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- Thread starter elftown
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If anyone wants their review posted anonymously, you can PM it to me and I'll re-post it for you.
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I'll share when I get a chance this week.
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ditto
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Thanks, Perrotfish.
Anyone else have a minute to share their thoughts?
I will be applying to schools this spring and am trying to figure out which of the 130(?) MD schools to apply to. I believe that I am a strong applicant and am more interested in student experiences than anything else. Any useful information at all is appreciated.
I think you'll get more & better responses if it doesn't feel like a homework assignment for us all to write a personal review of our school to the cumulative tune of 130 schools just so you can figure out which schools as a premed you want to apply to. Just a suggestion. Not trying to be harsh, but that was kind of my reaction.
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School: Texas A&M
Curriculum: Modified organ systems curriculum. We start out with biochem and anatomy which aren't organ systems based, but after that everything else is. We have a test q2-3 weeks in all classes, NO "Hell weeks" of nothing but tests.
Location: College Station is a college town with college things to do. Temple...not so much but not a bad place to live. It's medical school, you aren't gonna be hittin' the town a lot.
Cost: I love Texas. It's no more expensive than undergrad (~16k a year).
Faculty: Very receptive and typically helpful. Always of course a few bad apples.
Reputation: Underrated. It's not one of the big UT system schools so it typically gets written off by most people. However in the medical community Scott & White has a good reputation and all of its residencies are considered solid, from what I know. As well, Scott & White was ranked #14 by Solucient among all teaching hospitals.
Clinical Rotations: A more hands-on approach is advocated. Ancillary staff at Scott & White are plentiful and from what I've heard you don't get scutted out very often. Yes you will take q3 call and you will work some long shifts, but it's worth it.
Housing: This is Texas! Housing is CHEAP. I'm in a 2Bed/1Br place for ~600 a month. It's considered a luxury apartment complex. Housing is very cheap here and very easy to find (this applies to both College Station and Temple).
Study areas: There is always the med sciences or Scott & White library, but both campuses have an LRU where there are lots of dedicated study spaces and rooms for students. I'm a study-at-home kind of person, so I don't take advantage. But they have every book you'd need on reserve, computers, copiers, free printing in Temple (!), etc.
Social Scene: College Station? Just like undergrad. Temple?....not so much.
Local Hospitals: See my above comments on Scott & White. We also rotate at the VA and at Driscoll Children's Hospital in Corpus Christi.
Board Prep: Good. Last years average was 225, not bad considering we don't admit mostly "elite" students.
Specialty: Not sure what this means, but we have people match into just about everything every year. Neurosurgery, radiation oncology, ENT, plastics, urology, radiology, derm (several), are all matched each year, and at good places too (Dartmouth, Cleveland Clinic, we had one at Mass Gen).
Grades: A-B-C-F. Standard breakdown. We are ranked at don't find out until 3rd year.
Overall Grade: A+. I'm a little biased though
.
Curriculum: Modified organ systems curriculum. We start out with biochem and anatomy which aren't organ systems based, but after that everything else is. We have a test q2-3 weeks in all classes, NO "Hell weeks" of nothing but tests.
Location: College Station is a college town with college things to do. Temple...not so much but not a bad place to live. It's medical school, you aren't gonna be hittin' the town a lot.
Cost: I love Texas. It's no more expensive than undergrad (~16k a year).
Faculty: Very receptive and typically helpful. Always of course a few bad apples.
Reputation: Underrated. It's not one of the big UT system schools so it typically gets written off by most people. However in the medical community Scott & White has a good reputation and all of its residencies are considered solid, from what I know. As well, Scott & White was ranked #14 by Solucient among all teaching hospitals.
Clinical Rotations: A more hands-on approach is advocated. Ancillary staff at Scott & White are plentiful and from what I've heard you don't get scutted out very often. Yes you will take q3 call and you will work some long shifts, but it's worth it.
Housing: This is Texas! Housing is CHEAP. I'm in a 2Bed/1Br place for ~600 a month. It's considered a luxury apartment complex. Housing is very cheap here and very easy to find (this applies to both College Station and Temple).
Study areas: There is always the med sciences or Scott & White library, but both campuses have an LRU where there are lots of dedicated study spaces and rooms for students. I'm a study-at-home kind of person, so I don't take advantage. But they have every book you'd need on reserve, computers, copiers, free printing in Temple (!), etc.
Social Scene: College Station? Just like undergrad. Temple?....not so much.
Local Hospitals: See my above comments on Scott & White. We also rotate at the VA and at Driscoll Children's Hospital in Corpus Christi.
Board Prep: Good. Last years average was 225, not bad considering we don't admit mostly "elite" students.
Specialty: Not sure what this means, but we have people match into just about everything every year. Neurosurgery, radiation oncology, ENT, plastics, urology, radiology, derm (several), are all matched each year, and at good places too (Dartmouth, Cleveland Clinic, we had one at Mass Gen).
Grades: A-B-C-F. Standard breakdown. We are ranked at don't find out until 3rd year.
Overall Grade: A+. I'm a little biased though
.
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I'll preface this by saying that I'm a M2, any comments about the clinical years are not based on 1st hand experience.
U of Toledo- College of Medicine
Curriculum: We have a block system. M1 consists of Biochem, then Anatomy, then Neuro/Behavioral. M2 consists of Immunity/Infection (drugs and bugs) and then Organ Systems (Physio, Pharm, Path system by stystem) for the bulk of the year. It works out well and the M2 curriculum is high yield for the boards. Additionally, there's the longitudinal clinical practice stuff (they've revamped the curriculum for that for the current 1st years so I won't go into huge detail) but it has history taking, physical exam, etc on standardized patients, medical ethics, all that fun stuff. There is a 2hr/week PBL component. I'm not a huge fan of that- personally I think PBL has to be a much larger portion of the curriculum and more standardized to be a significant benefit, but it doesn't really bother me. While I don't find it to be the most productive way to learn, I do enjoy trying to figure out the case. (I also watch too much House)
Location: Toledo, OH
Cost: if you're OOS first year, but then b/c they let you have IS residency for year's 2-4. Averages out to . Cost of living in Toledo is great.
Faculty: Could not be happier with my interactions with the faculty. I needed some surgery part way through M1 and that really threw a wrench into the works. The faculty were extremely supportive and helped me with rescheduling tests and getting everything back on track. I would honestly say this is on of if not the best selling points of my school.
Reputation: Formerly Medical College of Ohio, now University of Toledo. We've got a pretty decent local name but we're not a giant research university. Still, our students don't seem to have trouble matching.
Clinical Rotations: No first hand experience here. We have affiliated hospitals in Toledo (UT Hospital, St. Vincents, and something else, maybe Flower) and affiliations with Riverside in Columbus and Henry Ford in Detroit. Any of the above may be used for your Core Rotations. Additionally you are required to do a certain minimum amount of time during (8 weeks?) in an underserved setting as part of an Area Health Care Experience (AHCE), this can be as close as 45 min away. If it's farther, the school will provide housing. The advantage to this is that you get a lot more hands on experience... if you opt to do an OB AHCE, you'll be more involved and catch more babies. If you do a surgery AHCE, you'll be more involved in the actual surgeries (although a 3rd year friend of mine just got off an ortho elective at the UT Hospital and could not stop talking about how they let her use the bone saw). So, as far as the AHCEs go, some 3rd years swear by them and load up... others just do the min amount of time and stick to the big hospitals.
Housing: No on campus housing. But, Toledo has cheap apartments (or even condos and houses). Admittedly, the nicer places are a little farther away from the medical campus, but I managed to find a pretty nice apartment complex with inexpensive rent and a good landlord less than 5 min away from the health science campus.
