Oakland William Beaumont Scholarship vs. University of Michigan

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Which would you choose?

  • OUWB

    Votes: 29 38.7%

  • UM

    Votes: 46 61.3%
  • Total voters
    75
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travelinman08

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Hello SDN Friends,

I've had a situation come up recently that I'm looking to get as much advice on as possible to aid in my decision-making process.

In December, I was accepted to the University of Michigan (basically, my dream school... one which I may have been lucky to even be accepted to). After my acceptance, I arranged all my ducks in a line to attend, going so far as to even signing a lease. Soon after that, I received a called from Oakland University William Beaumont (OUWB) informing me that they were offering me a four-year, full-tuition scholarship.

I really enjoyed my interview day at OUWB; their affiliation with Beaumont in Royal Oak is impressive, and I felt as if they were truly invested in their students success and professional development. However, their being a new and less established school is a bit concerning for when it comes time to apply for residency, particularly compared to UM.

Does anyone have any insight in a similar situation? I appreciate any and all feedback!
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Oakland is new (first class going thru the match as we speak) but seems to be a solid school that got off the ground well from what I've heard.

Michigan would be amazing, but so would only having to pay COL. I'd personally go with Oakland.
 
Michigan is a better school. Period. Its more established, has a better national reputation, etc... Its also your dream school. That said according to its own website, the estimated cost of attendance for 4 years is ~ $230,000: http://medicine.umich.edu/medschool...financial-aid/explore-options/cost-attendance

You have to figure out for yourself if $230,000 is worth the gap in prestige and ability to go to your dream school. We can all weigh in and we are going to give you answers based on our values and experiences. Its yours that matters.
 
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SDN is a biased environment. And I am part of that. From my standpoint, as someone who has leveraged the crap out of his excellent pedigree, I'd say Michigan all the way.

Yes, some might criticize my argument as whorish, but the benefits have been too good to advise otherwise.
Is the professional status bump worth 230k (realistically, 600k with interest and 20 year repayment) ? I'd say yes.
It definitely contributed to my matching into a specialty that will guarantee a fairly well compensated, secure job with interesting material. I know I'll be able to pay my loans and live comfortably.
 
Congratulations! I would give anything to be in your position. You are truly lucky to be accepted to Michigan. There's no question about it. Go to Michigan. You will regret it if you don't.
 
Congrats on your success! How long do you have before you must make a decision with the scholarship? Is it still April 30th?

Match Day is in a few weeks, and that will definitely be a time to see where the Oakland grads go. Maybe that can help you make a decision.
 
Heplayer92 said:
Congrats on your success! How long do you have before you must make a decision with the scholarship? Is it still April 30th?

Match Day is in a few weeks, and that will definitely be a time to see where the Oakland grads go. Maybe that can help you make a decision.
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I interviewed a couple OU M4s for my residency who had generally positive things to say about their school... Our committe also liked the students coming out of there. (we tend to not be biased against new school grads since we matched a resident out of an inaugural class a couple years ago who'se been a fcking rockstar for us)

/but yeah, the usual caveat about match lists should still apply. For obvious reasons thier list is probably going to be pretty heavily biased toward the Midwest, which I think tends to skew peoples' preception of a list downward for various reasons.
 
Have you contacted Michigan to let them know about the situation at Oakland? You might be able to get them to throw a few bucks your way.
 
Brother is an M1 at Michigan, and loving the flexibility. Lots of choices with the school. GO BLUE. Oakland in the suburbs, U of M in Ann ARbor. Hands down, no comparison
 
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caffeinemia said:
SDN is a biased environment. And I am part of that. From my standpoint, as someone who has leveraged the crap out of his excellent pedigree, I'd say Michigan all the way.

Yes, some might criticize my argument as whorish, but the benefits have been too good to advise otherwise.
Is the professional status bump worth 230k (realistically, 600k with interest and 20 year repayment) ? I'd say yes.
It definitely contributed to my matching into a specialty that will guarantee a fairly well compensated, secure job with interesting material. I know I'll be able to pay my loans and live comfortably.
Click to expand...

Eh... if the OP is capable of a full ride from Oakland, he/she is capable of matching at Michigan or wherever when all is said and done. Through various channels, I know 3 students who were in the same position with full rides but at Wayne. One completed residency at UMich, and is now a fellow there. One did the same and is now faculty at UMich, and the 3rd is at the best residency in her specialty in Chicago.

The only thing that would lead me to consider turning down a full-ride is if Michigan had pass/fail clinical rotations, something only top schools tend to have.

Plus the whole prestige whoring thing doesn't exist elsewhere to rediculous extent it does in the Northeast (thank god).
 
