apart the match lists, which will always be biased by students' personal preferences.

 

[srirachamayonnaise]

i think 4pf is talking about the people who ended up at ucsf residency, vs. where did ucsf or hopkins med students match for nsgy is a whole different story.

historically, it's hard to argue that ucsf & jhu have much better nsgy matches than NYU does. this year, no one from NYU matched nsgy whereas UCSF had 5 matches at UCLA, UCSF, Penn, Stanford. Hopkins also had great matches this year at Hopkins, Stanford, Barrow, etc. maybe it was just chance that no one at NYU was interested in nsgy this year, but the year before NYU only had one nsgy match at NYU; the year before that they had 4 at NYU, Baylor, Northwell, Cedars-Sinai. in comparison, Hopkins matched at Mayo/Barrow/Stanford/UPMC in 2021, Hopkins/Stanford in 2020; Hopkins/Barrow/UCLA in 2019; and so on. you can keep going back further and further through the years to compare match lists, but it's kind of hard to deny that Hopkins/UCSF generally match at stronger programs than NYU students. was it because those students were better to begin with? did it have to do with the resources/connections/name brand that Hopkins and UCSF got to leverage? sure, it's not impossible for a star student at NYU to match at a tippy-top nsgy residency if they really tried...but based on the data, it seems like it might be much more difficult, or at least less likely, compared to a student at Hopkins or UCSF.

I think it's also a good exercise to talk to current med students at all these schools. Ask M4s if they think they received interview invites at certain programs solely because of the school they attended. Some of them have insights such as "I know a student at another med school who had better board exams than me/better research and yet I got more interviews because I had faculty who called attendings at that program and pulled strings for me." This happens a lot at schools like UCSF/HMS from what i've heard. or, maybe they just have this feeling: "a lot of my peers got interviews at great programs despite having not stellar board scores." or, "some of my amazing peers with sky high STEP 2 scores and tons of research pubs still couldn't match into their top choice." This will probably give you more information than trying to peel apart the match lists, which will always be biased by students' personal preferences.

Basically, Hopkins and UCSF have heavy hitters (rainmakers as they are called on Wall Street) in the faculty roster more so than NYU. OP will have more research opportunities and stronger LOR’s coming out of either school than NYU. It has very little to do with any rankings. UCSF and Hopkins are just powerhouses even if they were ranked out of top 10. I would even go further by saying Yale and Stanford would give OP a leg up more than NYU as well.

 

[Poprockets]

You’ll be good no matter where you go. Remember, you have won the game of life. If you so choose you can pass all your classes and have a 99% of matching, you will make at least 200k a year until you retire and you’ll live better than 90% of Americans and 99% of the world….all this extra stuff is just overtime.

You're right, thanks brother.

Good perspective to keep in mind.

 

[Poprockets]

I’m just a random person on an internet forum but yes, it does sound like you are getting blurred vision. All of the programs you are considering are great. Go where you’ll be happiest; you’ll be most successful in that environment.

yeah I went to sleep overwhelmed last night - thinking with a clearer head today.

 

[Poprockets]

Due to multiple full COA offers, I'd lean towards Hopkins. I'd only consider UCSF if you also receive full COA, because I don't believe any tangible benefit of UCSF over Hopkins will be worth monetary investment. And I am saying this as a person heavily considering NYU.

However, if NYC is the place for you, you love your family, and want to end up in NYC, I see no reason not to heavily consider NYU

UCSF NSGY matched 3 residents this year. They attended UCSF, UCSD, and University of Missouri - Kansas City. I know you want to end up on the east coast, but I'm just saying that 2/3 med students that just matched at perhaps the top nsgy residency program in the country attend schools that are below the tier of NYU. If you work hard, regardless of where you attend, you WILL match well. Keep that in mind

I saw you asking about neurosurgery the other day as well.

You're still strongly considering NYU? What would sway you to commit to NYU? Maybe we could be classmates there?

I do love NYC but I'm just wondering if that is a good enough reason.
Again, I appreciate these good perspectives from all of you.

