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[stickflip723]

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[meronebib]

So first of all, congratulations on getting accepted to both of these amazing schools! I am sure you are an amazing candidate yourself and will do great things at either choice.

Because both programs are well regarded, I won't be talking about them in specific, as I think you will succeed in both. I will just say that I wouldn't put too much weight on post-interview feelings, because the school (and the students) are just making a strong first impression. For example, I have many friends at NYU, and I would not say it's a laid back environment, even though they may have given that impression to you during interview day. Before their announcement, NYU was still notorious for being obsessed with high stats (they had a 99th percentile median MCAT last year), so I doubt things will change too much with the new class.

Having said that, I personally would choose NYU. I have lived in both Chicago and NYC, and NYU is definitely in a nicer and safer area than Pritzker. Also, the public transportation in NYC is better than Chicago. Plus, you have your family there. And there is quite a difference in weather too - NYC is warmer and winters are less harsh than Chicago. Granted, NYC is more expensive... but in the grand scheme of things (ahem, not having to pay tuition at either school), you're not looking at too big of a difference in cost over the 4 years. Definitely not something that a doctor's salary can't pay off!

 

[pommes]

You got some rad choices - congrats! The good thing is, I don't think you could go wrong. Your pros and cons list is thoughtful, and the most helpful thing would be to go to revisit for both schools and get that second gut feeling in to help you decide (revisit would also allow you to meet some of your potential classmates to see if that worry about NYU is true ). BTW, love that you're including your SO in the decisionmaking. I was in a similar situation when deciding schools and 10/10 recommend prioritizing your support system. Mine got me through clerkship year and I won't look back. Feel free to PM if you wanna chat more about that stuff!

 

[puahate]

Can't go wrong with either. Id go NYU

 

[rball]

My vote is pritzker-phenomenal culture from what I’ve heard and students are so happy and supported there. Really take care of their students. Look at your pro/con ratio - it seems to me you prefer pritzker.

Cant go wrong with either choice though, both are fantastic and full rides to either congrats!

Def dont worry about reputation here, both are virtually identical (some may even say pritzker has the edge despite the ranking disparity), and both will get you to where you want to go.

 

[stickflip723]

Can't go wrong with either. Id go NYU

And why is that?

You got some rad choices - congrats! The good thing is, I don't think you could go wrong. Your pros and cons list is thoughtful, and the most helpful thing would be to go to revisit for both schools and get that second gut feeling in to help you decide (revisit would also allow you to meet some of your potential classmates to see if that worry about NYU is true ). BTW, love that you're including your SO in the decisionmaking. I was in a similar situation when deciding schools and 10/10 recommend prioritizing your support system. Mine got me through clerkship year and I won't look back. Feel free to PM if you wanna chat more about that stuff!

I wish I could do revisit for both, but I think they conflict this year :/ what do people do when that happens?

So first of all, congratulations on getting accepted to both of these amazing schools! I am sure you are an amazing candidate yourself and will do great things at either choice.

Because both programs are well regarded, I won't be talking about them in specific, as I think you will succeed in both. I will just say that I wouldn't put too much weight on post-interview feelings, because the school (and the students) are just making a strong first impression. For example, I have many friends at NYU, and I would not say it's a laid back environment, even though they may have given that impression to you during interview day. Before their announcement, NYU was still notorious for being obsessed with high stats (they had a 99th percentile median MCAT last year), so I doubt things will change too much with the new class.

Having said that, I personally would choose NYU. I have lived in both Chicago and NYC, and NYU is definitely in a nicer and safer area than Pritzker. Also, the public transportation in NYC is better than Chicago. Plus, you have your family there. And there is quite a difference in weather too - NYC is warmer and winters are less harsh than Chicago. Granted, NYC is more expensive... but in the grand scheme of things (ahem, not having to pay tuition at either school), you're not looking at too big of a difference in cost over the 4 years. Definitely not something that a doctor's salary can't pay off!

Appreciate the kind words!

 

[puahate]

And why is that?

At this point it would be things like weather and environment. I just think NYU will have less harsh winters. More things to do in NY.

 

[TempuraOreos]

Congrats on that amazing success. I'm waiting to hear back from Pritzker (a full ride here too would be aces). I loved my Pritzker interview day too and really felt like I meshed well with their mission.

But since family and support system is there for you I say go with NYU. Curious to know what your final choice ends up being because may end up in a similar situation.