I think you need to first investigate how much medical school will actually cost you. What's your financial situation? If 230k is something you can afford or you qualify for subbed loans then sure Michigan is fine. A full ride is a big deal. I know a friend of my who just grabbed an attending ER position here in SB will be paying off his loans for the next 15 years from a UC. Is being in debt worth going to a medical school that is better? How many doors will this open for you in the long run? Those are all question you should answer before you make the decision. Maybe try to use that as a bargain chip with Michigan somehow?
 
Just a random question by the way. Assuming you got full tuition scholarship to a school and you decide to attend that school over other higher ranked school you got accepted. Do you disclose this information while you apply to residency? Also does that look favorably to program directors, even though you come from a low ranked school with full tuition? How about another student from higher ranked school but without any schlarships? how do they compare if they are identical in other aspects? I know this is toally hypotehtical question haha.
 
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ndafife said:
Have you contacted Michigan to let them know about the situation at Oakland? You might be able to get them to throw a few bucks your way.
Click to expand...
Somewhat unlikely, they know they have all the leverage. If OP were telling them he had scholarship offers from other top 10's it'd be a different story. That being said, it couldn't hurt.


As for OP, I think it depends on your situation and goals; there are strong arguments to be made in either direction. If you plan on staying in the area Oakland is probably more than adequate and would save a ton of money. If you're interested in more competitive fields and/or leaving the midwest, Michigan will make your life easier. Also, flextime quizzing is not to be underestimated.
 
ndafife said:
Michigan is a better school. Period. Its more established, has a better national reputation, etc... Its also your dream school. That said according to its own website, the estimated cost of attendance for 4 years is ~ $230,000: http://medicine.umich.edu/medschool...financial-aid/explore-options/cost-attendance

You have to figure out for yourself if $230,000 is worth the gap in prestige and ability to go to your dream school. We can all weigh in and we are going to give you answers based on our values and experiences. Its yours that matters.
Click to expand...

It wouldn't be a question of $230,000 being worth it. OP says it's 4 years of tuition, not all expenses. The average indebtedness of Michigan grads is $119,000. That's pretty darn good. I'd say go to the better, more established school.
 
ftp902 said:
Just a random question by the way. Assuming you got full tuition scholarship to a school and you decide to attend that school over other higher ranked school you got accepted. Do you disclose this information while you apply to residency? Also does that look favorably to program directors, even though you come from a low ranked school with full tuition? How about another student from higher ranked school but without any schlarships? how do they compare if they are identical in other aspects? I know this is toally hypotehtical question haha.
Click to expand...

No. You can list a scholarship under awards/achievements if you want, but no one is going to care that you turned down some random school four years ago.
 
Rainbow Zebra said:
Brother is an M1 at Michigan, and loving the flexibility. Lots of choices with the school. GO BLUE. Oakland in the suburbs, U of M in Ann ARbor. Hands down, no comparison
Click to expand...

Ah, I just threw up in my mouth a little bit....
 
The SDN Pre-Allo forum party line is that school prestige doesn't matter. But once you get to the med student and residency forums, 'pedigree' all of a sudden becomes more important.

caffeinemia said:
SDN is a biased environment. And I am part of that. From my standpoint, as someone who has leveraged the crap out of his excellent pedigree, I'd say Michigan all the way.
Click to expand...

U of Michigan med school is a pedigree worth its price tag and an investment I would make if I were you. Yeah - If you're a rock star and score brilliantly on your STEP 1, [edit: coming from Oakland] you'll be able to match into any specialty you want, and potentially even a really good residency in that specialty - especially in the Midwest. But coming from UM, merely doing "well" puts you into at least as good a position and puts even the very best programs in any location in the country in any specialty within reach.
 
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Trying to give you as objective as an opinion as possible here.

What specialty do you want to go into? Family or IM? You won't be compensated as well going to U Mich to pay off those loans, so go to OUWB where you can focus on becoming a great doctor, and matching into a great program.

Sub-surgical or other competitive specialities where paying off student loans should be rather easy? Go to U Mich where it's prestige can help you land competitive residency programs
 
Michigan. In retrospect I wish I would have applied there also. Fantastic academics, research, reputation, sports... It has everything. Also your career aspirations should come into play. If you are strictly thinking private practice then I would tend to think Oakland ($$$). Michigan will open doors academically, but if you aren't interested in walking through them then take the money and run.
 
travelinman08 said:
Hello SDN Friends,

I've had a situation come up recently that I'm looking to get as much advice on as possible to aid in my decision-making process.

In December, I was accepted to the University of Michigan (basically, my dream school... one which I may have been lucky to even be accepted to). After my acceptance, I arranged all my ducks in a line to attend, going so far as to even signing a lease. Soon after that, I received a called from Oakland University William Beaumont (OUWB) informing me that they were offering me a four-year, full-tuition scholarship.