Study areas: The library is pretty and there's a lot of natural light. It's normally open 24hrs a day Sunday-Thurs. 24-7 during exam weeks. I actually prefer to study elsewhere on campus and there's no shortage of little study rooms and other places to set yourself up. There's free coffee/hot chocolate/tea in the cafeteria for med students...
Social Scene: Most of the social scene is student generated. Toledo doesn't have much of a night life, but students manage to make a party when exams are over. Some people manage occasional trips to Columbus, Chicago or up to Michigan to go skiing if time permits.
Local Hospitals: I don't really have much experience with hospitals other than UT hospital. I know between UT and St. Vincent's we've got all the major stuff covered.
Board Prep: My personal opinion is that a lot of this depends on the student. But traditionally, students at my school do well on the USMLE. The second year curriculum does a good job preparing students for the USMLE and there is a prep course after classes in May and then students get most of May and all of June to prepare for and take the exam.
Specialty: also not sure what this means. I've heard our strengths are Ortho, Urology, Family... but we put people into every field.
Grades: We grade on a Honors, High Pass, Pass, Fail system (translates to A, B, C, F). Despite that, I wouldn't say it's a competitive, we aren't graded on a curve. Before a test, you'll see people posting stuff to our wikisite, sharing study guides and so forth.
Overall Grade: I give it an A. I'm very happy where I am.
EDIT: fixed the omitted curriculum content
U of Toledo- College of Medicine
Curriculum: We have a block system. M1 consists of Biochem, then Anatomy, then Neuro/Behavioral. M2 consists of Immunity/Infection (drugs and bugs) and then Organ Systems (Physio, Pharm, Path system by stystem) for the bulk of the year. It works out well and the M2 curriculum is high yield for the boards. Additionally, there's the longitudinal clinical practice stuff (they've revamped the curriculum for that for the current 1st years so I won't go into huge detail) but it has history taking, physical exam, etc on standardized patients, medical ethics, all that fun stuff. There is a 2hr/week PBL component. I'm not a huge fan of that- personally I think PBL has to be a much larger portion of the curriculum and more standardized to be a significant benefit, but it doesn't really bother me. While I don't find it to be the most productive way to learn, I do enjoy trying to figure out the case. (I also watch too much House)
Location: Toledo, OH
Cost:
if you're OOS first year, but then b/c they let you have IS residency for year's 2-4. Averages out to . Cost of living in Toledo is great. Faculty: Could not be happier with my interactions with the faculty. I needed some surgery part way through M1 and that really threw a wrench into the works. The faculty were extremely supportive and helped me with rescheduling tests and getting everything back on track. I would honestly say this is on of if not the best selling points of my school.
Reputation: Formerly Medical College of Ohio, now University of Toledo. We've got a pretty decent local name but we're not a giant research university. Still, our students don't seem to have trouble matching.
Clinical Rotations: No first hand experience here. We have affiliated hospitals in Toledo (UT Hospital, St. Vincents, and something else, maybe Flower) and affiliations with Riverside in Columbus and Henry Ford in Detroit. Any of the above may be used for your Core Rotations. Additionally you are required to do a certain minimum amount of time during (8 weeks?) in an underserved setting as part of an Area Health Care Experience (AHCE), this can be as close as 45 min away. If it's farther, the school will provide housing. The advantage to this is that you get a lot more hands on experience... if you opt to do an OB AHCE, you'll be more involved and catch more babies. If you do a surgery AHCE, you'll be more involved in the actual surgeries (although a 3rd year friend of mine just got off an ortho elective at the UT Hospital and could not stop talking about how they let her use the bone saw). So, as far as the AHCEs go, some 3rd years swear by them and load up... others just do the min amount of time and stick to the big hospitals.
Housing: No on campus housing. But, Toledo has cheap apartments (or even condos and houses). Admittedly, the nicer places are a little farther away from the medical campus, but I managed to find a pretty nice apartment complex with inexpensive rent and a good landlord less than 5 min away from the health science campus.
Study areas: The library is pretty and there's a lot of natural light. It's normally open 24hrs a day Sunday-Thurs. 24-7 during exam weeks. I actually prefer to study elsewhere on campus and there's no shortage of little study rooms and other places to set yourself up. There's free coffee/hot chocolate/tea in the cafeteria for med students...
Social Scene: Most of the social scene is student generated. Toledo doesn't have much of a night life, but students manage to make a party when exams are over. Some people manage occasional trips to Columbus, Chicago or up to Michigan to go skiing if time permits.
Local Hospitals: I don't really have much experience with hospitals other than UT hospital. I know between UT and St. Vincent's we've got all the major stuff covered.
Board Prep: My personal opinion is that a lot of this depends on the student. But traditionally, students at my school do well on the USMLE. The second year curriculum does a good job preparing students for the USMLE and there is a prep course after classes in May and then students get most of May and all of June to prepare for and take the exam.
Specialty: also not sure what this means. I've heard our strengths are Ortho, Urology, Family... but we put people into every field.
Grades: We grade on a Honors, High Pass, Pass, Fail system (translates to A, B, C, F). Despite that, I wouldn't say it's a competitive, we aren't graded on a curve. Before a test, you'll see people posting stuff to our wikisite, sharing study guides and so forth.
Overall Grade: I give it an A. I'm very happy where I am.
EDIT: fixed the omitted curriculum content
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I received the following review via PM:
UMDNJ- Robert Wood Johnson Medical School
Curriculum: Traditional, block schedule. We have a lot of class.
Location: Piscataway, NJ
Cost: ~$25,000 for in state. I find it ridiculous that I pay this much for in state tuition.
Faculty: Love the faculty. A very open door, inviting, and friendly faculty who are willing to help whenever you need it.
Reputation: Great rep as far as state schools go.
Clinical Rotations: Haven't done them yet, but there are two programs. One lets you rotate through New Brunswick, Princeton, and Jersey Shore, while the other lets you do all your rotations at Cooper Hospital in Camden.
Housing: There is no student housing, but many students live in Society Hill in Piscataway. To say the least, this is still NJ so prepare to cough up a little extra at the first of the month.
Study areas: There is a bounty of study areas. Almost at every turn. Also places to just hang out, blow off steam, as well as study for days on end. While other parts of the building may be falling apart, the small group rooms and anatomy labs are kept quite well.
Aesthetics: The big downer about the school is that the building hasn't been renovated since the 70's. The lecture halls are falling apart and I constantly wonder why I pay a crazy amount of in state tuition, but not a penny can go to painting the damn walls. Building takes on a "prison-like" appearance in the winter time.
Social Scene: After orientation, you will quickly find that most of the class likes to have a good time. Emails circulate almost weekly as to which bar most of us will congregating at, but this seems to die down near exam time.
People are always willing to share a great find whether it be old exams, notes, videos etc. Very friendly, laid back environment.
Local Hospitals: RWJUH is one of the best hospitals in the state. With all of the financial crises and the other NJ hospitals closing down right and left, people still say that even if we have another great depression, RWJUH will still be left standing.
Top notch research, and an outstanding teaching hospital.
Grades: Strictly P/F for the first two years. Last two years work on an H/HP/P kind of system.
Overall Grade: B+
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School: Oregon Health & Science University
Curriculum: Block Scheduling - Subject-based for year I (Anatomy, Biochem, etc), Systems-based for year II. We have one class at a time, with lab and lecture scheduled from 8am-12pm. We have a clinical skills class and a clinical preceptorship one afternoon each during the week.
