Penn vs. Hopkins vs. Yale

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What School Would You Go To?

  • Penn

    Votes: 34 35.4%
  • Hopkins

    Votes: 38 39.6%
  • Yale

    Votes: 24 25.0%

  • Total voters
    96
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Definitely need more info. What do you like/dislike about each.
 
If you don't go to Hopkins you'll likely regret it down the road. There's really nothing like it. Their residency match list is unparalleled.

Penn is great but certainly not head and shoulders above everything else. I put them in the same category as Columbia: prestigious but sort of pissed that they're not Harvard or Hopkins, and forever trying to prove something. Yale is considerably lower on the list, more like an upper-mid tier school with a limited patient population, mediocre hospital and undesirable environment.

Just my two cents, based on having studied this stuff for the past year or two. I'll be an intern in a couple of months, and so have just completed the residency interview cycle.
 
If you don't go to Hopkins you'll likely regret it down the road. There's really nothing like it. Their residency match list is unparalleled.

Penn is great but certainly not head and shoulders above everything else. I put them in the same category as Columbia: prestigious but sort of pissed that they're not Harvard or Hopkins, and forever trying to prove something. Yale is considerably lower on the list, more like an upper-mid tier school with a limited patient population, mediocre hospital and undesirable environment.

Just my two cents, based on having studied this stuff for the past year or two. I'll be an intern in a couple of months, and so have just completed the residency interview cycle.

I personally don't agree with most of what's been said here. We're talking medical school. Not residency or hospitals. Yes, MGH and Hopkins have better hospitals than Penn or Yale. It doesn't necessarily mean you get a better medical school experience.
 
I personally don't agree with most of what's been said here. We're talking medical school. Not residency or hospitals. Yes, MGH and Hopkins have better hospitals than Penn or Yale. It doesn't necessarily mean you get a better medical school experience.

But I'd venture to say that's exactly what it means. The first two years are standardized, the same across the board everywhere. Most people stay at home after the first few weeks and study on their own, since it's more efficient than listening to some old dude's jokes. The quality of the medical education has everything, in my opinion, to do with third year. And third year is working face-to-face with the residents and attendings on each respective specialty rotation.
 
Match list is huge in my mind; I will be even that much more depressed during the awful internship year when I know that I need to reapply to my desired specialty or I will be working in a backup. However, I schools match list does not necessarily mean you will have that same success.
 
But I'd venture to say that's exactly what it means. The first two years are standardized, the same across the board everywhere. Most people stay at home after the first few weeks and study on their own, since it's more efficient than listening to some old dude's jokes. The quality of the medical education has everything, in my opinion, to do with third year. And third year is working face-to-face with the residents and attendings on each respective specialty rotation.

I've rounded at Hopkins before as a pre-med. In fact, I spent 60 hours one week on the neurology floor and following residents on consults. Hopkins is great, but there are A LOT of egomaniacs on the faculty there. Frankly, I felt like medical students got more attention/better environment at other medical schools that I've worked...some of them in crappy hospitals, especially in comparison to Hopkins. Cool patients, good doctors does not necessarily equal a better educational environment for someone at the medical student level, even as an M3. These are residency havens in my mind.
 
I've rounded at Hopkins before as a pre-med. In fact, I spent 60 hours one week on the neurology floor and following residents on consults. Hopkins is great, but there are A LOT of egomaniacs on the faculty there. Frankly, I felt like medical students got more attention/better environment at other medical schools that I've worked...some of them in crappy hospitals, especially in comparison to Hopkins. Cool patients, good doctors does not necessarily equal a better educational environment for someone at the medical student level, even as an M3. These are residency havens in my mind.

careful man. they'll take out the pitchforks.
 
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If you don't go to Hopkins you'll likely regret it down the road. There's really nothing like it. Their residency match list is unparalleled.

of course, you can't make the 100% link between the school and the match. its somewhat self selecting considering the type of students accepted in the first place. also quality of life in philly >> baltimore. maybe penn students on average spend more time having fun? (doesnt mean you cant enjoy baltimore). out of all the really great schools, penn was the only one where i actually felt students were normal and had a normal social life.

in the end, very very few if anyone is in a position to compare schools because we can only attend one.
 