I really enjoyed my interview day at OUWB; their affiliation with Beaumont in Royal Oak is impressive, and I felt as if they were truly invested in their students success and professional development. However, their being a new and less established school is a bit concerning for when it comes time to apply for residency, particularly compared to UM.

Does anyone have any insight in a similar situation? I appreciate any and all feedback!
Click to expand...
I'd say Beaumont hands down.


BUT...during Undergrad, I got a full scholarship to a smaller state school, and chose it over my #1 Dream school, where'd I'd always wanted to go. In the end, I regret it to this day.

However, the reason I'd still recommend Beaumont is that my main source of disappointment was the lowered intellectual environment of my UG. If you go to UM or Beaumont, you're still going to be with some very high caliber students.

But in the end, what a dream means is different for everyone. Regret sucks! Hard!
 
Willy38 said:
Michigan. In retrospect I wish I would have applied there also. Fantastic academics, research, reputation, sports... It has everything. Also your career aspirations should come into play. If you are strictly thinking private practice then I would tend to think Oakland ($$$). Michigan will open doors academically, but if you aren't interested in walking through them then take the money and run.
Click to expand...

Honestly what opens those doors for your are professional connections, not the diploma itself... and those connections are honestly kinda negligible prior to residency. Residency is where your academic credentials actually start to count for something... prior to that: Meh. Plus, one of the reasons I'm high on Beaumont is the fact that they were already a very good hospital before the med school existed either way. I'm not sure I'd be recommending the opposite if this were Central Mich instead of Oakland.
 
WingedOx said:
Honestly what opens those doors for your are professional connections, not the diploma itself... and those connections are honestly kinda negligible prior to residency. Residency is where your academic credentials actually start to count for something... prior to that: Meh. Plus, one of the reasons I'm high on Beaumont is the fact that they were already a very good hospital before the med school existed either way. I'm not sure I'd be recommending the opposite if this were Central Mich instead of Oakland.
Click to expand...
Michigan is definitely a school that will help set you up with some powerful people. Not to say attending Oakland will leave you fighting for yourself, it's still a good medical school. I'm slightly biased as I grew up in Michigan and had two friends attend UofM med and they both loved it.

I agree with what everyone else has said in terms of pedigree and helping residency matching slightly, so I'll throw a different perspective.
Personally, the Ann Arbor area to me is amazing. It's beautiful in the summertime and has an awesome atmosphere. They also do pass/fail grading for all four years, which is a bonus.
 
DrShephardWannabe said:
Michigan is definitely a school that will help set you up with some powerful people. Not to say attending Oakland will leave you fighting for yourself, it's still a good medical school. I'm slightly biased as I grew up in Michigan and had two friends attend UofM med and they both loved it.

I agree with what everyone else has said in terms of pedigree and helping residency matching slightly, so I'll throw a different perspective.
Personally, the Ann Arbor area to me is amazing. It's beautiful in the summertime and has an awesome atmosphere. They also do pass/fail grading for all four years, which is a bonus.
Click to expand...

Plus --- that deli. that damn deli!
 
DrShephardWannabe said:
http://medicine.umich.edu/medschool/education/md-program/curriculum/curriculum-highlights
http://medicine.umich.edu/medschool/education/md-program/curriculum/grading-honor-code

They may have just not updated their website with a new curriculum?
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H/HP/P/F is NOT pass fail. M3 and M4 are graded years, and those different grades are used for class ranking and AOA membership.

Edit to also be helpful to OP: Michigan is a fantastic place to train, and I am absolutely in love with it (some bias, obviously). Our first two years are pretty nice, but our clinical training is known to be more involved and intense than most other places. Expect to act as an intern, with primary responsibility for patient care, as an M3. Of course, an intern will still need to sign your orders and notes.

If you also love Beaumont, then maybe go their for that price difference. However, if your only selling point for them over U of M is the price, then you should come to Michigan. PM me if you have specific questions about our school, or the preclin/clin experience here. I have to maintain some sort of anonymity.
 
OP, have you already considered location, family proximity, school climate, and whether you will succeed at either school? If considering all that and they are pretty equal in terms of school including the fin aid, I would suggest taking the scholarship. That's a lot of money that yes you can pay back later. But if there is a lot of flexibility. Say you meet a special someone or you are already married. You will find you will be much more free to move around to that residency you want or to settle down later. Having worked for a number of years, raised a family, and dealt with the stress of debt, that's my two cents based on my perspective.
 
Michigan is a better choice. Establishment can mean good to excellent preparation in Step exams and connections to other top institutes for residency/specialty. As far as I've seen, once you're in grad school, having the connections really matter and internal positions are much easier to get vs. coming from outside.
 
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