Location: Portland, Oregon
Cost: For the last entering class, out of state tuition (including fees and living expenses) was $67,149 per year. This number is lower for in state students, but not by very much. Students are invited to apply for scholarships during the fall of their first year, but no university-based scholarships are offered prior to matriculation. Out of state students cannot qualify for in state tuition if they moved to OR specifically for schooling.
Faculty: Most lectures during the first two years are taught by PhD faculty, but there is no shortage of absolutely outstanding physicians on hand. Physicians give clinical correlate lectures frequently during the first two years, and specialists are always available in lab to jump in and share their insight (e.g. ENTs during head dissection, Orthopedic surgeons during leg and hip dissections, GIs during the abdominal dissections)
Reputation: OHSU has a glowing reputation for producing amazing clinicians - #2 in the Primary Care USNews rankings. Our reseach record is a little less stellar unless you are talking about the Neuroscience graduate program which is in the top 20 nationwide. OHSU is also well known for its dual degree MD/MPH and MD/PhD programs.
Clinical Rotations: I am an MS1 so anything I say here may be a little bit off. Basically, OHSU requires rotations through Internal Medicine, Family Medicine, Peds, Ob/Gyn, Surgery, Psych, and Family Medicine during third year. During fourth year, students are required to rotate through neurology, ICU/MICU, a surgical subspecialty, a child health subspecialty, and an elective rotation. Most of these rotations take place in the Portland area, but the rural rotations and some elective rotations take place in locations throughout the state of Oregon. There are also transitional courses that must be completed prior to third year, and before leaving for residency. OHSU also has preceptor rotations for first and second years - by the end of MSII, all student have spent a year with an IM or family practice physician and another year divided between three different specialties.
Housing: There is no official student housing, but many students live on Marquam Hill very close to campus. Other students choose to find more modern housing downtown or cheaper housing across the river.
Study areas: OHSU's "old library" is a favorite study spot reserved specifically for medical students. Many students also study in the new library or in rooms in the Basic Science Building.
Social Scene: There is a ton to do in Portland. The ski slopes, the water, and the Columbia River Gorge are within driving distance, and downtown Portland has a host of museums, art galleries, theaters, and restaurants. During the summer months, there are also daily outdoor musical/dance performances and farmers markets, not to mention several large-scale events such as marathons or biking events.
Local Hospitals: Many of Portland's major hospitals are location on Marquam Hill with the medical campus. These include the OHSU main hospital, the children's hospital, the VA hospital, and several buildings that host individual clinics. These hospitals draw patients from several cities, and most are very up-to-date.
Board Prep: OHSU is known to prep students extremely well for Step II, but there is some contention over how well students are prepared for Step I. Unlike many other schools, OHSU provides a much shorter break between the end of MSII and the Step I exam, and some students have found OHSU to be lacking in board review. Regardless, OHSU students score at the average for Step I, and very very well on Step II.
Specialty: OHSU has a reputation for producing primary care doctors, but our students match successfully into a range of specialties.
Grades: OHSU uses an Honors/Near Honors/Satisfactory/Marginal/Fail system during the first two years. Third/Fourth year rotations and our clinical skills course are more subjectively graded - using a 1-10 rating scale.
Overall Grade: A-
I have been very very happy at OHSU, and I think their reputation for teaching students to think like clinicians is very well-deserved.
Curriculum: Block Scheduling - Subject-based for year I (Anatomy, Biochem, etc), Systems-based for year II. We have one class at a time, with lab and lecture scheduled from 8am-12pm. We have a clinical skills class and a clinical preceptorship one afternoon each during the week.
Location: Portland, Oregon
Cost: For the last entering class, out of state tuition (including fees and living expenses) was $67,149 per year. This number is lower for in state students, but not by very much. Students are invited to apply for scholarships during the fall of their first year, but no university-based scholarships are offered prior to matriculation. Out of state students cannot qualify for in state tuition if they moved to OR specifically for schooling.
Faculty: Most lectures during the first two years are taught by PhD faculty, but there is no shortage of absolutely outstanding physicians on hand. Physicians give clinical correlate lectures frequently during the first two years, and specialists are always available in lab to jump in and share their insight (e.g. ENTs during head dissection, Orthopedic surgeons during leg and hip dissections, GIs during the abdominal dissections)
Reputation: OHSU has a glowing reputation for producing amazing clinicians - #2 in the Primary Care USNews rankings. Our reseach record is a little less stellar unless you are talking about the Neuroscience graduate program which is in the top 20 nationwide. OHSU is also well known for its dual degree MD/MPH and MD/PhD programs.
Clinical Rotations: I am an MS1 so anything I say here may be a little bit off. Basically, OHSU requires rotations through Internal Medicine, Family Medicine, Peds, Ob/Gyn, Surgery, Psych, and Family Medicine during third year. During fourth year, students are required to rotate through neurology, ICU/MICU, a surgical subspecialty, a child health subspecialty, and an elective rotation. Most of these rotations take place in the Portland area, but the rural rotations and some elective rotations take place in locations throughout the state of Oregon. There are also transitional courses that must be completed prior to third year, and before leaving for residency. OHSU also has preceptor rotations for first and second years - by the end of MSII, all student have spent a year with an IM or family practice physician and another year divided between three different specialties.
Housing: There is no official student housing, but many students live on Marquam Hill very close to campus. Other students choose to find more modern housing downtown or cheaper housing across the river.
Study areas: OHSU's "old library" is a favorite study spot reserved specifically for medical students. Many students also study in the new library or in rooms in the Basic Science Building.
Social Scene: There is a ton to do in Portland. The ski slopes, the water, and the Columbia River Gorge are within driving distance, and downtown Portland has a host of museums, art galleries, theaters, and restaurants. During the summer months, there are also daily outdoor musical/dance performances and farmers markets, not to mention several large-scale events such as marathons or biking events.
Local Hospitals: Many of Portland's major hospitals are location on Marquam Hill with the medical campus. These include the OHSU main hospital, the children's hospital, the VA hospital, and several buildings that host individual clinics. These hospitals draw patients from several cities, and most are very up-to-date.
Board Prep: OHSU is known to prep students extremely well for Step II, but there is some contention over how well students are prepared for Step I. Unlike many other schools, OHSU provides a much shorter break between the end of MSII and the Step I exam, and some students have found OHSU to be lacking in board review. Regardless, OHSU students score at the average for Step I, and very very well on Step II.
Specialty: OHSU has a reputation for producing primary care doctors, but our students match successfully into a range of specialties.
Grades: OHSU uses an Honors/Near Honors/Satisfactory/Marginal/Fail system during the first two years. Third/Fourth year rotations and our clinical skills course are more subjectively graded - using a 1-10 rating scale.
Overall Grade: A-
I have been very very happy at OHSU, and I think their reputation for teaching students to think like clinicians is very well-deserved.
2
235009
on the contrary...though i agree with you that the OP phrased it a bit selfishly i think this could be an excellent resource for all premeds and the more schools that are represented the better!
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I'll add it to the FAQ/Useful links thread or whatever we've got going in pre-allo.
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School: BU
Location: Boston, MA
Cost: Sold my soul (tuition was like 45k, and living expensive is a close 20k or so)
Faculty: Many are truly dedicated faculties, wonderful human being, not just teaching, but actually caring (academically and personally). And then there are those who can put half the class to sleep in 10 minutes, with lousy syllabus, but those are far and few in between the good ones.
Reputation: Pretty good I think, I hope.
Clinical Rotations: Not there yet. (Boston Medical Center is a level I trauma center, and Boston is pretty diverse. We also get placed to other locations. 3rd and 4th years seem to be pretty content).
Housing: Nice place across the school, but cost you a kidney and liver. It's just as expensive around school. There are cheaper but farther locations.
