Pre-Med School: Ole Miss vs Arizona State vs Rhodes

[JacobOR]

Hi everybody! I would first like to start off by saying thank you. I've been browsing these forums for a few months before creating an account, and I have to say that I have learned a lot about the various careers in medicine. These forums have really confirmed my interest in going to an allopathic medical school, and I appreciate the time put in by the posters to help those who are interested in medicine.
Anyways, in a few months I will be going off to college to major in biology. I have been afforded three wonderful opportunities, but I know it will be difficult to choose. My three choices are the University of Mississippi, Arizona State University, and Rhodes College. I know that each one will offer me a plethora of research and volunteer opportunities, and each one has its own merits. I know for a fact after visiting that I would be happy at Rhodes or Ole Miss, and I would probably enjoy ASU.
My biggest concerns are primarily cost-related. Rhodes offers arguably the best opportunities, having relationships with St. Jude's, UT Medical Center, and some other Memphis hospitals, but is the most expensive; after four years, I would be $22,000 in debt. ASU is significantly cheaper (I would be $12,000 in debt after four years), plus I'm in the honors college, Barrett which is one of the best in the nation. ASU has relations with the Mayo Clinic, but $12,000 still seems like a lot for someone who is going into medical school. Ole Miss is cheaper than the above two (I would be anywhere from $0 to <$5,000 in debt after four years) and Ole Miss grads seem to have little difficulty getting accepted to the UM Medical Center in Jackson, but I don't know if that correlation is based off of state residency or not. Ole Miss and Oxford seem to offer less opportunities than Rhodes and Memphis/ASU and Phoenix. And since I'm not in the honors college at Ole Miss, I feel like I would have to go through more weed-out classes than the other two.
Anyways, thanks for reading all of this. I would greatly appreciate any input!

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[trino]

I'd say Ole Miss. You're going to have to be slightly more proactive to find clinical volunteering, but it shouldn't be a problem. Can you apply into the honors program after a year or two? I know many schools do that. Either way, I think being in the honors college during undergrad is vastly overrated. At my school it only determines whether you pick courses first or not. Find out if that's the case at Ole Miss. It could be a good advantage to have as you can pick the easier/better teachers

 

[WillburCobb]

Seems like you're content with all of them, if that's so then follow the money. I'm starting med school over $100K in debt and not a day goes by where I don't think about how much this is going to suck when it's tacked on top of med school debt. The look of the financial aid counselor's face at my school while doing pre-admissions financial counseling is still very vivid in my mind.

 

[jturkel]

should have applied to U of A. Better for premed. I'd avoid ASU (and it's not because I went to the rival school). They're premed is pretty weak and they dont have an affiliation with Mayo..not sure why you think that....ASU doesnt even have a medical school

 

[JacobOR]

I'd say Ole Miss. You're going to have to be slightly more proactive to find clinical volunteering, but it shouldn't be a problem. Can you apply into the honors program after a year or two? I know many schools do that. Either way, I think being in the honors college during undergrad is vastly overrated. At my school it only determines whether you pick courses first or not. Find out if that's the case at Ole Miss. It could be a good advantage to have as you can pick the easier/better teachers

I can join the honors college after a semester. It would provide me with priority course selection, along with honors classes that are writing-based. I'm thinking that the extra writing and rigor those classes would help prepare me for when I apply to med schools and when I take the MCAT.

Seems like you're content with all of them, if that's so then follow the money. I'm starting med school over $100K in debt and not a day goes by where I don't think about how much this is going to suck when it's tacked on top of med school debt. The look of the financial aid counselor's face at my school while doing pre-admissions financial counseling is still very vivid in my mind.