Reddit Update - this post got deleted on r/medicalschool completely and I'm down to like -10 karma as people think I'm still trolling.

 

[Poprockets]

There is no wrong decision. Once you make your choice, things will also get a lot easier. You’ll stop looking behind you (well, maybe not til classes start) and be much more preoccupied with your new friends! Maybe a new apartment! Learning how to be an actual doctor!! The ****ty part is right now where it feels like everything is the wrong choice because they’re all such amazing choices lol. You have like five beautiful cakes in front of you and you can only eat one but you can’t choose so now you’re miserable and hungry and wishing you could have a slice of all of them. On April 30 a cake will be chosen or maybe it will be forcibly stuffed into your mouth because of prestige or cost or curriculum differences but either way you’ll be eating good 😂 and remember that 99% of premeds across the country would be dying for a single acceptance at any of these schools you got into. please forgive my dorky little analogy lmao

Na mango, I loved this analogy.

Appreciate the write up. Again, I realize this is a very good / privileged problem to have. The fact that I'll be turning down 4 / 5 of these schools is making my stomach turn a bit but that has to happen no matter what.

 

[Poprockets]

All New Yorkers have a hard time imagining leaving the city and yet all my friends made the move and are happy. NYC is very magical and I know very block in Manhattan… and I miss it all the time. But I know I will just be fine when I go back soon. Life is so much more than living in NYC. All my friends learned how to drive after they left the city lol. It will be good for you to take a little break from the city.

You do miss it then huh?

Had you gone to that NYU interview..maybe it could have been yours. I'm teasing - does this "missing NYC" eat at you at all though? Especially given the fact that you're across the country?

I just don't want that to happen. I don't want to be constantly thinking about NYC you know.

 

[Poprockets]

i think 4pf is talking about the people who ended up at ucsf residency, vs. where did ucsf or hopkins med students match for nsgy is a whole different story.

historically, it's hard to argue that ucsf & jhu have much better nsgy matches than NYU does. this year, no one from NYU matched nsgy whereas UCSF had 5 matches at UCLA, UCSF, Penn, Stanford. Hopkins also had great matches this year at Hopkins, Stanford, Barrow, etc. maybe it was just chance that no one at NYU was interested in nsgy this year, but the year before NYU only had one nsgy match at NYU; the year before that they had 4 at NYU, Baylor, Northwell, Cedars-Sinai. in comparison, Hopkins matched at Mayo/Barrow/Stanford/UPMC in 2021, Hopkins/Stanford in 2020; Hopkins/Barrow/UCLA in 2019; and so on. you can keep going back further and further through the years to compare match lists, but it's kind of hard to deny that Hopkins/UCSF generally match at stronger programs than NYU students. was it because those students were better to begin with? did it have to do with the resources/connections/name brand that Hopkins and UCSF got to leverage? sure, it's not impossible for a star student at NYU to match at a tippy-top nsgy residency if they really tried...but based on the data, it seems like it might be much more difficult, or at least less likely, compared to a student at Hopkins or UCSF.

I think it's also a good exercise to talk to current med students at all these schools. Ask M4s if they think they received interview invites at certain programs solely because of the school they attended. Some of them have insights such as "I know a student at another med school who had better board exams than me/better research and yet I got more interviews because I had faculty who called attendings at that program and pulled strings for me." This happens a lot at schools like UCSF/HMS from what i've heard. or, maybe they just have this feeling: "a lot of my peers got interviews at great programs despite having not stellar board scores." or, "some of my amazing peers with sky high STEP 2 scores and tons of research pubs still couldn't match into their top choice." This will probably give you more information than trying to peel apart the match lists, which will always be biased by students' personal preferences.

Appreciate the write up again mango. (I keep writing your name and it's making me crave mangos while I'm at work....thanks brother.)

I think this is what siracha was getting at last night, and what others are saying too if I'm understanding - it's not like I couldn't match to the best NSGY program from NYU, it just would add a little bit more work / challenge that could be lessened if I were to attend UCSF / Hopkins.

I'll definitely be talking with as many M4s as I can soon.

