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[Laserbeam101]

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[pinchybug]

Well, your first con is new curriculums and having most/all days require in-person activities. With it being nearly equal between schools, I say that cancels out. The other UCSD con I think can be disregarded since it's not really relevant to your present decision, since you didn't get in.

Next is the weather/location, which you list as a pro for UCSD but a con for Pitt. Maybe you could expand a bit on what draws you/steers you from either area and weight its importance to you?

You mention family as a pro for UCSD, but also mention it as a potential con which cancels it out as neutral IMO.

Taking all that into consideration, it sounds like UCSD's only true pro is location/area which you like better. Whereas Pitt has several pros that you mention with regard to clinical and research opportunities. This makes me think Pitt might be the stronger option for you.

 

[theoceanman]

UPitt since your academic endeavors have more pros there

 

[fructose312]

I agree with the comments above, @pinchybug has laid it out pretty well. I would probably vote for Pitt. I think there is a bias on SDN to weighing the weather & location factor heavily, but most students particularly at this stage should prioritize their success & future goals, other factors like those should be secondary. Do well and you can pick whatever location you want for residency. You will be able to find your niche at either place, and both schools are practically even on the playing field in any residency director's eyes.

I would also like to add that as someone who could be interested in competitive specialties, Pitt has been traditionally a powerhouse at doing so likely due to its class's interests and their research funding. Not implying that UCSD doesn't have it, but I have heard from some former students that despite tons of research being done there in fields like neuro/psych, the opportunities that exist for more competitive specialties come few and far between. Examine the match lists from the past 5 years for both schools.

Pitt has a new medical building right? That could be nice. Since you have no preference on where you'd like to end up, let me ask -- did you go to school in CA? It might be eye-opening just to leave the state and experience something new.

 

[user305614]

So as I’m reading this I’m seeing you’re family is in California, cost of attendance for both schools is roughly the same with Pitt ending up being more expensive maybe due to traveling back and forth to see family, and it seems you prefer the California weather more as well although you don’t mind where you match whether it’s west or east coast. Based on your response and pros and cons I think you prefer UCSD but are worrying too much about the ranking difference between the schools for matching which I think is unnecessary because both are established top 20 medical schools that will allow you the opportunity to succeed and get into either specialty you desire.

I’m not telling you to go UCSD over Pitt, I’m just telling you don’t make the final decision on which school will help you match the best because it will be up to you on matching and both schools provide equal opportunity to match. Instead focus on lifestyle and happiness factors; location, support system nearby, curriculum of school, grading, rotations, etc.

Best of luck on the decision and congratulations.

 

[fructose312]

To answer your question, I did go to school in CA and thoroughly enjoyed it. Weather is not the biggest concern for me, as I am mainly concerned with professional outcomes. I think I can have a great time at both UCSD and Pitt (the actual students in both schools were all great on tours), so now I guess my deciding factor is leaning towards which is the "better" school. I took a look at their match lists, and they seem similar but somewhat skewed in that UCSD matches the west coast while Pitt matches the east coast. I have no huge preference on that end. Was your comment, "opportunities that exist for more competitive specialties come few and far between," in reference to UCSD? Can you shed a little more insight into that? Thank you for your help!

Sure. I don't mean that there are NO research opportunities at UCSD, you have access to everything you need as it has every department in-house. But I've spoken briefly to several UCSD students and there seems to be a culture of competition for research in specific departments (ortho, ENT) because they are not as robust/large than schools at other institutions. Your opportunities will be available at either place, but depending on the department you might have more competition to be on a project at UCSD because UCSD dedicates its research resources to certain areas like neuro/psych/derm which makes it a powerhouse in those areas, while Pitt is more spread throughout -- which is probably why their residency programs are generally considered a tad bit better due to research funding. I do not think this should be a major factor in your school decision however, but it is something worth thinking about especially if you want to keep all your doors open.

I looked briefly at the match lists -- I think Pitt has a higher % of individuals going into surgical subspecialties, less primary care? I would focus less on the program names, but rather the specialty of choice.

Truth be told, when you ask which is the "better" school, neither school is really better than the other in terms of professional outcomes. Once you hit the top 25 schools, there is a plateau and they can all offer great resources, just slightly in different areas. You are not making a wrong decision either way & there is no practical difference. Since you do not care about weather or location, I would recommend this: evaluate how the structure of the curriculum, mentorship offerings, faculty research align with your interests. Is one better at basic/translational research in one area? Does one school have more of an emphasize on medical education & evaluation of curriculum improvement? Does one school have a mentorship system within different class years that is more extensive? It is great that the outcomes for both schools are so similar, but one of these systems may push and motivate you more to achieve that end goal.

 

[jtesch]

Hello! I received really thoughtful advice on my last post here, so I thought I would come back again, this time with the final two options. If you have pertinent advice for me, that would be amazing!

Pitt

Pros

• Likely better research opportunities
• Great concentrated clinical opportunities with UPMC
• Ranked higher in research and primary care (may be an important factor with everything going P/F)

Cons

• Starting new curriculum for my year (daily 8AM-12PM required in-person work)
• Weather/oldish area

UCSD

Pros

• Location/weather
• Closer to family (maybe slight con for personal reasons)
• Area/Grad housing is newer

Cons

• Also starting a new curriculum for my year (3-4 days a week of 8AM-12PM required in-person work)
• I interviewed for a specific program here that was a huge draw but, unfortunately didn't get in

The cost of attendance at both schools is roughly the same after aid. Although I would have to travel back home to CA from Pittsburgh for breaks. I've toured both schools and could see myself being happy at either institution, so this is a tough decision. I'm not super partial about doing residency in the west coast vs east coast (ideally, just at a good academic institution). I've seen both of their match lists, and they look great for their respective coast.

I'm interested in competitive specialties, so I am trying to make the decision that best prepares me for residency. I am leaning towards Pitt for career but UCSD for lifestyle. I don't really have a solid reference for how much the prestige and ranking of the two schools actually differ when it comes to the real-world residency game, so that would also be nice to know. If anyone has insight about anything here, I would greatly appreciate it.

having gone to Pitt for undergrad, the weather is dreadful. If that's a big concern, head to Cali