Study areas: Have some very good study rooms (actually 24 hrs I think) and conference rooms. Library is dull and boring. Undergraduate libraries across the town is pretty nice.
Social Scene: It ain't NYC but it's not too shabby. Plenty clubs and lounges, bars, and entertainment. You know what, as long as your classmates are fun loving people, you'll have fun no matter where you go!
Local Hospitals: Not enough exposure to comment.
Board Prep: Next year baby.
Specialty: MD.PhD, MD.MBA, MD.MPH. If you are talking about residency placement, I'm sure there's a website about it.
Grades: P/F for the first two years (with Marginal P). Supposedly it's completely unranked. Eventually it's your Step 1 score and clinical year grades.
Other Comments: It's a good school in a nice place. Expensive, but hey, State schools aren't for everyone! XD
Overall Grade: A-. Need better dining option and cheaper tuition and living options.
Location: Boston, MA
Cost: Sold my soul (tuition was like 45k, and living expensive is a close 20k or so)
Faculty: Many are truly dedicated faculties, wonderful human being, not just teaching, but actually caring (academically and personally). And then there are those who can put half the class to sleep in 10 minutes, with lousy syllabus, but those are far and few in between the good ones.
Reputation: Pretty good I think, I hope.
Clinical Rotations: Not there yet. (Boston Medical Center is a level I trauma center, and Boston is pretty diverse. We also get placed to other locations. 3rd and 4th years seem to be pretty content).
Housing: Nice place across the school, but cost you a kidney and liver. It's just as expensive around school. There are cheaper but farther locations.
Study areas: Have some very good study rooms (actually 24 hrs I think) and conference rooms. Library is dull and boring. Undergraduate libraries across the town is pretty nice.
Social Scene: It ain't NYC but it's not too shabby. Plenty clubs and lounges, bars, and entertainment. You know what, as long as your classmates are fun loving people, you'll have fun no matter where you go!
Local Hospitals: Not enough exposure to comment.
Board Prep: Next year baby.
Specialty: MD.PhD, MD.MBA, MD.MPH. If you are talking about residency placement, I'm sure there's a website about it.
Grades: P/F for the first two years (with Marginal P). Supposedly it's completely unranked. Eventually it's your Step 1 score and clinical year grades.
Other Comments: It's a good school in a nice place. Expensive, but hey, State schools aren't for everyone! XD
Overall Grade: A-. Need better dining option and cheaper tuition and living options.
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UMDNJ- New Jersey Medical School
Curriculum: Mostly lecture based with lots of small group and TBL sessions sprinkled in. Anatomy is all lab/TBL based.
Location: Newark, NJ
Cost: Expensive--25K/yr after a 9% tuition hike this year. What can you expect though? Our state government is flat broke.
Faculty: Generally extremely supportive and into being educators.
Reputation: Not a great rep among pre-meds, but very well respected among physicians. One look at last year's match list will show you that residency directors think highly of the school.
Clinical Rotations: At University Hospital and the VA hospital in Newark, Hackensack, Morristown Memorial, and a few other places. I haven't taken them yet because i'm an M2, but I hear they are pretty rigorous.
Housing: Student dorm is expensive and is in a crappy neighborhood (like the rest of the school). It is safely guarded however, and has access to anywhere on campus without stepping foot outside. Off-campus housing is a popular option. Lots of students live in other parts of Newark, neighboring towns, Hoboken, even NYC. Campus is extremely accessible via public trans or car.
Study areas: Entire building including labs is open 24/7. There are a million places to study. The library closes at 11 though. That kinda sucks.
Aesthetics: Hideous 60's-modern concrete design outside. The architecture kinda reminds me of the death star. Large, pretty courtyard with trees, landscaping in between buildings. Inside they keep the place pretty immaculate. While a lot of the facilities are not too modern, they keep everything clean and functional.
Social Scene: Excellent. They go out of their way to accept friendly, outgoing students. Before exams everyone studies together and helps each other out with study guides, notecards, etc. After exams everyone goes out together to blow off steam. Lots of extracurriculars ranging from intense community service to flag football.
Local Hospitals: UH is an unbelievable place to study. It's the busiest trauma center in the state. We are one of the only hospitals left which gives charity care in all of north jersey. We treat state prisoners and psych patients. The hospital is overwhelmed with patients and hemorrhaging money. They depend heavily on students to help deliver care. They put you to work, even as an M1, and you learn a ton. Rotations at the VA hospital and some private hospitals in NJ can give you a break from the chaos.
Grades: H/HP/P/F throughout.
Overall Grade: A-, The location is a mixed blessing, and the facilities could be better, but overall the people and the education are phenomenal.
Curriculum: Mostly lecture based with lots of small group and TBL sessions sprinkled in. Anatomy is all lab/TBL based.
Location: Newark, NJ
Cost: Expensive--25K/yr after a 9% tuition hike this year. What can you expect though? Our state government is flat broke.
Faculty: Generally extremely supportive and into being educators.
Reputation: Not a great rep among pre-meds, but very well respected among physicians. One look at last year's match list will show you that residency directors think highly of the school.
Clinical Rotations: At University Hospital and the VA hospital in Newark, Hackensack, Morristown Memorial, and a few other places. I haven't taken them yet because i'm an M2, but I hear they are pretty rigorous.
Housing: Student dorm is expensive and is in a crappy neighborhood (like the rest of the school). It is safely guarded however, and has access to anywhere on campus without stepping foot outside. Off-campus housing is a popular option. Lots of students live in other parts of Newark, neighboring towns, Hoboken, even NYC. Campus is extremely accessible via public trans or car.
Study areas: Entire building including labs is open 24/7. There are a million places to study. The library closes at 11 though. That kinda sucks.
Aesthetics: Hideous 60's-modern concrete design outside. The architecture kinda reminds me of the death star. Large, pretty courtyard with trees, landscaping in between buildings. Inside they keep the place pretty immaculate. While a lot of the facilities are not too modern, they keep everything clean and functional.
Social Scene: Excellent. They go out of their way to accept friendly, outgoing students. Before exams everyone studies together and helps each other out with study guides, notecards, etc. After exams everyone goes out together to blow off steam. Lots of extracurriculars ranging from intense community service to flag football.
Local Hospitals: UH is an unbelievable place to study. It's the busiest trauma center in the state. We are one of the only hospitals left which gives charity care in all of north jersey. We treat state prisoners and psych patients. The hospital is overwhelmed with patients and hemorrhaging money. They depend heavily on students to help deliver care. They put you to work, even as an M1, and you learn a ton. Rotations at the VA hospital and some private hospitals in NJ can give you a break from the chaos.
Grades: H/HP/P/F throughout.
Overall Grade: A-, The location is a mixed blessing, and the facilities could be better, but overall the people and the education are phenomenal.
N
njbmd
Moved to Pre-Allo with a permanent redirect in Allopathic so folks there can continue to contribute.
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ooh, oooh someone do a ucla!
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received the following via PM:
School: Rosalind Franklin Univ. - Chicago Medical School
Location: North Chicago, IL
Cost: $40,000 tuition + $20,000 living exp. etc.
Faculty: The faculty are mixed, but I would say at least 1-2 phenomenal teachers per class, a handful of so-so, and 1-2 ones not so good. Overall, faculty are great though, they are intelligent, knowledgeable, produce substantive research (& opportunities to get involved are there), and are accessible to students. Clinical faculty vary, but you'll have some very good clinical lecturers for sure.
Reputation: Not great, but my impression is that while it doesn't really help you, it doesn't really hurt you either.