Half of my loans are subsidized for Rhodes, so I wouldn't pay interest on that half. Either way, do you think the extra money in loans will be a huge burden after medical school? Rhodes is probably my favorite school out of all that I applied to, but like I said before, I would be happy at Ole Miss or ASU.

should have applied to U of A. Better for premed. I'd avoid ASU (and it's not because I went to the rival school). They're premed is pretty weak and they dont have an affiliation with Mayo..not sure why you think that....ASU doesnt even have a medical school

In hindsight, I agree that I should have applied to U of A. The higher cost was probably what kept me from applying, but maybe I would have received enough merit aid to offset those costs.
ASU does have a partnership with Mayo (and other hospitals and research institutes in the Phoenix area), but the relationship with Mayo is more of a "bioengineering and technology" deal. Since I wouldn't be an engineering major, I don't know if I would be able to qualify for any position.

Thank you all so much for your advice!

 

[trino]

I can join the honors college after a semester. It would provide me with priority course selection, along with honors classes that are writing-based. I'm thinking that the extra writing and rigor those classes would help prepare me for when I apply to med schools and when I take the MCAT.

Half of my loans are subsidized for Rhodes, so I wouldn't pay interest on that half. Either way, do you think the extra money in loans will be a huge burden after medical school? Rhodes is probably my favorite school out of all that I applied to, but like I said before, I would be happy at Ole Miss or ASU.

I still vote for Ole Miss, and shooting for the honors college. Truth be told, honors classes at state schools are usually easier than their non-honor counterparts. Don't count on them being more rigorous (or even writing-based, a lot of times thats just a term they throw around). Honors teachers are selected partly on student feedback. If a teacher is particularly hard, they aren't going to receive favorable feedback and won't be an honors teacher. However, I've found that honors teachers are MUCH better at explaining their subject content.

In the long run, $12k over 4 years is not a lot of loans at all. If you do well, you will be selecting medical schools based on costs of much more than $12k (think $80-100k). But, every bit counts. If you think the $3k per year is worth it at Rhodes to make you happy, then go for it. If not, go to Ole Miss. I don't think ASU should be in the picture anymore. I personally paid roughly that over a full ride and don't regret it one bit

EDIT: I realized I mixed up Rhodes and ASU's cost. $22k is a significant amount of money. Still not insurmountable though. Think long and hard about your happiness at Rhodes vs Ole Miss

 

[DermViser]

should have applied to U of A. Better for premed. I'd avoid ASU (and it's not because I went to the rival school). They're premed is pretty weak and they dont have an affiliation with Mayo..not sure why you think that....ASU doesnt even have a medical school

Actually ASU is affiliated with Mayo: https://asunews.asu.edu/pressroom/20110927_mayo_asu

 

[Mazdude1]

should have applied to U of A. Better for premed. I'd avoid ASU (and it's not because I went to the rival school). They're premed is pretty weak and they dont have an affiliation with Mayo..not sure why you think that....ASU doesnt even have a medical school

I am a current student ASU and I found my Premed program to be much more engaging than the one over U of A. Also, not because I am the rival school but I have friends in the premed program and they say its a complete joke the first two years. They said all the premed prerequisites were a joke and that none of them ever had to study to get A's. Granted, this is a select few people which could've had a completely different experience than other students.

I personally love my premed program at Arizona State University. I am also a student at Barrett, The Honors College @ ASU and it the top ranked honors program in the nation the last time I heard. In the grand scheme of all things, it doesn't matter where you go, it is more important on how you do in your classes as well as all of the volunteer and EC's that you complete throughout your undergrad years.

Best of luck to everyone!

 

[mw18]

Go to Ole Miss and get residency in Mississippi if you don't already have it. Having a public medical school that only accepts in-state applicants is huge. Two thirds of their applicants get interviewed and a little less than half matriculate (more could be accepted but choose other institutions). It's a no-brainer to me. Their 90th percentile mcat is a 33. That's money. You can also get to any school in the country from Ole Miss if you perform. And less opportunities may mean more opportunity to be a leader and create some volunteering and clinical experiences for yourself and others.

Edit: Old post. Disregard.

 

[NotASerialKiller]

@Mazdude1 bumped a thread from last year, I'm pretty sure the decision has already been made

 

[mw18]

@Mazdude1 bumped a thread from last year, I'm pretty sure the decision has already been made

Yeah I saw that right before you posted. My bad.