 

[Poprockets]

Basically, Hopkins and UCSF have heavy hitters (rainmakers as they are called on Wall Street) in the faculty roster more so than NYU. OP will have more research opportunities and stronger LOR’s coming out of either school than NYU. It has very little to do with any rankings. UCSF and Hopkins are just powerhouses even if they were ranked out of top 10. I would even go further by saying Yale and Stanford would give OP a leg up more than NYU as well.

my boss today recommend that I go to Hopkins over NYU...sheesh.

Needle is turning a bit...

 

[srirachamayonnaise]

You do miss it then huh?

Had you gone to that NYU interview..maybe it could have been yours. I'm teasing - does this "missing NYC" eat at you at all though? Especially given the fact that you're across the country?

I just don't want that to happen. I don't want to be constantly thinking about NYC you know.

Well not constantly. SF is good but it’s not NYC.

 

[TempuraOreos]

Thank you thank you thank you.

This is incredibly helpful. Yes, Honestly thinking about it, I think it will come down between Hopkins and NYU.
To your point of personal growth - I think I would definitely experience a lot of that by moving to Baltimore (driving, getting own apartment, etc)

This is a really big side note. Was this recently announced to you guys only?! I'm not sure if I just haven't been paying attention to the curriculum talks from Dean Rivera but I did not know about this. This is a big game changer..Could it be 3 years of med school + a research year potentially?

I will definitely be reaching out to you via DMs, I really appreciate this.

Idk if this has been broadcast to all the incoming students but current students have known about this for a while. I imagine this will be brought up during second look.

 

[Dogruffle01]

my boss today recommend that I go to Hopkins over NYU...sheesh.

Needle is turning a bit...

lol dude you know you can reply to multiple comments in the same post.

 

[Poprockets]

Well not constantly. SF is good but it’s not NYC.

don't say this to me....

Idk if this has been broadcast to all the incoming students but current students have known about this for a while. I imagine this will be brought up during second look.

I'm wondering if it has been broadcasted? I genuinely don't think so though....maybe I need to be paying more attention.

lol dude you know you can reply to multiple comments in the same post.

Yikes.
Listen.....
I have never been one to interact this much on SDN, lesson learned.

 

[Dwan]

appreciate it mango

yeah, I think I would have to *hate* it location wise significantly for me to not choose one of the two.
I keep reminding myself of that though - there is no wrong decision here...kinda?

You can't go wrong with any of these. NYU may be the least prestigious of the 3, but it is still a top tier program and will give you a leg up against the high majority of medical schools in the nation (and you can get into top NSG programs even from low/mid tier medical schools - none of which you need to consider). I would still probably go with UCSF/JHU if the research opportunities are significantly stronger (not all top schools are strong in research for every field) and for the extra prestige bump, but realize that NYU is still a very privileged position. You'll do well from any of these I'm sure, given your drive and success in the application cycle.

 

[4pf]

I saw you asking about neurosurgery the other day as well.

You're still strongly considering NYU? What would sway you to commit to NYU? Maybe we could be classmates there?

I do love NYC but I'm just wondering if that is a good enough reason.
Again, I appreciate these good perspectives from all of you.

Reddit Update - this post got deleted on r/medicalschool completely and I'm down to like -10 karma as people think I'm still trolling.

Will PM you

 

[Poprockets]

You can't go wrong with any of these. NYU may be the least prestigious of the 3, but it is still a top tier program and will give you a leg up against the high majority of medical schools in the nation (and you can get into top NSG programs even from low/mid tier medical schools - none of which you need to consider). I would still probably go with UCSF/JHU if the research opportunities are significantly stronger (not all top schools are strong in research for every field) and for the extra prestige bump, but realize that NYU is still a very privileged position. You'll do well from any of these I'm sure, given your drive and success in the application cycle.

Thanks for this.

Yeah - yesterday I was speaking with someone and they brought up the point that in terms of "safety" - Hopkins / UCSF is the way to go. He said, what if NYU loses some momentum (doubt that it will honestly) in the next few years and is no longer seen as highly as other programs?

Spoke with a resident recently who said that the NSGY department is very well organized and supportive for students pursuing that field..

