Ohio State vs Wisconsin

[littlefaster]

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I haven't been accepted to Wisconsin, but it's a good possibility that I will be within the next couple of months since I'm high waitlisted. Already accepted to Ohio State and trying to plan what I'd do if I get into Wisconsin.

About me: Born and raised in Wisconsin. I'm interested in neurology.

Wisconsin: (pros) $25,000/tuition, good match list, wouldn't have to move, close to friends, family, and girlfriend.
(cons) The hospital gives me a strange feeling which is bothersome since I'd be spending a lot of time there. While they're state of the art, I've never really been a fan of the facilities.

Ohio State: (pros) Can get in-state tuition after one year ($30,000), good match list, brand new hospitals, lots of financial support and planning services for student start-ups (I have a non-profit group that they showed interest in), student body seemed happy in lecture, and I had that "good feeling" about the place.
(cons) It's a 9 hour drive away from my family, friends, and girlfriend.

You can probably tell that I felt better about Ohio State. But I'm unsure how much of that feeling was just dependent on the interview day. Financially, Wisconsin wins out, but not by much. Wisconsin would also allow me to keep as much of a "normal" life as possible while in medical school. Ohio State seemed like a special atmosphere, though. What would you do?

 

[mauer]

How do you know your UW waitlist position?

 

[littlefaster]

How do you know your UW waitlist position?

They said if you were on extended review and not given an acceptance you'd be "high waitlisted."

 

[Handinhand]

Where did they say that? Did you talk to admissions and they told you that? I mean, logic would kind of bring me to assume that, but I'm trying not to get my hopes up at all about UW at this point.

Also, I can almost guarantee what made OSU better for you was that it was new and exciting. You're from madison, so I don't need to spend even one second telling you what a great town it is to live in, but even more importantly what a great school it is and hospital it is affiliated with. I'm not sure what bothers you about the hospital, but can assure you that every hospital you go to, save for the famous hospitals/clinics of the country, will be mostly the same. What's most important is the faculty that fill the hospital, and Madison's faculty is pretty outstanding.

I've been very bitter towards UW at certain points of this process, but after the initial sting I keep coming back to my love of the school. If you get accepted to UW, in all honestly I think you'd be a fool to not take it.

 

[KinasePro]

I'd say go with UW. In general it's just the stronger school and madison > columbus. Besides, isn't OSU revamping their curriculum next year? It's usually rough to be the first class through a new curriculum.

 

[GoWiththeFlo]

I'm sure you would like people on this forum to give you the magic answer.
The answer is: Only you can decide by weighing your pros and cons
Good luck.

 

[littlefaster]

Thanks for the advice so far. It's appreciated.

Are there any particular programs that Ohio State is known for? I'm not sure where to find rankings by specialty, if there are any.

 

[Dartmouth2005]

Wisconsin.

 

[SisterDisco08]

Not sure how many people got the "high wl" message, but at my interview they said that the most people they've ever had from the wl was 32, so I wouldn't say that "high wl" guarantees an acceptance.

 

[littlefaster]

I never said that high waitlist guaranteed an acceptance. I said there was a good possibility. This thread is for hearing constructive pros and cons about each school, not arguing semantics. I'm not banking on an acceptance to Wisconsin. It'd be nice, but I have other options. If you have nothing of substance to add then please just let the thread die.