Quinnipiac (Netter) vs. NYMC

[obscurecomplimenter]

Please help! I've finally narrowed down to these two, ultimately because they both offer the kind of vibe and patient population that I am looking for. They are similar in nearly every way, including in cost. I am really struggling to decide by tonight.

My top priorities in choosing a med school are clinical education and student body vibe. I don't yet know which specialty I'm interested in, but I want to be the best clinician I can be and I'm pretty sure I'm not overly interested in a super competitive specialty, so I'm looking for a collaborative student body where I'd make friends easily and I'm looking to minimize stress as much as possible (hence why I've already struck one school off my list due to it having a traditional, rather than P/F)

Equal between two:
- Cost
- Great, close-knit student body with a highly collaborative vibe I feel I'd get along well with
- Access to a demographically / socioeconomically diverse patient population, which is where my interests lie.
- Both do very well in the Match.


Quinnipiac - Netter

PROS:

• Early clinical exposure is unparalleled. With MeSH, you are paired 1:1 with a clinical mentor longitudinally through the entire academic year and are in the clinic every week with them practicing interviewing, physical exam techniques etc. with live patients based on whatever you learned in class / sim lab that given week. As my top priority is becoming the best clinician I can be, see this program as a HUGE plus. NYMC offers something similar, but only ~1x per month, not weekly.
  
  
• Research is built into the curriculum with the Capstone part of the curriculum. They guide you in creating and executing your project and putting you in contact with the resources you need. I like this a lot because I am much more clinically-inclined than research-inclined, but still want some research on my resume for future applications.
  
  
• Beautiful new state-of-the-art facilities
  
  
• True P/F
  
  
• Faculty are all extremely invested in teaching / student success. I'm told they know us well and are all 100% invested in student learning. All mentors, preceptors, etc. are Netter faculty and sign on to teach.
  
  
• Very "family"-like feel to the place. Between highly invested faculty and small class size, rerall really gives the sense that you "belong" and you are "known"
  
  
• Proximity to nearby Yale could be a potential advantage...? I'm told some use Yale resources for research, and a large number of Netter grads match into Yale-New Haven.
  
  
• Surrounding area: I am a city person and liked New Haven a lot. I'd plan to live in East Rock like many do, which is highly walkable, good foodie area, lots of coffee shops etc. exactly my kind of vibe.
  
  
• The newness of the school also excites me. I like the prospect of being one of its earliest classes and be able to play a part in shaping it.

CONS:

• Clinical sites are far; many students report driving up to 60 min each way for their pre-clinical MeSH sites as well as all clinical rotations. I find long commutes somewhat soul-sucking, although maybe I just need to up my podcast game.
  
  
• Very little in the way of home residency programs; rely on away rotations more. A lot of people cite this as something one should prioritize in choosing a med school.
  
  
• No on-campus housing (which I prefer for easy community / meeting other students).
  
  
• Newer (I'd be its 7th-ever graduating class) / no name recognition yet. I will admit I'm highly concerned that this is especially risky particularly with Step 1 now going P/F.

vs.

NYMC

PROS:

• More established program / more name recognition. Known and presumably relatively well regarded by PDs. Students regularly match into great programs in a diverse range of specialties. Less risky come residency-app time, particularly with Step 1 going P/F.
  
  
• Lots of strongly affiliated clinical sites, including multiple home residency programs. Has essentially its own teaching hospital in West Chester Medical Center (plus its associated children's hospital) right on campus.
  
  
• Proximity to NYC is amazing. Students can get down there with a quick train ride for post-test weekends, and we have the ability to rotate through NYC in Y3. Plus my closest friends / family are based in NYC.
  
  
• On-campus housing / you pretty much run into fellow med students wherever you go, which is a huge pro for me as I'm looking to make friends / build community as easily as possible in med school.

PRO or CON?

• Larger student body (~210) could potentially make you feel a little more "lost in the crowd". However, they do a lot to combat this with house system, on-campus housing/activities etc. Plus a larger student body could potentially be seen as a pro, because it allows you to "find your group" rather than being "stuck with" the people you're with haha, so I don't necessarily see it as a con in itself.

CONS:

• Surrounding area: Valhalla itself is a very sleepy town with not much diversity / much going on (however I plan to move NYC or one of the nearby more urban towns in my clinical years.)
  
  
• Very very high cost of living in both Valhalla and NYC may increase overall cost in the end.
  
  
• P/F but with internal rankings (divided into class quintiles). Could potentially increase stress.
  
  
• Older / more outdated facilities, and housing is pretty meh (gives me a little bit too much freshman-dorm vibes for someone who's had my own apartment for years now)

Any input / help is hugely appreciated! Thank you.

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Quinnipiac - Netter