Damn.

 

[proudofmykids]

Big Factor I've been thinking about. Unfortunately, I heard that 2 people were already admitted into the 3 year neurosurgery program for this incoming class. From my understanding, normally only 1 student is selected for the 3 year NSGY program so that option would not be available for me to apply for after my first year of med school....bummed out.

I’m serious and not presumptive here…..
Speak to Dean Rivera and his ability to get you into NSGY now. I’m positive he would be very happy to go out of his way as best possible for a COA student of you caliber (not to mention the feather in his cap keeping you from Stanford, JH, and UCSF.

IMHO-
If you can get the 3yr at NYU and love the city so much, pick NYU.

If you get close to full ride at UCSF, it doesn’t matter which you pick vs JH, either can net you best in class names on a LOR for residency apps.

NYU match lists seem to be very low NSGY matches, but my guess is that this is more a function of student body choice, and motif you get 3yr program. However, track record does carry weight in a decision which JH and UCSF. Have for NSGY placement. Otherwise, it seems that picking based on location should be your top criteria.

 

[srirachamayonnaise]

I’m serious and not presumptive here…..
Speak to Dean Rivera and his ability to get you into NSGY now. I’m positive he would be very happy to go out of his way as best possible for a COA student of you caliber (not to mention the feather in his cap keeping you from Stanford, JH, and UCSF.

IMHO-
If you can get the 3yr at NYU and love the city so much, pick NYU.

If you get close to full ride at UCSF, it doesn’t matter which you pick vs JH, either can net you best in class names on a LOR for residency apps.

NYU match lists seem to be very low NSGY matches, but my guess is that this is more a function of student body choice, and motif you get 3yr program. However, track record does carry weight in a decision which JH and UCSF. Have for NSGY placement. Otherwise, it seems that picking based on location should be your top criteria.

Feather in his cap?! Like he would go around bragging OP picks NYU over other schools? I hope he has a life outside being the Dean of admissions lol. I think you have the vaguest idea what it takes to become a nsgy. No respectable nsgy department will give a rat’s ass about what a med school admissions Dean would say about a premed and then give that person a career of his life right then and there. It’s such ridiculous advice you are giving out given that you are not aware of the situation at all. Being a great premed, well only means being a great premed. OP needs to prove that they can be a competent surgeon. Do you think the Dean of admissions can vouch for that, without seeing OP in the OR? People kind of think great success in getting into med schools must mean that person could achieve anything in medicine. Totally false.

 

[proudofmykids]

Feather in his cap?! Like he would go around bragging OP picks NYU over other schools? I hope he has a life outside being the Dean of admissions lol. I think you have the vaguest idea what it takes to become a nsgy. No respectable nsgy department will give a rat’s ass about what a med school admissions Dean would say about a premed and then give that person a career of his life right then and there. It’s such ridiculous advice you are giving out given that you are not aware of the situation at all. Being a great premed, well only means being a great premed. OP needs to prove that they can be a competent surgeon. Do you think the Dean of admissions can vouch for that, without seeing OP in the OR? People kind of think great success in getting into med schools must mean that person could achieve anything in medicine. Totally false.

I think you really don’t understand the NYU three-yr program. It is setup for exactly what I and @voxveritatisetlucis indicated; when selected, the candidate is put on a path to graduated in three years immediately followed by direct and their guaranteed NYU residency in the selected specialty skipping the entire match. Dean Rivera has tremendous influence in this process whether you choose to believe it or not. Also, whether you believe it or not, Medschools do track how they do matriculating candidates versus other schools. With @Poprockets being a recipient of full COA at NYU, they clearly are on the top of the list of all Acceptances and would have a better chance than most, again whether you believe it or not. This advice is also based on direct and anecdotal information, again whether you believe it or not.

