Penn vs. Cornell: Current Students!!!

[CaipirinhaQuinho]

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This is seriously coming down to the wire and everyone told me i would get a "special feeling" or i would "just know in your heart" but that's a lie and I can't decide.

If you made this decision or know someone who has please PM me (i'll give you my phone #) so we can talk about chosing between the two?

I am honestly torn. my family is located right in the middle of the two (NJ), I'm impressed with penn med and impressed with tri-i's research capabilities, i think it would be awesome to live in NYC, but i think it's more practical to live in philly. I like penn's ugrad campus nearby because they have a nice gym (big part of my life) and plenty of intramural stuff which cornell does not. On the other hand, I love the diversity at tri-i/nyc (latin scene...soccer in the park; plenty of latin/hip hop lounges and clubs; festivals; etc) I didn't see that diversity at Penn. At cornell i will be living in a shoebox and paying tons of money to go out and have a good time (i generally like to go to nice places) whereas in penn i would live in a nicely sized row house and going out would be a little cheaper (maybe). Would i get sick of the philly scene? Are there plenty of choices? My car would be non-existant in NYC but who cares about a car in the city.

I know in 10 years this decision will matter very little. the matches are great for both places (everyone gets first choices) and if i hear "you can't go wrong they're both great places" again I'm going to stab someone in the eye. How is it fair that I have to make a decision that will affect me 7 years from now?

i have a long term gf and she doesn't care where we go either. my mother and aunts are just happy i've made it to this decision, but that's not very helpful. I know i shouldn't be whinning (spelled wrong?) since many people would kill to be in my position, but I'm going to whine anyway since i think this post has the possibility of helping someone in the future.

i'm also pissed that i had to hand in my p.o.s. thesis tomorrow and i couldn't make it to the cornell revisit to meet all of the students, etc.

well that's that. some talk to me.

 

[Oak]

Hey man, sorry to hear that we probably won't be seeing you next year at P&S.

For what it's worth, I was in exactly your situation last year at this time: the choice of NYC and a better research match or Penn and all of its resources combined with a low cost of living. I was aware of how different my two choices were but didn't have a strong feeling either way. Obviously, i chose to live in a box in NYC for what i perceived as a more stimulating life. I'm still not entirely sure that this was the "right" choice or that there even was a "right" choice to begin with.

I don't agree with you that "in 10 years this decision will matter very little." While it is true that much of your life will be dictated and consumed by the program you're in, any place where you spend 7-8 years will have a huge impact on you, espcially considering that you have easy access to the same institution for residency. If you have a preference for a city to live in over the long term, I'd say go with it now.

Something else to consider very carefully is whether or not you can eventually afford decent housing in NYC on the stipend. IMO, you need at least 26K/yr and a roomate - I have no idea what cornell's stipend is or whether or not they provide subsidized housing that is livable.

Feel free to PM me if you want any specifics about why i chose NYC and not Penn.

-D

 

[SeventhSon]

civic,

one thing you didn't mention at all (maybe because it doesn't matter to you) is the medical school curriculum. I honestly can't say I remember much about penn's other than the 1.5 years pre-clin but from what i understand cornell's is pretty unorthodox... all PBL/no lecture. If that's your type of thing, and the scales are even, maybe that is something to consider in having the scale tip one way (or the other, if PBL/independent study is not for you, which you seem to worry about in your yale comments).

Although I'm sure you've thought about it to some extent, just remember that research is king in choosing a program but your personal happiness those first two years is something that can be affected drastically by the med school curriculum, and if you pick something that doesnt fit you there's a chance you end up burning out by the time you get into the lab.

 

[Habari]

cornell's is pretty unorthodox... all PBL/no lecture.

a common misperception - it's about 1/3 pbl, 1/3 small group instruction (inlcuding labs), 1/3 lecture.

 

[SeventhSon]

a common misperception - it's about 1/3 pbl, 1/3 small group instruction (inlcuding labs), 1/3 lecture.

Thanks for the correction...that's still a LOT of non-lecture time compared to most places. Looks like civic made his decision for penn... congratulations!

 

[beetlerum]

My $0.02: If you're really that stuck, go to Cornell because it's in NYC. Philly is okay but NYC is simply awesome and there are plenty of ways to enjoy it on the stipend. Yes, it's more expensive, but you can still get housing. I've known plenty of people living on that much who had an amazing time in NYC. It also seems better long-term for keeping the gf content.