 

[pommes]

You can split your time by catching the first day or two of one and the latter half of the other. If you reach out to the schools they might be willing to arrange an extra tour or meeting for you depending on what you miss.

 

[WedgeDawg]

Hey, congrats on an having an excellent and very difficult decision to make.

You will be able to match EM very well from either school. If you're strongly thinking EM, I would really just pick based on location and how you liked the schools when you interviewed or when you go back for second look. For surgical subspecialties, I would actually give slight edge to NYU. One thing I didn't realize when I was going into this process is how much a strong home department matters when you're applying into a very small competitive field. This is because mentorship, connections, research, and letters all make an enormous difference in the interview and match process. NYU has very strong home neurosurgery and orthopedic surgery departments and reasonably strong ophthalmology, urology, and ENT departments. I don't think the same can be said for UChicago (wonderful wonderful medical school, does not have strong surgical subspecialty departments).

So the bottom line is, if you seriously think you'll be considering a surgical subspecialty, your life will be made easier from that perspective by going to NYU. That is not to say that you can't match very strongly in a surgical subspecialty from UChicago, just that you'll have to chase down more things yourself. I know people who are matching and have matched extremely strongly in every field from both schools.

Don't let this be the end all be all, just another consideration from a 4th year who didn't know how much this mattered 4 years ago.

 

[stickflip723]

Hey, congrats on an having an excellent and very difficult decision to make.

You will be able to match EM very well from either school. If you're strongly thinking EM, I would really just pick based on location and how you liked the schools when you interviewed or when you go back for second look. For surgical subspecialties, I would actually give slight edge to NYU. One thing I didn't realize when I was going into this process is how much a strong home department matters when you're applying into a very small competitive field. This is because mentorship, connections, research, and letters all make an enormous difference in the interview and match process. NYU has very strong home neurosurgery and orthopedic surgery departments and reasonably strong ophthalmology, urology, and ENT departments. I don't think the same can be said for UChicago (wonderful wonderful medical school, does not have strong surgical subspecialty departments).

So the bottom line is, if you seriously think you'll be considering a surgical subspecialty, your life will be made easier from that perspective by going to NYU. That is not to say that you can't match very strongly in a surgical subspecialty from UChicago, just that you'll have to chase down more things yourself. I know people who are matching and have matched extremely strongly in every field from both schools.

Don't let this be the end all be all, just another consideration from a 4th year who didn't know how much this mattered 4 years ago.

THIS is the kind of stuff I really appreciate! I had no idea about this! How does one go about comparing the strength of departments in various specialties between schools? I've heard that doximity can be a decent proxy, but I've also heard it's not to be trusted. Also, not sure how I can even access that info as I'm still technically pre-med. Thanks @WedgeDawg !

You can split your time by catching the first day or two of one and the latter half of the other. If you reach out to the schools they might be willing to arrange an extra tour or meeting for you depending on what you miss.

Interesting, thanks. I guess I'll have to wait until they come out with a detailed schedule for both.

 

[WedgeDawg]

THIS is the kind of stuff I really appreciate! I had no idea about this! How does one go about comparing the strength of departments in various specialties between schools? I've heard that doximity can be a decent proxy, but I've also heard it's not to be trusted. Also, not sure how I can even access that info as I'm still technically pre-med. Thanks @WedgeDawg !

Best way is to reach out to people in the specialty. All specialties are represented somewhere, somehow on SDN. If you want, PM me and I can try to help connect you to someone in your specialty of interest.

Again, want to emphasize this should not be the factor that makes your decision. It is just one of any number of variables to consider. I would also strongly encourage you to attend both admitted students days and have candid conversations with current students to see where you fit in the best. Ultimately, I think fit is the most important thing, but you may feel differently.

 

[workaholic181]

NYU. The accelerated clerkships is a huge plus. You stated you liked the facilities more. Living near family makes things easier too, in ways that dont totally become apparent until you're actually doing it.

I can only speculate also, but I wouldnt be worried too much about how NYUs class will change with the free tuition. It was already a top school (probably applied to by every top applicant in the country) to begin with.

 

[rball]

While I completely agree with WedgeDawg about considering department strength, I'd also consider the accessibility of faculty to medical students within that specialty. For example school A may have a strong ENT department, but faculty there may not be invested in the medical students and may be more interested in resident education, clinical care, etc. School B may have a weaker ENT department, but maybe the faculty within that department are truly dedicated to mentoring medical students, which results in an easier time obtaining research experience, stronger LORs, etc.

