Hey everyone - I will be attending UVA this summer for their post-bac program. I've also interviewed/been accepted to Bryn Mawr, but contrary to popular opinion, I chose UVA over Bryn Mawr. Personally, UVA is a better fit for me. I've also been living in Philly for going on 5 years now and am well aware of the Bryn Mawr/Main Line culture - for a lot of people, but not for me. Still an incredible program, though.
I know there's not a lot of info on here about UVA in comparison to other programs, and I've been stalking this site for the past year for help in this process, so I feel like it is my turn to help out and give my insight.
I personally like UVA the most for these reasons:
1. Program director/advisor, AND academic director, AND medical director. These separate and distinct roles, spanning across all important facets of pre-medical work, stood out to me in comparison to other programs. Each has responsibilities that extend to crucial aspects of your application. Dr. Burnett and Dr. Powers have extensive experience in their roles, decades worth, and Susan is very experienced as well.
2. Required physician shadowing and volunteer opportunities in connection to a major Medical Center. I understand that most programs also have these features in some regard, but I felt UVA's was the best established and connected. Being connected to a major Medical Center/Medical school really sold these opportunities to me. Dr. Powers has extensive medical connections in the medical center, which I felt BM could not offer to the same extent. These opportunities are crucial to building your application, and it seemed UVA is really committed to both shadowing AND volunteering - and dedicated to making it happen.
3. US health system course. I understand this may be perceived to some as "more work" for an already extremely rigorous year, but having had many medical related work and volunteer experiences, I find this knowledge to be CRUCIAL. Particularly as the ACA is changing care. Being a physician in today's world is not as simple as prescribing or caring for patients any which way you want. There are many policies and systems that influence how physicians offer care, and this knowledge truly is crucial. Plus, this knowledge can greatly strengthen your medical school application and certainly help in medical school interviews, in which they usually ask questions related to the health care system. Important to know how it all works - the system we hope to be working in!
4. Charlottesville is a beautiful, unique little town. Bryn Mawr is comparable, but there's a lot more to do in Charlottesville than Bryn Mawr. BM/the main line area has a rep around here as a pretentious, privileged, sheltered area. The only real things to do are in Philly, which is a 30 min drive to get to. I like that everything you need is right in Charlottesville - some nightlife, shops, and incredible scenery/opportunities to exercise. I'd much rather be stressed during this crazy year in beautiful Charlottesville.
5. UVA vibe - very down to earth and looking for passionate people. UVA definitely seemed interested in my personal passion for medicine and my ambition to reach it. They still only accept people with strong undergrad records, but they also seemed a lot more interested in me as a whole than BM did. BM's interview questions were fairly generic in nature, whereas UVA's were a lot more personal, unique, and interesting. My interview day at UVA was a lot more enjoyable than BM, but that's just my personal experience.
6.UVA is a much smaller class and from what I've observed, everyone works well together as opposed to separating into little cliques, which is more likely to happen in a bigger program.
7. Med school linkages don't matter to me. Personally I'm still fairly young and would actually like a gap year to apply to med school and do things like travel and gain more experience. I understand this may not be the case for everyone.
Those are the main things for me - I understand these points may not be as important to other people. I get Bryn Mawr has the highest regarded reputation, and that may be enough for people to choose it if they get accepted. I totally understand. I still thought BM was an extraordinary program and definitely earned a top reputation. The program director Glenn is a really great guy, and they have established an incredible program. But I think when it comes down to it, there's more to post-bac's than just their marketing strategy of the percentage of students who matriculate to med school. Regardless of where you go, your success will truly depend on YOU. All of the top programs - BM, Goucher, Scripps, UVA - will well-position you for med school. And I've heard from students at these programs that they all love the program they chose and wouldn't change it. It just depends where YOU feel YOU can do best.
I should add that last year, I applied very late in the application cycle (February 2015) to Bryn Mawr and Temple's post-bac. February is very late to apply, which I learned the hard way. I was waitlisted to BM and rejected from Temple. I missed the deadline for the other schools. So, if you are applying now and aren't getting much luck, DONT GIVE UP! Wait until this fall and apply as soon as things open. That's what I did. I felt so bad not getting in anywhere last year, but I waited until September 2015 and applied as soon as BM and UVA's applications opened. Interviewed and accepted to both! I was so happy with my experience at UVA that I didn't even bother finishing my application to Goucher. So don't give up if you're just applying now and don't get in. Just apply early next round!!!