 

[290189]

I think you really don’t understand the NYU three-yr program. It is setup for exactly what I and @voxveritatisetlucis indicated; when selected, the candidate is put on a path to graduated in three years immediately followed by direct and their guaranteed NYU residency in the selected specialty skipping the entire match. Dean Rivera has tremendous influence in this process whether you choose to believe it or not. Also, whether you believe it or not, Medschools do track how they do matriculating candidates versus other schools. With @Poprockets being a recipient of full COA at NYU, they clearly are on the top of the list of all Acceptances and would have a better chance than most, again whether you believe it or not. This advice is also based on direct and anecdotal information, again whether you believe it or not.

OP could be getting full COA based on need rather than merit

 

[proudofmykids]

OP could be getting full COA based on need rather than merit

They will have to evaluate based on their situation. However, there is still weight to landing them at NYU over their other T5 acceptances. Either way, I strongly suggest scheduling a phone conversation with Dean Rivera and @Poprockets .

 

[Poprockets]

as if this wasn't hard enough already - full COA to UCSF.

 

[mangowolf]

as if this wasn't hard enough already - full COA to UCSF.

yay poprockets - at least you can scratch out cost as a differentiating factor. I really think that attending UCSF’s second look and actually being in SF could help a lot/meeting your future classmates, since it would be a big move for you.

 

[sousa7]

as if this wasn't hard enough already - full COA to UCSF.

SF is a great town. Lots to do, great weather, great people

 

[TempuraOreos]

as if this wasn't hard enough already - full COA to UCSF.

I'm in shock. Full COA from all of your options. Looking back it seems like UCSF was really high up there for you and was only discounted because of money of the cross country move. Maybe reconsider if you'd want to try something new like moving to SF.

 

[proudofmykids]

My opinion based in what you say and assuming you still believe in both programs after second look days...,
With all programs CoA free....
NYU 3yr Program w/ direct residency and NYC >> UCSF in SF
otherwise UCSF with eventual migration back to east coast.

Remember, if you don’t like Baltimore now, you probably won’t rank them high for Residency from UCSF, and if you want NYC, will be including Columbia, Cornell and NYU likely in your match unless you want to stay in SF for residency, and then move back east etc. Kind of saying if you want East coast sooner than later, see top recommendation above.

 

[Poprockets]

Baltimore...is not it. At all. Absolutely dislike it.

I'm stuck again now. (UCSF vs NYU)
SF does seem exciting though...

Do people normally feel like this days before having to make a decision?

 

[voxveritatisetlucis]

UCSF is more prestigious in medicine but honestly you’re splitting hairs at this point. Pick whichever you feel most comfortable with. After working in NYC, I can confidently say one couldn’t pay me to live there again. But I would probably feel the same about SF. Not worth happiness to pick a location you don’t like for marginal benefits

 

[srirachamayonnaise]

Baltimore...is not it. At all. Absolutely dislike it.

I'm stuck again now. (UCSF vs NYU)
SF does seem exciting though...

Do people normally feel like this days before having to make a decision?

Baltimore really sucks lol. Ask yourself do you want to give up living in NY for a school that’s a little bit better than NYU. Also SF does have all the amenities that NY has. I left NYC before the pandemic and I am sure the city is a lot less exciting now.

 

[mangowolf]

Baltimore...is not it. At all. Absolutely dislike it.

I'm stuck again now. (UCSF vs NYU)
SF does seem exciting though...

Do people normally feel like this days before having to make a decision?

Did you go to UCSF second look? How did you feel afterwards?

 

[Poprockets]

Did you go to UCSF second look? How did you feel afterwards?

I didn't go, but just watching videos and POV walkings in SF (not that it's the same thing as actually going in person) but SF does seem really nice...

 

[mangowolf]

I didn't go, but just watching videos and POV walkings in SF (not that it's the same thing as actually going in person) but SF does seem really nice...

I see, i think getting to meet your future classmates at second look can really help you make a decision (can I see myself here, would I find a community away from home here, etc.). it could help to try and think about whether that would be possible for you at ucsf vs. nyu, since your main concern seems to be leaving home.

 

[srirachamayonnaise]

I didn't go, but just watching videos and POV walkings in SF (not that it's the same thing as actually going in person) but SF does seem really nice...

the funny thing is would you even consider NYU if it were ranked say 12 like 3 years ago?