Ohio State vs USC vs UC Davis Medical Schools

[Jaisv321]

I need help deciding between these three schools and would appreciate anyone's input. Thanks!

Background: I am from Northern California and all of my family lives here. For residency, I am looking to specialize in Ophthalmology and be in California.

I will briefly list some of my personal pros and cons about each school.

USC
Pros: In LA, great ophthalmology program, not too far from home, well-ranked, can form lots of connections, more likely to get CA residency, match list is nice
Cons: COST (almost 140k more than the other two), Campus is not all that great, traffic
Is it worth the cost?

Ohio State
Pros: Cost, the campus is nice and they are constructing new projects, the sports teams/atmosphere, well-ranked (equal to USC), match list is nice, I like the curriculum
Cons: Far away from home
Is it worth being far from home?

UC Davis
Pros: close to home, cost, more likely to get CA residency, is just "easier" to attend here
Cons: Campus is not all that great, not as well ranked as Ohio/USC, match list doesn't stack up against USC/Ohio, primary care heavy (might be harder to specialize)
Is it worth going to a lower-ranked school?

What is important to me:
Going to a school that will provide me with the opportunity to pursue any specialty/field I want
Cost
Being close to home

Is there anything else I should consider when trying to decide?

Thanks for reading! Please feel free to add any comments and give your opinions on my situation. Any feedback is appreciated.

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[voxveritatisetlucis]

Ohio state. USC not worth 100k more let alone 140k

 

[Jaisv321]

Ohio state. USC not worth 100k more let alone 140k

That's true, what about Davis?

 

[chilly_md]

Thread moved to appropriate forum.

Davis is worth considering as well. It would be good to be close to home.

 

[Shunsui]

I think Davis is the best compromise based on priorities but you cant go wrong with OSU too

You won't have problems matching California due to your family connection. The only downsides are being away from family and the weather/location. I'm risk-averse so I'd be wary about committing 4 years and needing maximal performance if you're far from family and suffering from depressing winters

Don't know much about UC Davis but they're still highly ranked and will match you quite well. WIll help having a support system close by and making optho PD connections for solid LORs. Not like they're low tier so don't think OSU's benefits outweigh the uproot

 

[m1redsox]

My vote is Davis. Despite the primary care-heavy match, they have an excellent Ophthalmology program (outranking Ohio State) and you can’t beat the price or proximity to family. Matching has so much more to do with student preference than people realize. Perhaps UC Davis puts extra emphasis on it during their curriculum to sway students, but it certainly wouldn’t hold you back if you were dedicated to a subspecialty.

That being said, USC’s Ophtho program is amazing (T15) and letters/networking/research there will be worth a lot if you really end up wanting Ophtho.

If you specifically want Ophtho in CA, I see no reason to choose OSU since they have the lowest ranking Ophtho program of the 3 and it is the furthest distance from family. Networking with other programs in CA will be so much easier from UCD or USC since you’ll attend all the local research conferences with the PDs and well-published attendings from other programs in CA.

 

[mangowolf]

definitely Davis, their ophtho program is quite strong and the price + being close to home = you should be all set. you'll also have the regional advantage since you want to stay in CA.

 

[ujsc]

Davis is best choice if you are 100% sure Ortho will be your specialty. OSU has superior sports teams to other 2 but is not as good in Ortho specialty.😉

All joking aside, your training, if it takes you away from home, is only for a short while. You can always do residency in Cal. After 1 year in Ohio, you will be treated as in-state and the price will go down alot. If you aren't 100% sure you will be going the Ortho route, consider Ohio State which has a higher overall strength in medical training in general. It has a fine program and with the costs overall being lower is also a solid choice.

In the end it comes down to you where you feel the most comfortable and what program will do the most for you long term. That is for you to decide be it UC Davis or OSU. Good luck in your decision.

 

[Jaisv321]

Davis is best choice. OSU has superior sports teams to other 2 but is not as good in medicine.😉

Hmm, can you elaborate?

 

[Proudfather94]

Davis is best choice. OSU has superior sports teams to other 2 but is not as good in medicine.😉

Ugh, in undergrad the sports team made people act like the school could do no wrong and you were blasphemous for bringing up issues with the school.

 

[voxveritatisetlucis]

Isn’t OSU better than UCD though?

 

[srirachamayonnaise]

they are all solid mid-tier programs. Davis will set you up nicely. You will be close to SF and can probably get some research at SF too. I know some Davis students doing research here.

 

[BlazingBean]

I’d say that objectively OSU is the best, followed closely by Davis then USC last. However in your situation and the importance that family/support system generally holds, I’d go with Davis. I’m in a similar situation w OSU and my own state school which is similarly ranked (which I’m also leaning towards btw). I think if you’re motivated to work hard, you’ll accomplish your career goals at any of those schools bc they’re all good and won’t close any doors. Go with the one your gut says 💯.

 

[Banco]

These are the things you stated are most important to you:

1)Going to a school that will provide me with the opportunity to pursue any specialty/field I want
2)Cost
3)Being close to home

UCD gives you all 3. Much of your chances at matching "any specialty" are in your control based on your school performance.