Penn State vs Georgetown (please help!)

[rainfall9786]

Hey all,

TL;DR Is it worth attending Georgetown over Penn State if you had to pay an additional 100k over four years?

Would love to hear people's thoughts about which school they would attend between these two if given the different financial aid packages.

Georgetown:
Pros

• Match list
• School Reputation
• location (DC!)
• MedStar hospital renovations complete my 3rd year of med school

Cons

• 320K cost over 4 years
• lack of sim center/old facilities

Penn State:
Pros

• Affiliation with Hershey Hospital which has residencies in every specialty
• Cheaper: 220K cost over 4 years
• On campus housing

Cons

• location: Hershey, PA is a small town
• match list/reputation?

I kept the pros/cons list short, because the cost of attending medical school is really at the center of this decision. My heart was always with Georgetown, but I would like some thoughts from fellow SDN members. How important is school name when applying for residency? Does it matter now that step1 is going p/f in two years?

Any/all feedback is appreciated. Which would you pick?

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[thatguyoverthere]

Hershey is a small town. DC is a big, vibrant city. Ask yourself if you'd be unhappy living in a small town like Hershey. Is 100K worth it to you to be able to live in a fun city like DC? If so, choose GT. If not, Penn State.

Personally, I prefer living in a big city during my 20's, so I'd choose GT. But I understand people have different living preferences.

 

[DirtyNewYorker]

I don't think the prestige difference by itself is enough to warrant the cost difference. However, I think if you'd be happier living in DC than Hershey, then that's a different story.

Ultimately, ask yourself these three questions?

-Where would I be happier?

-Which school will best allow me to follow my career goals?

-Which school is more financially feasible?

It seems like Q1 and Q2 go to Georgetown, while Q3 goes to Penn State.

Try coming up with a financial plan to see how you can make Georgetown work. See how much longer you would have to pay loans, or how much more a month you would have to pay. Then ask yourself whether you would still be satisfied with your lifestyle when paying that additional money in loans.

There's also the possibility that you could negotiate a contract with your future employer which can help you pay off student loans. If Public Service Loan Forgiveness is still around in 2024, that could also be a potential option. But ultimately, you should plan for the worst-case scenario which is you will be left by yourself to pay the additional loans.

 

[HPV]

One con for penn state that was important for me was that the exams are all essay questions. It might not matter for you, but that was my deal breaker (I was also accepted to both and will most likely be attending Georgetown)

 

[rainfall9786]

I appreciate the thoughts. It's very intimidating to take out an additional 100k in loans to attend a better school in a desirable location. Could this just be my pre-med angst? People can use that 100k towards a car or a house.

Would love the insight from someone who has been through the ringer.. i.e. residents and attendings

 

[hodge_podge]

Hi! I am in a similar boat in that I am choosing between my state school and Georgetown, which I estimate will cost an additional $100,000 over 4 years. I personally am planning to enroll in Georgetown after spending a lot of time thinking because I value the added quality of life living in DC over a much less fun/vibrant/interesting location. I similarly struggled to justify this to myself (is the added quality of life really worth $100k??) and recognize that this is a very personal decision, but my view is that your twenties are a unique and important time in your life and it's okay to value your quality of life in this way. I seriously doubted if I could be happy in the location of the other school, and this was ultimately enough to sway me. GT's match list is also excellent (not familiar with Penn State's), and if you wanted to pursue a higher paying specialty to account for these additional loans, you shouldn't have a problem. Again, this is a personal decision but thought I'd offer my two cents in case you find it helpful. Best of luck!