Pitt vs Ohio State vs Cincinnati

[astalarenmo]

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Pittsburgh
Pros:

• Top 15 w/ great research opportunities
• Great hospitals and clinical exposure with UPMC
• Unranked P/F
• Love the city (hometown)

Cons:

• Furthest from home (~4 hours)
• Total debt after four years ~320K +-20K
  • Living with older brother would lower COL but then it would be 23 min commute by car (worth the rent save?)

Ohio State
Pros:

• ~100 min from home
• Went on a tour and thought the facilities were really nice
• Administration seems very supportive

Cons:

• Larger class size with some sort of internal rank
• Haven't heard from Fin aid yet but total debt after four years ~250K

Cincinnati
Pros:

• Already know many students/faculty here
• I have a chronic health condition that needs close monitoring and all my lab work/visits are already done here
  • I would like to move out regardless of where I go as it isn't the best home environment, but God-forbid something happens while in school, it would be a lot easier if I were closer to parents (30 min from home)
• Total debt similar to OSU, (likely less if I factor in benefits of living close to home)

Cons:

• Class ranking
• Have had a few current students tell me that student wellness isn't good here, and the heavy testing/class ranking only adds to their stress

Summary: I'm trying to decide if the medical prestige of Pitt outweighs the extra 60-100K+ of loans it'll take to go there. A few friends/family members are persistent about Pitt and are telling me it's a no-brainer, but I'm worried about the extra debt. My current career interests are in nephrology/transplantation which I know isn't very competitive, but I also have other interests that I want to explore in medical school like PM&R and radiology. As for my health, my care would be transferred to whatever health system, but would of course come with a lot of added time and hassle which is why I listed it as a Cincy pro but I wouldn't mind doing that for the right school.

Any thoughts/perspectives would help and be greatly appreciated!

 

[JohnJacobJingleheimer]

I think Pitt holds the 70k extra value here. My vote is for Pitt. Congrats and good luck!

 

[astalarenmo]

I think Pitt holds the 70k extra value here. My vote is for Pitt. Congrats and good luck!

Thank you!
I'm definitely leaning this way right now, though OSU just emailed me saying I will be awarded scholarship funds next week... don't know how much yet but they're still a great school so I guess I'll wait and see

 

[JohnJacobJingleheimer]

Thank you!
I'm definitely leaning this way right now, though OSU just emailed me saying I will be awarded scholarship funds next week... don't know how much but I guess I'll wait and see

ooo that definitely mixes things up… personally wouldn’t pay 6 figures more for Pitt, if that’s what it comes out to; but, we’ll have to wait and see the final numbers. Congrats on the good news!!

 

[Apple Jacks]

Pitt is definitely your best option; however OSU and Cincinnati are strong programs, so if the difference is more than 100K, I don’t think it’s worth it. Especially if you’re not interested in super competitive specialties like nsgy and ortho (OSU and Cincy still matches there to be fair)

 

[m1redsox]

If you already know you are not interested in competitive surgical subspecialties or derm, I would choose the cheapest program. Pitt is a great program, but compensation will be the same whether you’re an IM subspecialist from Pitt or Cincy, and ultimately, it will not have a big effect on your ability to match these specialties. That being said, if you are interested in attending a T10 IM program and working in research/academia, then perhaps the Pitt name could be worth it.

 

[astalarenmo]

Pitt is definitely your best option; however OSU and Cincinnati are strong programs, so if the difference is more than 100K, I don’t think it’s worth it. Especially if you’re not interested in super competitive specialties like nsgy and ortho (OSU and Cincy still matches there to be fair)

Thanks for the advice, I feel the same way. I don't want to be foolish, but in the back of my mind I feel like I'd regret missed opportunity more so than missed money if that makes sense

 

[astalarenmo]

If you already know you are not interested in competitive surgical subspecialties or derm, I would choose the cheapest program. Pitt is a great program, but compensation will be the same whether you’re an IM subspecialist from Pitt or Cincy, and ultimately, it will not have a big effect on your ability to match these specialties. That being said, if you are interested in attending a T10 IM program and working in research/academia, then perhaps the Pitt name could be worth it.

Thank you those are some great points. It's something I've been thinking a lot about lately, but I honestly don't know if I want to go the academic or private practice route as I see merit in both.
Once I get the financial aid info from OSU I feel I'll have a clearer decision, but I'm wondering if being uncertain makes Pitt more worth it as I can more easily match into a great residency if that ends up being my goal.

 

[m1redsox]

Thank you those are some great points. It's something I've been thinking a lot about lately, but I honestly don't know if I want to go the academic or private practice route as I see merit in both.
Once I get the financial aid info from OSU I feel I'll have a clearer decision, but I'm wondering if being uncertain makes Pitt more worth it as I can more easily match into a great residency if that ends up being my goal.

Yeah, I think that is a fair question, but in the end, all 3 schools are top 40 programs that will set you up very well to match any specialty. Yes, the Pitt name will help a little bit if you want something competitive, but the OSU and Cincy names are still really great. I just don’t think the Pitt name is worth $80k + interest more than OSU or Cincy.

 

[Redpancreas]

Pittsburgh
Pros:

• Top 15 w/ great research opportunities
• Great hospitals and clinical exposure with UPMC
• Unranked P/F
• Love the city (hometown)

Cons:

• Furthest from home (~4 hours)
• Total debt after four years ~320K +-20K
  • Living with older brother would lower COL but then it would be 23 min commute by car (worth the rent save?)