If you don't go to Hopkins you'll likely regret it down the road. There's really nothing like it. Their residency match list is unparalleled.

Penn is great but certainly not head and shoulders above everything else. I put them in the same category as Columbia: prestigious but sort of pissed that they're not Harvard or Hopkins, and forever trying to prove something. Yale is considerably lower on the list, more like an upper-mid tier school with a limited patient population, mediocre hospital and undesirable environment.

Just my two cents, based on having studied this stuff for the past year or two. I'll be an intern in a couple of months, and so have just completed the residency interview cycle.

Couldnt DISAGREE more. And are you trying to say that Harvard and Hopkins are on the SAME level with Penn behind them? You're sadly confused:laugh:
 
Penn! You get the 1.5 preclinical curriculum without having to live in Baltimore. Have you seen The Wire? Terrifying.
 
If you don't go to Hopkins you'll likely regret it down the road. There's really nothing like it. Their residency match list is unparalleled.

Penn is great but certainly not head and shoulders above everything else. I put them in the same category as Columbia: prestigious but sort of pissed that they're not Harvard or Hopkins, and forever trying to prove something. Yale is considerably lower on the list, more like an upper-mid tier school with a limited patient population, mediocre hospital and undesirable environment.

Just my two cents, based on having studied this stuff for the past year or two. I'll be an intern in a couple of months, and so have just completed the residency interview cycle.

I agree with this but this thread is just silly. Go to wherever you feel most comfortable at.
 
If you don't go to Hopkins you'll likely regret it down the road. There's really nothing like it. Their residency match list is unparalleled.

Penn is great but certainly not head and shoulders above everything else. I put them in the same category as Columbia: prestigious but sort of pissed that they're not Harvard or Hopkins, and forever trying to prove something. Yale is considerably lower on the list, more like an upper-mid tier school with a limited patient population, mediocre hospital and undesirable environment.

Just my two cents, based on having studied this stuff for the past year or two. I'll be an intern in a couple of months, and so have just completed the residency interview cycle.

No matter how controversial the statement is. The man speaks the truth. Hopkins and Harvard are head and shoulders above the rest. Not saying that the other schools are bad because they are clearly outstanding options as well. All the academics I have spoken to have confirmed what GoLytely said. The caveat is that if you work hard and graduate near the top at your other two options it just won't matter in the long run. It is kind of like splitting hair.


I agree with the last post. Just go where you felt more comfortable. If you work hard the end results will be the same. Big H and little H just let you get to those highly regarded places no matter how hard you work.
 
Would be hard for me to turn down JHU.
 
I've rounded at Hopkins before as a pre-med. In fact, I spent 60 hours one week on the neurology floor and following residents on consults. Hopkins is great, but there are A LOT of egomaniacs on the faculty there. Frankly, I felt like medical students got more attention/better environment at other medical schools that I've worked...some of them in crappy hospitals, especially in comparison to Hopkins. Cool patients, good doctors does not necessarily equal a better educational environment for someone at the medical student level, even as an M3. These are residency havens in my mind.

i do see why you might get that impression. of course there is always the "individial experience" factor, but I'm a huge believer in the action speak louder than words attitude. while yea jhu has a good hospital, some of their practices go against what i think medicine should be about. most notably, they have separate gold/marble plated areas of the hospital just for the saudi princes who are served hand and foot by the doctors. i think all people in a hospital should be treated equally. this should not depend on whether or not you pay straight cash. this is the kind of attitude that flows through the jhu system and it just seems plain arrogant/unnecessary.
 
Thanks so much for the input everyone. Personally, from second look weekends I felt that the students at Penn seemed a bit better socialized and that they had the chance to spend more time doing extracurricular activities. The student activities fair at JHU was really not as grand as I might have expected. There were only a few groups, and I found it somewhat contradictory that many of the students said that they came to JHU partially because of Bloomberg being there, and yet there was only 1 or 2 groups that did anything related to public health.