Definitely inquire about this when talking to med students at either school and making your decision. For example, yes NYU has a much stronger ortho department. But from what I've heard the ortho department at Pritzker is very very student-friendly, and they match fairly well as a result. I.e. last year they matched 3 at UMich and 1 at USC, and in previous years from what I've heard, they've matched at Harvard, Stanford, Northwestern, WashU, Mayo - all top programs in the field. So balance the strength of the departments with also whether or not faculty in those departments are dedicated to mentoring medical students and really care about medical students.

 

[freedoctor17]

I'm a little confused about which your SO would prefer (by this ii meant that you mention she'd have better jobs in Chicago but higher pay in New York which I'm not sure how to interpret) personally i liked pritzker better but to me it sounds like you liked both and you have a bunch of family in New York so that might be better for support.

Edit: Honestly after rereading it though it sounds like Hyde Park might be a better place for y'all to live off you're not planning on staying in the couple's housing at NYU. Without the heavily subsidized apartments they provide the living cost there is gonna be so much higher. Unless your SO has a well paying job that might not be the best idea. Would the on campus housing really be that bad if it's just the two of you? I didn't see what couple's housing looked like but the regular apartments were pretty nice if not a little small.

Just a disclaimer I've interviewed at both and still waiting on a decision from each.

 

[hesstess]

Go with your gut because if you aren’t happy, it’s gonna be a long four years. But if you want something else more objective to help your decision, I would suggest looking up the last few match lists and see where people match in the specialties that you are considering. Although both schools have great reputations, sometimes some schools are just beasts at matching students into a long list of amazing places.

 

[stickflip723]

A couple kids on my interview day were accepted to NYU. All of them were super duper chill- a bunch of us got dinner afterwards and everyone was really nice and still hella impressive- so I don't think the whole class will be gunners

Hey, super good to know, thanks man. Hopefully I can get a good sense of the vibe at revisit.

 

[nimbus]

Preclinical years at NYU are P/F. They were not particularly intense.

 

[stickflip723]

Preclinical years at NYU are P/F. They were not particularly intense.

You sound like you're speaking from experience as a former student? If so, care to weigh in a little more? On this or anything else really? I'm already heavily leaning towards NYU but always welcome additional views.

 

[nimbus]

You sound like you're speaking from experience as a former student? If so, care to weigh in a little more? On this or anything else really? I'm already heavily leaning towards NYU but always welcome additional views.

Yes, but I went there a long time ago. It was a fantastic place to attend school and I imagine it still is. I had fun there, got down and dirty, worked hard, and learned a lot. It’s a special place, especially Bellevue which is housestaff run. Happy to answer any specific questions by PM.

 

[stickflip723]

Yes, but I went there a long time ago. It was a fantastic place to attend school and I imagine it still is. I had fun there, got down and dirty, worked hard, and learned a lot. It’s a special place, especially Bellevue which is housestaff run. Happy to answer any specific questions by PM.

Wonderful, thank you!

 

[stickflip723]

Bumping in case anyone has anything else to contribute.

 

[freedoctor17]

Interviewed at both of these schools. Waitlisted at NYU and should be hearing from Pritzker soon.

Personally I loved pritzker and wasn't a huge fan of NYU. If i got a full ride to pritzker it would be an easy decision. Their mission and goals fit perfectly with mine though and i personally liked the location in Hyde Park.

Based off your preferences it sounds like youd be happy at both. Honestly id just ask your significant other which theyd prefer and go based off that. Seems like it's coming down to being closer to family vs having better job opportunities for your significant other.

 

[Blake333]

Definitely go NYU, the experience will be great and the connections you can make in the medical community there are amazing. Also, its a school on the rise with more and more research opportunities. Pritzker has been declining a bit as of late. congrats!

 

[dodolol21]

I have a friend making this same decision, for him though it's an easy win for Prtizker and IMO unless you can get a full COA at NYU, Chicago is the better choice. Also im pretty sure this thread is old and you also have some other dope options like Columbia so hopefully that need based aid comes clutch

 

[stickflip723]

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[mega_]

go where your family is nearby (NYU). life goes on outside of the school too, to some degree.