NYU vs. Maryland

[ohhaihtrz]

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I promised myself I would never make one of these threads...but with 8 days left to decide and still absolutely no idea which to choose, the panic attacks have begun.

trying to make it short and sweet:

With my current financial aid packages, NYU will be about 50k more over the 4 years than Maryland.

the dilemma, 50k is not an ABSURD amount of money like say, 100k, but it is not insignificant either (a decent car)
I will be very happy with maryland, its my state school, i have lots of friends going there, will have a nice place, my car, closer to home, etc.
I will be happier at NYU. I love NYC, I love the school, and I would like to end up in NYC or another similarly large city for residency (NOT Baltimore, not even for you, Hopkins).
I basically just can't decide if the extra debt (160k vs 210k) is worth what I perceive as some happiness. (again, i would be very happy at UMB as well)

as for the other stuff:
NYU is regarded as slightly better nationally, but I personally believe the schools are equivalent, and both will get me where I want to go if I work hard. (correct me if you disagree)
NYU does have a 4 year M.D./MPH program which I am very interested in, since I have a strong interest in global/public health.

for those who like specifics:
assume I will be paying it all myself (cuz i will be) and assume that I want to get a competitive specialty (haven't decided, but more than likely will specialize)

thanks for your input. I know in the end it's a personal decision that I alone have to make, but anything to get me analyzing the major points helps!

 

[eHombre]

It sounds like you want to go to NYU. An extra $50k is really not a lot of money over the long term, in my opinion, particularly if that school better facilitates your career goals.

As far as specific points, I thought NYU's 1.5 year preclinical curriculum was big plus in their favor when I visited. The step 1 average for Columbia P&S students jumped by ~5 points to 241 in the first year after they implemented a similar curriculum. The clinical training at Bellevue Hospital is said to be quite good, in the sense that medical students get a significant amount of responsibility. The medical campus is quite compact as well, so you can walk from rotation site to rotation site (only 10 blocks from end to end).

 

[bigloley]

50k won't be a huge dealbreaker, go where you will be happier and where you will get the best chance of a residency where you want to live in the future. If you want to live in NYC in the future, NYU is the way to go. Maryland is a great school but NYU has better name recognition and will allow you a leg up for NYC or some other major cities that are not Baltimore

 

[RedSox10]

I agree with the above, NYU. I'm surprised the price difference isn't any greater? In any case, it seems like you REALLY want to be in NYC and for 50K I'd say it's worth it.

 

[surfman]

Sounds like a win-win. Both are good schools. If you are sure you will be happier at NYU, then choose NYU.

I would take the money and go to Maryland. Remember it's not just 50K, interest adds up. And it sounds like your support group is there. If you do well at Maryland, you will have no trouble matching into a big city.

 

[NeuralNetwork]

Here is what I read:

I will be happier at NYU. I love NYC, I love the school, and I would like to end up in NYC or another similarly large city for residency

There is no doubt that NYU is where you want to be. An important question in your consideration could be: are you the kind of person to ruminate on the past, or if you make a decision do you move forward and that's that? It looks like you want help rationalizing the 50k difference to make you feel more comfortable with the decision you want to make, so for my contribution: if you end up in a competitive specialty like you're planning on, then that 50k will be a lot smaller in the future. in your decision making

 

[TheMightySmiter]

Go to NYU. It isn't that big of a price difference, it's where you want to live eventually, and it's an incredible school.

 

[kautionwirez]

+1 NYU. 100k isn't too much of a difference if you go into ROAD.