Pitt Med vs. Northwestern Feinberg

[IzlandVibez]

Hey yall, I'm stuck and I'm looking for some outside input between these 2 schools. I'm currently deciding between these 2 powerhouse school and I'm lucky to be in this position, but also have been left and right between them for some time now. I am primarily interested in surgery, more specifically Orthopedics, but definitely open-minded within surgery. I have great connections built at Pitt since I did my masters there, but I feel like I am turning down a great opportunity at NW by staying at Pitt. Overall just confused!

Pitt Med
Pros

• Lower living costs
• Prestige
• Super strong hospital system in almost every specialty, including orthopedics
• Have very strong mentors in orthopedics from doing my masters at Pitt, have research projects already lined up and other strong mentors throughout Pitt Med faculty
• Huge research emphasis
• UPMC is very well known all around for anything surgical
• Have friends that will be M1s with me
• Great vibes from other prospective students post-interview
• Amazing M3/M4 years
• Overall advising seems strong based on student anecdotes
• More family feel
• I would love to match at UPMC
• Strong match-list overall
• Probably has every department and sub-department possible in medicine at UPMC
• Only medical school in Pittsburgh

Cons

• Very small financial aid package, so COA is most expensive of the 2 schools
• The City of Pittsburgh is not as diverse (matters to me being a URM)
• M1/M2 years curriculum is a bit old school, student anecdotes that M1 year is a bit of a crap show
• Not my favorite interview day based on current students (had tons of exams that day), but prospective students talked to post-interview help accommodate for this
• Not active in marketing their school and reaching out to prospective students
• Not the best-looking facilities

NW Feinberg
Pros

• Prestige
• Beautiful city, love the city vibes, very diverse city
• Favorite interview day
• Awesome prospective student vibes and vibes from current students
• Love their curriculum overall, organ-system based and integrated anatomy throughout
• ECMH opportunity for longitudinal patient exposure and growth, teaching, learning
• Higher STEP 1 average (even tho STEP 1 will be P/F)
• Daniel Hale William Society (initiative focused on mentoring URM students and allows networking right off the bat)
• More young hip feel
• Beautiful facilities
• Huge research opportunity
• Seemed to have very supportive faculty
• Much much cheaper COA due to healthy scholarship
• Strong match-list overall
• P/P preclinical grading

Cons

• Expensive cost of living
• "Starting over" in regards to my connections at Pitt in ortho
• Not sure if there being 4 medical schools in Chicago is a huge cons factor
• Feel like there is a slightly more competitive feel
• A very fancy hospital which I feel has an impact on patients that come based on different SES

I hope I can get some good inputs and opinions. I know that I will be happy at both schools, but I am scared to give up the connections I have at Pitt since orthopedics is super competitive to match into, but I am also scared of turning down the opportunity to be at Feinberg and in Chicago. Just having mentors already at Pitt makes it feel a bit more secure in regard to my future, but I know nothing is ever guaranteed. I could ultimately seem myself at both and trying to find things to talk me out of one over the other. Maybe I am overlooking something or overvaluing my relationships at Pitt. What yall thinking?

 

[ihoop24]

Whats the estimated difference in cost?

 

[IzlandVibez]

Whats the estimated difference in cost?

The difference is about 90K if looking at just the cost of tuitions. Got about a half-tuition scholarship to Feinberg.

 

[ihoop24]

This is a tough one only due to the fact that you have mentors at Pitt. However, I don't think Northwestern will hold you back in any way. It comes down to whether you want to spend an extra 100k to go to Pitt

 

[IzlandVibez]

This is a tough one only due to the fact that you have mentors at Pitt. However, I don't think Northwestern will hold you back in any way. It comes down to whether you want to spend an extra 100k to go to Pitt

Well, that's the big thing. Wondering if I am over evaluating my mentors in terms of opportunity when it comes to matching, especially in ortho. Like would it be easier, is it worth the extra 100K, to me it's priceless, but I am a huge optimist.

 

[Yhwach]

NW. You will build mentors and relationships there.

 

[boo234]

Well, that's the big thing. Wondering if I am over evaluating my mentors in terms of opportunity when it comes to matching, especially in ortho. Like would it be easier, is it worth the extra 100K, to me it's priceless, but I am a huge optimist.

It sounds like you will have the opportunity to network at NW especially because of the urm mentorship program. You can always keep in touch with your mentors at Pitt who will most likely help you out if you are interested in coming back for audition rotation/residency. Congrats on the scholarship!!

 

[ihoop24]

I also vote Northwestern.

 

[billybean]

If Northwestern is $100k cheaper, go there. Either way you can't go wrong- Pitt has a T10 ortho program.

 

[proudofmykids]

Desire to do residency at Pitt in competitive specialty would make me think it is worth the $100k to improve chances to stay at a home program. You can ask Pitt for any matching funds too to see if the cost difference could be narrowed.

 

[Yhwach]

Desire to do residency at Pitt in competitive specialty would make me think it is worth the $100k to improve chances to stay at a home program. You can ask Pitt for any matching funds too to see if the cost difference could be narrowed.

Pitt doesn't match

 

[IzlandVibez]

Desire to do residency at Pitt in competitive specialty would make me think it is worth the $100k to improve chances to stay at a home program. You can ask Pitt for any matching funds too to see if the cost difference could be narrowed.

Pitt doesn't match

Yea Pitt doesn't match, it's like pulling teeth to negotiate for more money with Pitt.

 

[deleted915325]

If your ultimate goal is to match at UPMC, then go to Pitt. Its that simple. Any previous mentorship aside, going to school at Pitt will increase your chances of matching at Pitt exponentially. I'm sure COL is cheaper in Pittsburgh than Chicago too so that will help off set some of the costs, although 90K difference isn't even that big of a difference in the long run if it helps to land where you want to be when its all said and done. I'm really not sure why the votes are so lopsided towards NW.

As a final thought, you'll get plenty of diversity in Pittsburgh if you seek it out, since everyone in the region basically goes to UPMC (lets be honest, Allegeheny Health is irrelevant). When I was at CHP, we saw people from all over the world who went there for a specific purpose due to UPMC's vast breadth of expertise. Patients can literally range from drunk college kids coming from South Oakland at Presby to a Chinese boy with an ultra-rare disease who doesn't speak a lick of English.

 

[deleted947265]

You're turning down a great opportunity no matter what decision you make.

Pitt is just the obvious decision in your case. You want to be an orthopedic surgeon, you have research in this area already going at Pitt. You have mentors at Pitt. You want to match at UPMC, which is associated with which medical school? Pitt. You want to be an orthopedic surgeon so 90K in COA doesn't matter for three important reasons:

1. Ancef
2. Bones
3. Cash

The only good reason to go to NW is that you don't like your mentors and would rather start over, or don't like the track you're on and starting out at NW works better for you. That's not the vibe I get from your post though.

 

[9blade]

You could go to NW and experience Chicago and a cheaper tuition whilst keeping in contact with your mentors at Pitt. If you do that, you still have a high enough chance of going back to Pitt for Ortho

 

[IzlandVibez]

You could go to NW and experience Chicago and a cheaper tuition whilst keeping in contact with your mentors at Pitt. If you do that, you still have a high enough chance of going back to Pitt for Ortho

True, but it's more about being active with my mentors and active in the Ortho department at Pitt which I feel could lead to more LORs from ortho docs and being a familiar face compared to jus keeping in touch with mentors and touching base once in a while. This is what goes through my mind at least

 

[hopefulv3]

My vote is NW. Prestige is neglible between the two. Northwestern wont hold you back from matching and 100k cheaper.