Clinical Rotations: Overall, good. But this varies, because we rotate through a wide variety of clinical sites. Our main partner is Advocate Health, so we rotate extensively through Christ, Lutheran, Masonic. We also rotate through Mt. Sinai, Cook County, Condell (actually recently joined Advocate), St. Anthony's, North Chicago VA. In general the Advocate sites are great facilities and good teaching and generally treat you well. Cook County and Mt. Sinai are generally rougher (inner city county hospitals with high traffic and somewhat indigent population) but awesome learning experiences because you see so much and you see so many patients and you get to do so much. Depends on the rotation, the student, and what team you get though.
Housing: M1-2: good, relatively inexpensive options immediately next to campus (3 dorm buildings and the Woodlands apartment complex, both a parking lot walk away).
M3-4: you're on your own to find housing in the city. Most everyone moves downtown between M2 & M3 because almost all of our rotations are downtown, and they're spread all over the city.
I'll take this opportunity to talk a little about the structure of the years - M1 & M2 years (basic science) are on campus in North Chicago, which is a good 30-45 minutes north of the city itself. It's situated directly between a crappy town (Waukegan) and a very affluent town (Lake Forest), so you either are within car-shot.
Pros: quiet, nice, relatively new buildings, decent cafeteria, lots of study space, all health professions students, the campus seems very safe.
Cons: away from upperclassmen, lack of strong connection to clinical department faculty, no "university" feel because there's no undergraduate programs, everything is at least a 5 minute drive (groceries, Starbucks, dry cleaning, bars, etc.)
Study areas: Good. Lots of study space M1-2. The library now has a 24-hr section open with computers, printers, tables, chairs, etc. and an expanded 24-hour computer lab. The library's got lots of study space and lots of computers, and a few private study rooms. During exams, they generally extend library hours and sometimes open up classrooms for student use. You can also reserve rooms on campus ahead of time if you want a room to study in. At the clinical sites, each hospital generally has a library with study space.
Social Scene: M1-2 = very little in North Chicago. You're a few minute drive away from a few decent bars and a ~30 minute drive from downtown, so I don't know, for me it was plenty, I'm not a big partier. Once you move downtown third year the city is your oyster, and you have a lot more fun.
Local Hospitals: As far as "local" hospitals go, the North Chicago VA is directly next to campus, and Condell & Lake Forest Hospital are each a 15 minute drive. The downtown hospitals I already kind of talked about. If students are in need of medical attention themselves, I think M1-2 generally go to the Student Health Center immediately adjacent to the school or Condell, maybe Lake Forest. I addressed clinical rotations elsewhere.
Board Prep: Pretty good, I think. We generally get a lot of information and are tested pretty rigorously, which helps the good students to do well on the boards. Very little hand-holding, though. No specific "board prep" really. M2 year we take several Shelf exams leading up to Step I, which I think is awesome practice/prep.
Specialty: Not sure if we have a "specialty", but the schools real big on the interprofessional approach, though I'm not sure it's a big deal for students. We tend to put a lot of students into EM and had a lot in radiology last year. One somewhat unique thing is we have a 4 week EM rotation third year and a 3 week neurology rotation third year and you can postpone either EM or ambulatory care until 4th year if you want to take off a little time for an early away rotation or subspecialty rotation or research or something.
Grades: A/B/C/F all the way through. A good thing in my opinion.
Other Comments: I think it's an underrated school, but at this school it's very much dependent on the student. If you're a hard-worker and are willing to do what you need to do to succeed and are self-motivated, you can do extremely well here and if you look at our match lists you'll see lots of evidence of that. But if you need the administration to hold your hand and lay it all out for you and coddle you, you won't get that.
Overall Grade: B (personally, I really enjoy it here and am doing well and have no real complaints, so I would give it an A, but being objective and taking everything possible into account, I guess I put it at a B)
School: UCSF
Location: San Francisco
curriculum Systems based. Mix between lectures (optional), PBL, and small groups with a lot of clinical integration. I really like the curriculum. The content is pretty straightforward and basic. It's med school so it isn't "easy," but they do a good job at not making it hard.
Cost: So so... it's a public school so it's not that bad, but it could really be a lot better.
Faculty: Fantastic. Very approachable, the major reason why I chose this school.
Reputation: humble
Clinical Rotations: Not there yet. But we start clinical stuff early. Also, UCSF has total control of San Francisco so there are PLENTY of opportunities to get clinical experience
Housing: Not good. Campus housing is scarce. Cost of living in SF is outrageous.
Study areas: Library could have more spaces and also have 24hr access. But there are a lot of rooms on campus with 24hr access.
Social Scene: Classmates are very social. San Francisco is San Francisco.
Local Hospitals: Not quite there yet. But I have had some experience with Parnassus, Mt. Zion and SFGH. I think it's a good representation of different types of care. Parnassus (adjacent to campus) has a bunch of wild cases, Mt. Zion is a little more relaxed and bread and butter, SFGH is county. There is also a VA but I haven't been there yet.
Board Prep: Adequate I hear. They don't teach to the boards so we have to prep ourselves. I'm not there yet so I don't really know what that is like.
Specialty: It's a well rounded school, but there is a definite sense that this is a clinical school with strong IM prep.
Grades: P/F for the first two years. H/P/F for clinical
Other Comments: The faculty and students are remarkable. Definitely the highlight of the school.
Overall Grade: Haha we're P/F so I'll go with a Pass. However, I'm very pleased with my decision to come here.
Location: San Francisco
curriculum Systems based. Mix between lectures (optional), PBL, and small groups with a lot of clinical integration. I really like the curriculum. The content is pretty straightforward and basic. It's med school so it isn't "easy," but they do a good job at not making it hard.
Cost: So so... it's a public school so it's not that bad, but it could really be a lot better.
Faculty: Fantastic. Very approachable, the major reason why I chose this school.
Reputation: humble
Clinical Rotations: Not there yet. But we start clinical stuff early. Also, UCSF has total control of San Francisco so there are PLENTY of opportunities to get clinical experience
Housing: Not good. Campus housing is scarce. Cost of living in SF is outrageous.
Study areas: Library could have more spaces and also have 24hr access. But there are a lot of rooms on campus with 24hr access.
Social Scene: Classmates are very social. San Francisco is San Francisco.
Local Hospitals: Not quite there yet. But I have had some experience with Parnassus, Mt. Zion and SFGH. I think it's a good representation of different types of care. Parnassus (adjacent to campus) has a bunch of wild cases, Mt. Zion is a little more relaxed and bread and butter, SFGH is county. There is also a VA but I haven't been there yet.
Board Prep: Adequate I hear. They don't teach to the boards so we have to prep ourselves. I'm not there yet so I don't really know what that is like.
Specialty: It's a well rounded school, but there is a definite sense that this is a clinical school with strong IM prep.
Grades: P/F for the first two years. H/P/F for clinical
Other Comments: The faculty and students are remarkable. Definitely the highlight of the school.
Overall Grade: Haha we're P/F so I'll go with a Pass. However, I'm very pleased with my decision to come here.
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Tag
wasnt there a thread just like this? i cant seem to find it, but i think it had impressions on most med schools. can anyone verify? am i making this up?
either way, great idea
I think there was one in the mentor forum. I'm going to find it and link it here. Thanks for the others who've contributed to this one. It is nice to see some med students are willing to take time out of their busy schedules to do this kind of thing for others.
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it was so we could use it to help us with our school choices
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Med students don't care about the various qualities of different med schools. Pre-meds do. Thus there was a permanent link left in the Allopathic forum so that current med students could come here and review their schools for the benefit of you and all other pre-meds.
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awesome, thank you!
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gracias
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.