With that being said, however, I am pretty sure about getting an MD/MPH, and the opportunity to get my MPH at Hopkins on one of the many full tuition scholarships that they offer to medical students is really hard to turn down.

In all, it seemed to me like there are great opportunities at JHU for research, public health, global health, etc. but you really have to seek them out for yourself. At Penn, it seemed like they were really much more supportive of the students and provided everything for you.

Another thing I'm worried about is getting back to California for residency. I'm coming from an East Coast school, and I found out the hard way that breaking into that California scene is really hard if you're not going to school there in the first place (even if you're a resident). I'm trying to figure out if Hopkins might give me the better chance for making that future transition
 
Thanks so much for the input everyone. Personally, from second look weekends I felt that the students at Penn seemed a bit better socialized and that they had the chance to spend more time doing extracurricular activities. The student activities fair at JHU was really not as grand as I might have expected. There were only a few groups, and I found it somewhat contradictory that many of the students said that they came to JHU partially because of Bloomberg being there, and yet there was only 1 or 2 groups that did anything related to public health.

With that being said, however, I am pretty sure about getting an MD/MPH, and the opportunity to get my MPH at Hopkins on one of the many full tuition scholarships that they offer to medical students is really hard to turn down.

In all, it seemed to me like there are great opportunities at JHU for research, public health, global health, etc. but you really have to seek them out for yourself. At Penn, it seemed like they were really much more supportive of the students and provided everything for you.

Another thing I'm worried about is getting back to California for residency. I'm coming from an East Coast school, and I found out the hard way that breaking into that California scene is really hard if you're not going to school there in the first place (even if you're a resident). I'm trying to figure out if Hopkins might give me the better chance for making that future transition

Go to Penn. I would not choose a school based upon a second degree. Where you do your MD matters much much more. Plus most students who say they will get a second degree end up not doing so, especially an MPH, which is not always a worthwhile degree for many people.

Yes Hopkins will give you a slight edge over Penn for California residency, but the difference is basically negligible.
 
i do see why you might get that impression. of course there is always the "individial experience" factor, but I'm a huge believer in the action speak louder than words attitude. while yea jhu has a good hospital, some of their practices go against what i think medicine should be about. most notably, they have separate gold/marble plated areas of the hospital just for the saudi princes who are served hand and foot by the doctors. i think all people in a hospital should be treated equally. this should not depend on whether or not you pay straight cash. this is the kind of attitude that flows through the jhu system and it just seems plain arrogant/unnecessary.

Yes! I was also irked by the fact that every physician I met ordered patients who came in with X-rays or MRIs to retake them at Hopkins, because they wouldn't trust any report or scans from outside the institution. Ordering duplicates of a $8,000 scan? And we wonder why our health system is going bankrupt.

But yes. Penn presents just as many post-graduate opportunities as Hopkins. You're talking about Top 5 medical schools here. There's really not a big enough difference that "hospital prestige" should outrank personal reasons (location, fit, $$$$). These are more important in my mind, and ultimately the things that will affect your everyday life.
 
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Yes! I was also irked by the fact that every physician I met ordered patients who came in with X-rays or MRIs to retake them at Hopkins, because they wouldn't trust any report or scans from outside the institution. Ordering duplicates of a $8,000 scan? And we wonder why our health system is going bankrupt.

never really thought about that , but yea it was a common theme. i would hope they dont do that to rake in extra $, especially since they dont pay doctors/staff as much as most hospitals (jhmi takes a very very healthy percentage from every procedure).
 
Thanks so much for the input everyone. Personally, from second look weekends I felt that the students at Penn seemed a bit better socialized and that they had the chance to spend more time doing extracurricular activities. The student activities fair at JHU was really not as grand as I might have expected. There were only a few groups, and I found it somewhat contradictory that many of the students said that they came to JHU partially because of Bloomberg being there, and yet there was only 1 or 2 groups that did anything related to public health.

With that being said, however, I am pretty sure about getting an MD/MPH, and the opportunity to get my MPH at Hopkins on one of the many full tuition scholarships that they offer to medical students is really hard to turn down.

