Prestige vs Support System

[nanootta]

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Forgive me if this is in the wrong place.

I've been planning to go to UCSD this year, but have been recently accepted to a private school on the East Coast. After comparing financial aid packages, UCSD would be 36K more expensive (total, 4yr cost). I really liked both schools and find their curriculums (style, grading, electives) to be pretty comparable.

I am from the east coast, and while both schools would be OOS for me, the private east coast school would be pretty close to my support system (2 hr drive). This immediately made me excited because my biggest reservations about UCSD is how far it is from my support system and not knowing anyone in San Diego. However, this school is a top 40+ tier school.

I'm not sure if the prestige of UCSD is worth the extra 36K or being far from my family in the long run. In terms of my career goals, I'm looking at primary care or uro, but that's as far as I have thought about it. What would you all do in this situation?

I guess I should also mention another lingering factor that is pushing me to pick UCSD at this time. I am waitlisted at my top choice. If I pick the east coast school now, I would have to CTE pretty soon, whereas I would have more time to wait and hear back if I chose UCSD. My top choice's CTE has already passed, so I'm not holding my breath; it is something to think about though.

EDIT: For those who find this thread in the future, I ended up picking the school closer to home. Having my family close has been immensely helpful; more so than I would have ever thought.

 

[Goro]

Pick the closer school. I have literally lost students to homesickness. Med school is a furnace and so having your support group nearby is a good thing.

 

[Moko]

The difference in cost is relatively small and is easily manageable after residency. Pick the place that can help you achieve your career goals while being happy.

Keep in mind that the majority of the incoming class will be in a similar situation as you, and close friendships are built in medical school.

Also, never pick a school based on prestige alone

 

[efle]

support system/east coast, unless you wanted to match in CA

 

[907914]

The difference in cost is relatively small and is easily manageable after residency.

What dollar value would your personally assign for Better financial aid > support system

Or is that more of a person - to - person and School-to-school thing?

 

[Moko]

What dollar value would your personally assign for Better financial aid > support system

Or is that more of a person - to - person and School-to-school thing?

Well in this case the financial aid and support system both favor the East Coast school.

How much more a school is worth depends on each person and school, and this monetary amount can of course change over time as people's goals and ideals change. This explains why some people would choose an in-state school over HMS, and others would fall heads over heels and give up a full ride to attend there. In my opinion, the 'name' of a school does matter -- but nowhere near as much as most people would like to think though.