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wasnt there a thread just like this? i cant seem to find it, but i think it had impressions on most med schools. can anyone verify? am i making this up?
either way, great idea
I think you mean [thread=410273]this thread[/thread], which is from 2007. But it only has reviews on 26 US schools, so there's certainly a lot of ground still to be covered.
I think these reviews are very helpful and really appreciate the time invested in writing them.
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haha danke.. but gujuDoc beat you to the punch!
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More med students please
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UAB anyone?...alabama needs some love
School: Mississippi
Location: Jackson
Preclinical Curriculum: Systems based, mainly traditional lecture but some PBL/small group as well as fairly regular doses of clinical application lectures by practicing MDs. Exam blocks last 4-6 wks then there's a test week. Shelf exams in late spring. Full summer break 1st year and full winter breaks both years, about 5 wks between M2-M3.
Cost: Cheap, something like 13K for '09.
Faculty: Very knowledgeable and nice, could count the number of malignant, incompetent, or lazy profs/attendings/residents I've met on one hand. There are a couple of bores on the preclinical side, also some absolutely brilliant and charismatic folks so it's a wash. The administration I've seen bend over backwards to help students, secure funding for activities and events, etc.
Reputation: Hard to say, average I guess. We don't take OOS, but looking at the next levels we don't seem to have problems matching students into residency/fellowship or attracting staff for vacancies, and we've got a great track record in medicine, both historical and current (Guyton model, first heart transplant, Hypertension studies)
Clinical Rotations: Clinical exposure begins officially early M2 year, but M1s and even premeds are welcomed by faculty to get involved in the ER or volunteer at the student-run free clinic. Third year: 12 wks of Medicine, including 8 wks of house and 2 wks respectively of neuro and a med elective like cardiology; 12 wks of Surgery (6 wks of wards and 3 6-wk subspecialty electives); 6 wks of OB/gyn (divided equally into the OB side including L&D and OB emergency) and the Gyn side (reproductive/endocrine, gyn surg, and gyn wards); 6 wks of Psych (divided into psych, medpsych, and childpsych); and 6 wks Family Med (1 month in rural MS and 2 wks on a local community hospital inpatient service). All have their respective clinics and call schedules, and didactics vary from ~3/day on medicine to ~3/wk on surgery. Shelf exams again in late spring. M4 year has 4 months of core, up to 3 months off although this can be stretched in various ways.
Housing: Great. Campus housing is being replaced, although I'm not sure of the timetable. There are still several apartment complexes within walking distance, and abundant affordable (<$150K) suburban-type housing within a 20 minute drive.
Study areas: Library is open something like 7-midnight and has lots of study space, there's also a couple of good rooms and nooks in the student union and other places scattered about campus. The classroom wing is a new buildingwith two large lecture halls (100 people+) and maybe 20 small group rooms, a computer lab, and several sim labs; all rooms have whiteboards, microphones, recording devices, projection software, etc. Whole campus has free wireless/pda access.
Social Scene: Well I don't have much to compare it to, but it's not hard to find a cool bar, club, sports pub, etc. School sponsors 4-5 large student parties per year (formal dance, Halloween party, crawfish boil, etc.) including beer, entertainment, and decoration. No pro sports closer than New Orleans/Atlanta/Nashville but we have a Triple A club. Couple of major concerts a year, circuses, fairs, street markets, **** like that. It's not NY or Philly but there's always something going on.
Local Hospitals: Main hospital on campus, only tertiary care hospital in the state so we get it all. Primary care areas are new circa '06, including main wards and critical care towers. Connected to main hospital are children's, obstetric, and rehab hospitals. VA hospital adjacent and several rotations you'll spend some time there. Family medicine has M3 rotation at Baptist community, M4 rotation at St. Dominic community, both within 5 miles of main campus. All badge-access with decent security and free parking, multiple restaurants and cafeterias although there's usually a free meal around somewhere.
Board Prep: Doesn't teach to step 1, although we hit the national average every year on Step 1 (I think this year was 224 or something). Step 2 CS prep is integrated into M3 year. Again shelf exams serves as good prep, and the 5 wks between M2-M3 allows for adequate study time.
Specialty: Overall goal of training MS students to be MS doctors, primary care preferred but not overly so. Aside from that there's not a residency we don't have except PM&R, and have most fellowships. And we consistently match folks into competitive specialties and top programs.
Grades: A-F, traditional points system. 70 is passing, 75 cumulative to advance and must pass all courses. There's a counseling/grade support service in place, and faculty are aggressive in getting involved with students who aren't doing so hot.
Other Comments: Some general cons include:
1) bunching the shelf exams at the end of the year; I guess the idea is to help with board prep, but with only a week to prep for these it's awfully tough to revisit neuro after an 8 month layoff for example.
2) at times the curve is employed too generously; our genetics prof for example told us first day there was no pressure to pass, just learn what we could and remember a few core concepts. Of course the entire class slacked, so we ended up with a 15-point curve to make everyone a C or better. Maybe a 'pro' for you at the time but it's detrimental to the learning process.
3) Our surgery and neurology depts were on the decline but seem to be improving.
4) There was a move recently to limit university physicians' outside practices, the goal being to keep them from taking paying customers private and treating everyone else at UMC. Not sure what impact this will have on staff turnover longterm; obviously some don't like the policy but more money for UMC will ostensibly have a trickle-down effect that should become more apparent as we go along.
Overall Grade: A. I'm happy I chose to stay here vs. going out of state to that great SDN myth of a higher-tiered school. This school allows one to get as much or as little out of their tuition as they care to, and they take care of their own when it comes to residency/fellowship match and research efforts.
Location: Jackson
Preclinical Curriculum: Systems based, mainly traditional lecture but some PBL/small group as well as fairly regular doses of clinical application lectures by practicing MDs. Exam blocks last 4-6 wks then there's a test week. Shelf exams in late spring. Full summer break 1st year and full winter breaks both years, about 5 wks between M2-M3.
Cost: Cheap, something like 13K for '09.
Faculty: Very knowledgeable and nice, could count the number of malignant, incompetent, or lazy profs/attendings/residents I've met on one hand. There are a couple of bores on the preclinical side, also some absolutely brilliant and charismatic folks so it's a wash. The administration I've seen bend over backwards to help students, secure funding for activities and events, etc.
Reputation: Hard to say, average I guess. We don't take OOS, but looking at the next levels we don't seem to have problems matching students into residency/fellowship or attracting staff for vacancies, and we've got a great track record in medicine, both historical and current (Guyton model, first heart transplant, Hypertension studies)
Clinical Rotations: Clinical exposure begins officially early M2 year, but M1s and even premeds are welcomed by faculty to get involved in the ER or volunteer at the student-run free clinic. Third year: 12 wks of Medicine, including 8 wks of house and 2 wks respectively of neuro and a med elective like cardiology; 12 wks of Surgery (6 wks of wards and 3 6-wk subspecialty electives); 6 wks of OB/gyn (divided equally into the OB side including L&D and OB emergency) and the Gyn side (reproductive/endocrine, gyn surg, and gyn wards); 6 wks of Psych (divided into psych, medpsych, and childpsych); and 6 wks Family Med (1 month in rural MS and 2 wks on a local community hospital inpatient service). All have their respective clinics and call schedules, and didactics vary from ~3/day on medicine to ~3/wk on surgery. Shelf exams again in late spring. M4 year has 4 months of core, up to 3 months off although this can be stretched in various ways.
Housing: Great. Campus housing is being replaced, although I'm not sure of the timetable. There are still several apartment complexes within walking distance, and abundant affordable (<$150K) suburban-type housing within a 20 minute drive.