In all, it seemed to me like there are great opportunities at JHU for research, public health, global health, etc. but you really have to seek them out for yourself. At Penn, it seemed like they were really much more supportive of the students and provided everything for you.

Another thing I'm worried about is getting back to California for residency. I'm coming from an East Coast school, and I found out the hard way that breaking into that California scene is really hard if you're not going to school there in the first place (even if you're a resident). I'm trying to figure out if Hopkins might give me the better chance for making that future transition

I had to make a similar decision, and I have this same concern. To be honest I get the sense that Hopkins is a little more universal.
 
Penn! You get the 1.5 preclinical curriculum without having to live in Baltimore. Have you seen The Wire? Terrifying.

🙄 leave Baltimore alone. It has very lovely parts. Trust me, parts of both Baltimore and Philly are indistinguishable and both can look very much like the Wire. it's all about knowing where to go and not go. Philly is just easier to navigate because Center City is one continuous safe area with everything all together, while the safe, nice part of Baltimore is still a bit patchy. I suppose if you're not a city person, Philly maybe better because it's easier to navigate.

I love Penn's curriculum tho, but Hopkins' new curriculum is like 1.67 preclinical curriculum, so you still get in a couple of rotations before the boards.
 
Penn for the experience, Hopkins for the universal name recognition (despite a slight dip in USNEWS). Yale should not even be on this list: The med school and hospital both pale in comparison to the other two.
 
Thanks so much for the input everyone. Personally, from second look weekends I felt that the students at Penn seemed a bit better socialized and that they had the chance to spend more time doing extracurricular activities. The student activities fair at JHU was really not as grand as I might have expected. There were only a few groups, and I found it somewhat contradictory that many of the students said that they came to JHU partially because of Bloomberg being there, and yet there was only 1 or 2 groups that did anything related to public health.

With that being said, however, I am pretty sure about getting an MD/MPH, and the opportunity to get my MPH at Hopkins on one of the many full tuition scholarships that they offer to medical students is really hard to turn down.

In all, it seemed to me like there are great opportunities at JHU for research, public health, global health, etc. but you really have to seek them out for yourself. At Penn, it seemed like they were really much more supportive of the students and provided everything for you.

Another thing I'm worried about is getting back to California for residency. I'm coming from an East Coast school, and I found out the hard way that breaking into that California scene is really hard if you're not going to school there in the first place (even if you're a resident). I'm trying to figure out if Hopkins might give me the better chance for making that future transition

I had the same concern after going to both revisits--the difference between the two activity fairs was pretty striking, but after looking more at the information Hopkins gave us in the revisit packet, it seems that the activities there are actually much more robust than the fair made it seem. (I mean, it was an earlyish Saturday morning as opposed to Friday afternoon at Penn.) What I did notice was that there were less "get-togethery" type clubs at Hopkins--no med student yoga, that sort of thing (though there is a runners' club!). But everything else that you could want was there--definitely public health stuff, definitely free clinics, tutoring, mentorship. There's a program I really want to do, where you become a Big Brother/Big Sis to a patient in the pediatric HIV ward. At the end of the day I did not at all feel like I would have to find my own way if I wanted to make something happen--all of the faculty I met seemed really supportive of promoting student happiness/activities/interests. And my friend who's currently an M1 there kept stressing to me, 112% is a pass but so is 70%--learn what you want to learn, but Baltimore is a city where you can REALLY do some good if you have time, and that's a good reason to study less.

I chose to commit to Hopkins, and I feel really, really good about that decision (though at the time it was agonizing--I love Philly and I know I would have been happy there)--if you're still having a hard time deciding, what helped me was thinking back to how I felt when I heard the news from each school. Also, (and this is ridiculous), getting drunk helped simplify my thoughts about the decision.
 