Ohio State
Pros:

• ~100 min from home
• Went on a tour and thought the facilities were really nice
• Administration seems very supportive

Cons:

• Larger class size with some sort of internal rank
• Haven't heard from Fin aid yet but total debt after four years ~250K

Cincinnati
Pros:

• Already know many students/faculty here
• I have a chronic health condition that needs close monitoring and all my lab work/visits are already done here
  • I would like to move out regardless of where I go as it isn't the best home environment, but God-forbid something happens while in school, it would be a lot easier if I were closer to parents (30 min from home)
• Total debt similar to OSU, (likely less if I factor in benefits of living close to home)

Cons:

• Class ranking
• Have had a few current students tell me that student wellness isn't good here, and the heavy testing/class ranking only adds to their stress

Summary: I'm trying to decide if the medical prestige of Pitt outweighs the extra 60-100K+ of loans it'll take to go there. A few friends/family members are persistent about Pitt and are telling me it's a no-brainer, but I'm worried about the extra debt. My current career interests are in nephrology/transplantation which I know isn't very competitive, but I also have other interests that I want to explore in medical school like PM&R and radiology. As for my health, my care would be transferred to whatever health system, but would of course come with a lot of added time and hassle which is why I listed it as a Cincy pro but I wouldn't mind doing that for the right school.

Any thoughts/perspectives would help and be greatly appreciated!

Honestly, I would not consider the transfer of records as a factor. Just be a judicious book keeper and create a packet with the information needed to show your specialist for whatever chronic issue you've got going on. All these quaternary centers have great physicians capable of handling a transition of care. That said, if there are other reasons to be "home" those are to be considered.

With that said, I know a bit about Cincinnati as I went to a place with a similar structure (large class size, class ranking, etc.) and interviewed there like 3 times from undergrad to residency and know a lot of students there. I can say the students survive and come out with decent match outcomes. It's not some cesspool of misery but seems like one of those more traditional medical schools despite the recent attempts to update curriculums, etc.

I don't know as much about the latter two. P/F is important but not the end all be all. If this was my decision, I would go with UPMC no questions asked just to have the better pedigree to keep my options open (you may change your mind early on). Also, I personally don't see the extra 100K debt as a huge factor in a likely 30-40 year long career. As you know, medical school is early in that path and can influence that trajectory. That said FWIW, Radiology is mildly competitive (but easily obtained with good performance at any US MD school), PM&R is not competitive, and IM -> Nephro can be done from any US/DO school in the country so if you truly only want to do one of these three fields, they are easily obtained at University of Cincinnati

Congratulations on these options! They're all awesome.

 

[astalarenmo]

Honestly, I would not consider the transfer of records as a factor. Just be a judicious book keeper and create a packet with the information needed to show your specialist for whatever chronic issue you've got going on. All these quaternary centers have great physicians capable of handling a transition of care. That said, if there are other reasons to be "home" those are to be considered.

With that said, I know a bit about Cincinnati as I went to a place with a similar structure (large class size, class ranking, etc.) and interviewed there like 3 times from undergrad to residency and know a lot of students there. I can say the students survive and come out with decent match outcomes. It's not some cesspool of misery but seems like one of those more traditional medical schools despite the recent attempts to update curriculums, etc.

I don't know as much about the latter two. P/F is important but not the end all be all. If this was my decision, I would go with UPMC no questions asked just to have the better pedigree to keep my options open (you may change your mind early on). Also, I personally don't see the extra 100K debt as a huge factor in a likely 30-40 year long career. As you know, medical school is early in that path and can influence that trajectory. That said FWIW, Radiology is mildly competitive (but easily obtained with good performance at any US MD school), PM&R is not competitive, and IM -> Nephro can be done from any US/DO school in the country so if you truly only want to do one of these three fields, they are easily obtained at University of Cincinnati

Congratulations on these options! They're all awesome.

Thanks so much for the detailed response! You bring up a lot of great points. I know I'm definitely blessed to have such great options.

ooo that definitely mixes things up… personally wouldn’t pay 6 figures more for Pitt, if that’s what it comes out to; but, we’ll have to wait and see the final numbers. Congrats on the good news!!

If anyone's still following along, I'm now pretty settled on either Ohio State or Pitt and not Cincy so much. I heard back from OSU and was blessed to receive a 1-time (20k) scholarship which would bring my 4-yr cost for tuition/academic expenses down to ~145K while Pitt is ~255k. I know it's a huge difference in costs and the debt does worry me, but I'm a little conflicted and still have friends/family nudging me towards Pitt. Any thoughts?

 

[voxveritatisetlucis]

Other two are solid school. I would not pay 100k+ more for Pitt unless you’re set on neurosurgery, plastics, ortho etc. then I might go Pitt but you would have to follow up w/ your initial plans

 

[seeinghowitgoes]

For the specialties you’re interested in (PM&R, IM->nephrology, radiology), assuming you want to stay in this general region for residency, all these schools are basically equivalent.

Pitt would offer some advantage if you wanted to leave the region (go to the east coast for fellowship for example) or wanted to do a really competitive specialty (derm, plastic, ortho). Otherwise all these schools have enough research and such that you’ll get good exposure for what you want to do and I think Pitt offers next to no advantage professionally.

Would base this purely on what would make you happiest socially/financially as I think the professional differences are close to nothing - Pitt is really no better than the other schools for your stated goals.