Study areas: Library is open something like 7-midnight and has lots of study space, there's also a couple of good rooms and nooks in the student union and other places scattered about campus. The classroom wing is a new buildingwith two large lecture halls (100 people+) and maybe 20 small group rooms, a computer lab, and several sim labs; all rooms have whiteboards, microphones, recording devices, projection software, etc. Whole campus has free wireless/pda access.
Social Scene: Well I don't have much to compare it to, but it's not hard to find a cool bar, club, sports pub, etc. School sponsors 4-5 large student parties per year (formal dance, Halloween party, crawfish boil, etc.) including beer, entertainment, and decoration. No pro sports closer than New Orleans/Atlanta/Nashville but we have a Triple A club. Couple of major concerts a year, circuses, fairs, street markets, **** like that. It's not NY or Philly but there's always something going on.
Local Hospitals: Main hospital on campus, only tertiary care hospital in the state so we get it all. Primary care areas are new circa '06, including main wards and critical care towers. Connected to main hospital are children's, obstetric, and rehab hospitals. VA hospital adjacent and several rotations you'll spend some time there. Family medicine has M3 rotation at Baptist community, M4 rotation at St. Dominic community, both within 5 miles of main campus. All badge-access with decent security and free parking, multiple restaurants and cafeterias although there's usually a free meal around somewhere.
Board Prep: Doesn't teach to step 1, although we hit the national average every year on Step 1 (I think this year was 224 or something). Step 2 CS prep is integrated into M3 year. Again shelf exams serves as good prep, and the 5 wks between M2-M3 allows for adequate study time.
Specialty: Overall goal of training MS students to be MS doctors, primary care preferred but not overly so. Aside from that there's not a residency we don't have except PM&R, and have most fellowships. And we consistently match folks into competitive specialties and top programs.
Grades: A-F, traditional points system. 70 is passing, 75 cumulative to advance and must pass all courses. There's a counseling/grade support service in place, and faculty are aggressive in getting involved with students who aren't doing so hot.
Other Comments: Some general cons include:
1) bunching the shelf exams at the end of the year; I guess the idea is to help with board prep, but with only a week to prep for these it's awfully tough to revisit neuro after an 8 month layoff for example.
2) at times the curve is employed too generously; our genetics prof for example told us first day there was no pressure to pass, just learn what we could and remember a few core concepts. Of course the entire class slacked, so we ended up with a 15-point curve to make everyone a C or better. Maybe a 'pro' for you at the time but it's detrimental to the learning process.
3) Our surgery and neurology depts were on the decline but seem to be improving.
4) There was a move recently to limit university physicians' outside practices, the goal being to keep them from taking paying customers private and treating everyone else at UMC. Not sure what impact this will have on staff turnover longterm; obviously some don't like the policy but more money for UMC will ostensibly have a trickle-down effect that should become more apparent as we go along.
Overall Grade: A. I'm happy I chose to stay here vs. going out of state to that great SDN myth of a higher-tiered school. This school allows one to get as much or as little out of their tuition as they care to, and they take care of their own when it comes to residency/fellowship match and research efforts.
Last edited:
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Got this one via PM:
Curriculum: Traditional block-based. Science classes the first year (anatomy, bio-chem, etc.), then systems-based, much like OHSU.
Location: Salt Lake City, Utah
Cost: 20k in-state, around 40k OOS (although this will go up next year due to a pretty big cut in funding).
Faculty: Excellent for the most part. There are a few teachers most of my class could do without, but not bad overall.
Reputation: I honestly have no idea. I know the oncology and peds programs are world-class, but outside of that I'm thinking average.
Clinical Rotations: Not there yet, but I know that for future classes, they'll be reducing/eliminating family medicine rotation, and increasing the electives.
Housing: Lots of housing, and fairly cheap. Apartments are across the street from the school and run $600/mo for 1 BR. Many students live off-campus for less than this with roommates.
Study areas: Plentiful. The school is open 24/7 and has many nooks and crannies. In addition, a medical library is attached to the school, and the main campus library is 5 mins away.
Social Scene: It's Utah, so yeah... the nightlife is actually pretty good, but it's expensive to drink here. All the bars require memberships (need a membership to each bar you drink at), although that may be going away soon.
Local Hospitals: Pretty numerous. We have 2 hospitals (peds and university), and an oncology specialty hospital attached. One other trauma I center in the area, and a decent selection of other hospitals that rotations are done at.
Board Prep: Evolving. The curriculum is being changed next year, but I can say that for last year, the class all did above average.
Specialty: School?
Grades: H/P/F, whatever that means.
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This could be great if we could really get a substantial number of schools reviewed this way. With some repeats we can even get multiple perspectives.
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Curriculum: Very traditional. Lectures, some small lab discussion groups. Early clinical experience in small groups with standardized patients and community preceptors with a single partner. Classes are taught individually by subject with few classes at the beginning of first year building up. I like it, I'm a learn on my own kind of person. Some people don't. But UCI never pretended to be progressive or PBL, so I don't have pity for people who get mad that its not PBL. I certainly wouldn't be here if it was. You have to work hard, there is help when you need it but they expect you to be an adult and study and accept the consequences if you choose not to. They aren't going to baby you.
We have some incredible professors and some that are boring just like any school. Overall its a good learning experience and they give you the tools you need to succeed.
Location: Depends on what you like. I like sleepy, safe suburb. Close enough to LA and SD if you want the culture, but nice and quiet and safe. You need a car which some people don't like. You could manage without one if you got an apartment on campus and mooched rides from people but I wouldn't recommend it.
Super close to the beach for those who like it. Its a beautiful area.
Food sucks. Lots of chains, I miss the cheap variety of Berkeley but eating out less is probably good for me.
Cost:Pretty average. 25k/year in tuition and they give you 25k/year to live off of. If you can live on-campus you take out a little less, but generally expect 50k/year. A lot of people get 5k in scholarship money which helps a little (its income based).
Faculty:We have some incredible professors (Harry Haigler comes to mind - he eats lunch with the students EVERYDAY he is an incredible lecturer and when we didn't feel we'd learned enough in our sexual phys lecture he had an extra lunchtime session for us where he brought us all lunch). We also have some poor ones. It varies as I'm sure it does with every school. Overall I'm very pleased with the faculty here and I really enjoy the clinical faculty I've had the opportunity to work with as well (limited d/t the fact that I'm only a 2nd year)
Reputation: Moderate. Cali school. Number 30 something rating. But often considered the "lowest" of the Cali schools. But really that comes down to premed perception, not any real determination of quality of education or residency program perception. We have lots of students get AMAZING matches.
I'd say the biggest problem UCI has is the bad publicity. We are hated by some newspapers and they pick up on every thing. Yes some bad stuff has happened here but it has no effect on the quality of your education as a medical student.
Overall, I don't feel like I'm any better or worse educated than any other medical school.
Clinical Rotations: I'll let you know next year!
Housing: On-campus is the cheapest option and like a 20 min walk from the med school campus. Off-campus is pricey but usually really nice because of the area.
Study areas: Brand new building will be done this fall. Has tons of private study rooms and study caroles. Will be an incredible brand new facility for med students to use and I'm jealous that I won't get to use it.
Social Scene:The med students here are very social so even though we don't live in an area known for its social scene they definitely make one. Plenty to do all the time. Although I personally would rather not be around my classmates constantly - the whole 100 person class drama that medical school encourages gets old.
Local Hospitals: Brand new UCI hospital opening in March. Its 20 min away from the med school campus in Orange but that doesn't effect you too much. You have to commute to other hospitals anyway almost anywhere you go. And a lot of med student move to Orange.
Board Prep:
They offer a USMLE Kaplan course for a month at the end of your second year and give you 2 months to study for the exam. They really give you everything you need to succeed on the boards and I have heard that we have the highest averages in the state (though I have never seen the numbers to prove it)
Specialty: Not sure what you mean by this.