I had the same concern after going to both revisits--the difference between the two activity fairs was pretty striking, but after looking more at the information Hopkins gave us in the revisit packet, it seems that the activities there are actually much more robust than the fair made it seem. (I mean, it was an earlyish Saturday morning as opposed to Friday afternoon at Penn.) What I did notice was that there were less "get-togethery" type clubs at Hopkins--no med student yoga, that sort of thing (though there is a runners' club!). But everything else that you could want was there--definitely public health stuff, definitely free clinics, tutoring, mentorship. There's a program I really want to do, where you become a Big Brother/Big Sis to a patient in the pediatric HIV ward. At the end of the day I did not at all feel like I would have to find my own way if I wanted to make something happen--all of the faculty I met seemed really supportive of promoting student happiness/activities/interests. And my friend who's currently an M1 there kept stressing to me, 112% is a pass but so is 70%--learn what you want to learn, but Baltimore is a city where you can REALLY do some good if you have time, and that's a good reason to study less.

I chose to commit to Hopkins, and I feel really, really good about that decision (though at the time it was agonizing--I love Philly and I know I would have been happy there)--if you're still having a hard time deciding, what helped me was thinking back to how I felt when I heard the news from each school. Also, (and this is ridiculous), getting drunk helped simplify my thoughts about the decision.

Again, we're talking about Top 5 medical schools here. They want their graduates to be super successful, you're going to have equal opportunities at JHU as you will have as Penn. I just don't think you should base your decision off of this (unless, you're absolutely dead set on doing a MPH....Penn really isn't the best place for that, at least in comparison to Hopkins).

Otherwise, pick on location, personal factors that made you enjoy one school over the other. I think Philly >> Baltimore. I also think Hopkins Hospital >>>>>> HUP. I think Penn Med kids probably go out more. What's the social environment/hospital environment/research environment that clicked with you better? It's simple as that.

I was deciding between Penn undergrad and my quirky, small liberal arts school that no one has ever heard of 4 years ago. I chose the quirky school and I think ended up being way more successful because of it: I was happy with the people I was around (faculty, students) and the environment I was in. Which place felt like this for you?
 
I am also committing to Hopkins, and am really excited. I don't feel like I'll have to "find my own way" there at all - in fact, JHU seemed like one of the few med schools where they really roll out the red carpet for med students, and where support/mentoring is really strong.

Many of JHU's med/service clubs seemed truly awesome, particularly IMP, where several of the lowest-performing students at the nearby Dunbar High are given a support system of 8-10 JHMI students (each!). The kids in the program have a 100% success rate of being admitted to college. It is life-changing for them.

On the other hand, I know what you mean - I also wish they had more get-togethery EC's at the fair (ie wine tasting club, film club), but there's no reason we can't start some when we get there! As for social stuff, I definitely plan exploring the art/theater/food scene in Baltimore (having a car will help) and going out a lot. 🙂
 
On the other hand, I know what you mean - I also wish they had more get-togethery EC's at the fair (ie wine tasting club, film club), but there's no reason we can't start some when we get there!


i will definitely start a wine-tasting club with you if you're interested
 
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I chose Penn over Hopkins and haven't looked back (despite earlier posts suggesting I would "regret my decision forever.")

Everyone is going to choose medical school for different reasons. If you go to Hopkins, great! If you go to Penn, great. If you go to Yale, great! If you go to another school, great!

I chose Penn because at the end of the day, I thought the students were more normal and nice and that the school encouraged students to pursue medical interests that were not academic. Most importantly, Penn is incredibly supportive of its students' pursuits. This will be key when you are applying to residency. It is impossible to differentiate one medical students from one-another. So best to go to a place that is incredibly supportive of the activities you would like to pursue, that encourages you to follow your interests and make them your own, that encourages you to differentiate yourself, without creating competition. Because JHU is less supportive, more DIY, even without grades, it feels more competitive.
 
To the OP - keep in mind that you can certainly go to Penn Med and take time off to do your MPH at Bloomberg. I'm unsure about the difference in cost to do this, but keep it in mind.

I go to a top med school, and I am currently getting my MBA at a different top school. It was a bit tricky to schedule everything, but I'm still finishing in 5 years.

You really can't go wrong with your decision. Best of luck.
 
I was deciding between Penn undergrad and my quirky, small liberal arts school that no one has ever heard of 4 years ago. I chose the quirky school and I think ended up being way more successful because of it: I was happy with the people I was around (faculty, students) and the environment I was in. Which place felt like this for you?

👍👍👍👍👍
 
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