Grades: H/P/F No percentages kept so a 89 is as good as a 71 which is kind of nice.
Financial Aid: Limited. PRIMErs get a scholarship (like 10k I think) and people with parental income less than 100k seem to all get 5k/year. Thats pretty much it.
Technology: Minimal. We just started podcasts. We're about to get a new classroom and study building and clinical center so I'm sure this will change, but because we are a traditional curriculum technology isn't really a big priority.
Overall Grade: [/QUOTE] A-
We have some incredible professors and some that are boring just like any school. Overall its a good learning experience and they give you the tools you need to succeed.
Location: Depends on what you like. I like sleepy, safe suburb. Close enough to LA and SD if you want the culture, but nice and quiet and safe. You need a car which some people don't like. You could manage without one if you got an apartment on campus and mooched rides from people but I wouldn't recommend it.
Super close to the beach for those who like it. Its a beautiful area.
Food sucks. Lots of chains, I miss the cheap variety of Berkeley but eating out less is probably good for me.
Cost:Pretty average. 25k/year in tuition and they give you 25k/year to live off of. If you can live on-campus you take out a little less, but generally expect 50k/year. A lot of people get 5k in scholarship money which helps a little (its income based).
Faculty:We have some incredible professors (Harry Haigler comes to mind - he eats lunch with the students EVERYDAY he is an incredible lecturer and when we didn't feel we'd learned enough in our sexual phys lecture he had an extra lunchtime session for us where he brought us all lunch). We also have some poor ones. It varies as I'm sure it does with every school. Overall I'm very pleased with the faculty here and I really enjoy the clinical faculty I've had the opportunity to work with as well (limited d/t the fact that I'm only a 2nd year)
Reputation: Moderate. Cali school. Number 30 something rating. But often considered the "lowest" of the Cali schools. But really that comes down to premed perception, not any real determination of quality of education or residency program perception. We have lots of students get AMAZING matches.
I'd say the biggest problem UCI has is the bad publicity. We are hated by some newspapers and they pick up on every thing. Yes some bad stuff has happened here but it has no effect on the quality of your education as a medical student.
Overall, I don't feel like I'm any better or worse educated than any other medical school.
Clinical Rotations: I'll let you know next year!
Housing: On-campus is the cheapest option and like a 20 min walk from the med school campus. Off-campus is pricey but usually really nice because of the area.
Study areas: Brand new building will be done this fall. Has tons of private study rooms and study caroles. Will be an incredible brand new facility for med students to use and I'm jealous that I won't get to use it.
Social Scene:The med students here are very social so even though we don't live in an area known for its social scene they definitely make one. Plenty to do all the time. Although I personally would rather not be around my classmates constantly - the whole 100 person class drama that medical school encourages gets old.
Local Hospitals: Brand new UCI hospital opening in March. Its 20 min away from the med school campus in Orange but that doesn't effect you too much. You have to commute to other hospitals anyway almost anywhere you go. And a lot of med student move to Orange.
Board Prep:
They offer a USMLE Kaplan course for a month at the end of your second year and give you 2 months to study for the exam. They really give you everything you need to succeed on the boards and I have heard that we have the highest averages in the state (though I have never seen the numbers to prove it)
Specialty: Not sure what you mean by this.
Grades: H/P/F No percentages kept so a 89 is as good as a 71 which is kind of nice.
Financial Aid: Limited. PRIMErs get a scholarship (like 10k I think) and people with parental income less than 100k seem to all get 5k/year. Thats pretty much it.
Technology: Minimal. We just started podcasts. We're about to get a new classroom and study building and clinical center so I'm sure this will change, but because we are a traditional curriculum technology isn't really a big priority.
Overall Grade: [/QUOTE] A-
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Angel, assuming you know how, try biking from the grad housing to the med campus. Its a surprisingly smooth ride and there quite a few bike paths to get there plus you get a mini workout before class. Itll turn that walk into ~5 mins of biking.
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Thanks, but I don't live on campus anyway, I was just pointing it out as a generalization about the school.
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got this via PM:
School: Albany
Location: Albany, NY
Cost: 44k tuition. After COA + health insurance, around 60-65k/year
Faculty: 1st year, lots of PhDs. Some do an excellent job of presenting the information most relevant to future physicians. Some are very uncomfortable lecturing large groups. Some go way off track. 2nd year, more MDs, fewer PhDs. Again, it can be hit or miss with the quality of the lectures, but that's why God invented the text book. The vast majority are easily aproachable and answer questions quickly.
Reputation: The citizens in the area love Albany med. It's the biggest hospital by far in the region. Throughout the country, the school itself is probably looked at as a mid-low tier school (gotta rock the boards).
Clinical Rotations: Not there yet.
Housing: "student ghetto" near the hospital. Lots of duplexes for rent w/in a couple miles for relatively cheap. Nice, more expensive suburban areas 15-20 minutes from the hospital.
Study areas: I study from home, but I don't think they're that good. Library open until midnight. Some smaller rooms w/ smart boards and dry-erase boards.
Social Scene: Depends on what you're looking for. I'm a little older and married, so my scene isn't the same as the 22yos. A few very good restaurants. A few bars close to campus that students tend to frequent.
Local Hospitals: Not there yet.
Board Prep: You can have up to 8 weeks between the end of 2nd year and the start of 3rd to study, although 4-6 is the recommended amount of time used. From using First Aid in studying for exams, I'd say most units cover a lot of the important material for Step 1.
Specialty: Provide lots of doctors for upstate NY. From looking at past match lists, there seems to be an IM/peds/FP slant, although there are still a good number who do surg, Em, and others.
Grades: ABCDF system masquerading as P/F. Class rank is confidential.
Other Comments: The faculty has been pretty good for the most part. Many 3rd and 4th years have said the clinical years are done well at AMC. About 1/4-1/3 of each incoming class comes from 1 of 3 joint BS/MD programs.
Overall Grade: B, but I really have nothing to compare it too. I wish it cost less and had a better national reputation.
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angel, are you sure about the percentages thing? An interviewee asked this question and we were told that they DO keep track of percentages. I dont see how you could have Honors if you didnt. This was also a complaint by some students who wished that it was truly P/F because they said you will have always have those people who are freakin out about their % and getting Honors.
Thats great that they started podcasting lectures, i know that was a common complaint among a lot of the students.
Thats great that they started podcasting lectures, i know that was a common complaint among a lot of the students.
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Absolutely positive, but I think you misunderstood. I said no percentage was KEPT. As in once the grade of H, P or F is determined. Its not a P/F school.
Basically the course director uses the percentage to determine H/P/F and sends your H, P or F onto med ed. They don't know whether your H was 100% or 91% and they don't know whether your P was 89% or 71%. So if for a given class all you're trying to do is pass then a 71 is just as good as an 89. You don't have to kill yourself in everything worrying how you match up to everyone else.
But yes we have honors and if you're going for something competitive you will probably need to honor a few things. But for everyone else, its really nice.
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ooo, i see what you are saying. I got the impression from some students that they keep your overall percentages for ranking purposes, and use it for the Deans letter later on. Maybe i misunderstood (or they were misinformed). Thanks for all the info
Have you ever met a Cornell student NOT willing to talk about his/her school?
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Have you ever met a Cornell student NOT willing to talk about his/her school?
LOL I haven't seen any Cornell students on SDN yet!
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I would also love NYU! and I;m sure Columbia would be greatly appreciated (looking at you chad
Yes it would! You're so thoughtful, ar!
I do have this to hold me over... it's on a similar thread found in the Allopathic Class Threads forum.
