Rice/Baylor , USC/Keck , or Princeton ?

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Eugenie98

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To BA/MD or not to BA/MD ?

I'm choosing between:


USC/Keck
$172,000 undergrad + med, total cost

Rice/Baylor $152,000 undergrad + med, total cost

Princeton $250,000 undergrad + med, total cost

USC/Keck has a nicer location of the two BA/MD programs (LA in general, the area directly around USC and the med-center is ghetto-licious), however Rice and Baylor are much better institutions than USC and Keck.
Rice/Baylor will be the least expensive option.
Princeton is the most selective school in the nation and is ranked #1.

If any SD'ers could drop his or her advice, i'd greatly appreciate it

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Rice/Baylor easy.

Cheapest location and you are going to Baylor, an arguably top 10 med school?

Congrats and have fun in TX!!! ;)

Seriously though it looks like this comes down to Princeton or R/B, and if it was any other BA/MD program besides Northwesterns or Rice/Baylor, I'd say go to Princeton. But with the Rice/ Baylor acceptance, dude, save yourself the trouble and go there. Awesome med school. Awesome hospitals.

btw-I have to ask... ahem, what's the 1600 stand for in your sig ... You wouldn't be that obvious would you? ;) just teasing
 
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Go to Rice and when you go to college try not to be so arrogant.
 
Sorry about the sig, I created it a while back when everyone in my year was obsessing over the test. :eek:

Anyone else with advice on the choice?
 
go to Princeton. You will get into Baylor or better if you do and work moderately hard. Enjoy the four years at one of the best undergrad institutions in the country and see what the reputation will do for you. It does mean a lot. GO TO PRINCETON!!
 
minter said:
go to Princeton. You will get into Baylor or better if you do and work moderately hard. Enjoy the four years at one of the best undergrad institutions in the country and see what the reputation will do for you. It does mean a lot. GO TO PRINCETON!!

Congrats on your options!
Have you visited both Rice and Princeton? I assume they both have admit weekends about this time of year...These schools are quite different in terms of atmosphere though I think both schools are quite excellent. Rice is a bit of a quirky place and its housing community system reminds me vaguely of Caltech's. As for the debt, Rice is continuously called the "best buy for your money" in private undergraduate education. Baylor COM is also arguably the equivalent for private medical schools. Your assured acceptance to Baylor (assuming you keep up the minimums) is a nice weight off of your shoulders; but honestly, you might still choose to jump through the hoops of applying elsewhere when you're a senior. Who knows? you may grow tired of houston during your time at Rice. On the other hand, Princeton, NJ isn't the most exciting city to live in, but most of the undergrads I know from there have really enjoyed the experience.

Visit the schools if you haven't already.

--Rager
 
I agree with Rager's advice. Visit the schools and go to the undergrad that would make you happiest. Having a guaranteed acceptance to Baylor or USC is nice, but what's also nice is having the option to apply to other schools after your four years of undergrad (some programs, especially accelerated ones, rob you of this option). I can tell you for sure that not everyone who participates in the Rice/Baylor program chooses to enroll at Baylor, and I imagine the same is true for Keck.

The most important thing for you to consider at this point is your four years of undergrad. Don't go somewhere where you'll feel like you are just "settling" or someplace where you don't think you'll be happy.

Obviously, from a monetary standpoint, Rice/Baylor is the best option. You get the most "academic bang for your buck" for both undergrad and med school.

Congratulations on getting into some very good programs, and good luck making the decision that works best for you!

EDIT: Just to let you in on my own history with these programs, I got into several combined undergrad/med programs four years ago and decided to go to Rice (without the Baylor part) over those programs and other higher-ranked undergrads. Now I am choosing to go to Keck SOM over Baylor. If you have any specific questions about these programs and schools to help you in your decision, feel free to PM me.
 
Take it from someone who turned down rice/baylor to leave texas for a more prestigious undergrad institution. You cannot beat this program. Rice is an excellent school and Baylor med is amazing, both for very cheap prices especially if you are a texas resident. Unless you hate houston I can't see a better alternative.
 
I'd recommend Princeton. I had a similar situation way long ago and I think living somewhere other than Texas is very eye opening. Besides, Princeton has such great academics all around that you might even realize that you don't want to go directly to med school.

I realize money is very important. If it were simply a matter of Princeton vs Rice, I'd say Princeton hands down even with the cost disparity.

But here's a little info for ya: I have a cousin who just graduated Stanford (TEXAS resident) with so-so GPA and good MCAT and got into Baylor no prob. So you'll always have that option. Just a matter of how much you're willing to pay in order to avoid that whole MCAT/application morass.
 
Eugenie98 said:
USC/Keck has a nicer location of the two BA/MD programs, however Rice and Baylor are much better institutions than USC and Keck.

I just caught this line in the OP's post and did a little double-take. By "nicer location" do you mean "most ghetto"?

USC's undergrad and health sciences campuses are both in very bad neighborhoods. No offense--they are great schools--but you cannot possibly believe that East LA is a "nicer" location than the Texas Medical Center or that the USC undergrad ghetto is "nicer" than the schwanky West University Place.

On the other hand, the "better institutions" part doesn't necessarily favor Rice and Baylor. USC is a great school for both undergrad and med, but it is quite different from both Rice and Baylor. For undergrad, USC is a huge school whereas Rice is a small one. Both have tremendouse resources available to students and world-class professors. For med school, Baylor has the money and reputation that come from being affiliated with DeBakey, and also the opportunities afforded by being part of TMC. It is also a very high-stress school. USC is more clinically focused with PBL and P/F grading, and while its not in TMC it gives you the awesome experience of doing rotations in LA County Hospital.
 
Ok, if I were a high schooler who was facing this kind of option, I might have said, "yeah, I'm smart enough to get into a better med shool than Baylor so why bother? Let's go to Princeton (awesome school) and have fun!"

However, as someone who has gone through such tedious and rigorous pre-med path (just like many people here), I have to say that Rice/Baylor option is a real deal. Even if you go to Princeton, you need to work very hard to get into these top med programs and the application process is kinda random that there is no guarranttee. I'm not saying you won't get into HMS or Hopkins, but for example, I have a cousin who went to Harvard and worked very hard, and ended up at Baylor- he said he was very happy especially considering many Harvard men don't get into those programs. It's basically a top undergrad/Med Program with nice financial package. Princeton is nice, but Rice/Baylor is nicer in my humble opinion.
 
The key question is whether or not you are sure you want to go into medicine. Princeton is admittedly an amazing institution from which, with some effort, you could go onto a stud law, grad, biz, or med school. While most of the pre-allopathic posters on SDN are people that have decided they want to pursue careers in medicine (therefore maybe showing a bias), the decision to do so shouldn't be taken lightly. I didn't really feel like I wanted to go to med school when I was in college. It was only after going into another career direction that I felt medicine was actually what I wanted to do.

Knowing NOW that I want to be a physician, sure, it would have been great to save a bunch of years by doing a direct BS/MD program. But college is the time where you can explore and find out both more about yourself and your potential career aspirations. Without that journey, how can you know for sure you're doing what you really want? IMHO, I just think you haven't seen enough and don't know enough about what you're getting into when you commit to a med program from high school. Of course, I have a YOUNGER sibling that decided to go BS/MD and now is about to start residency and I have yet to start med school! So yes, sometimes I wonder what it would have been like.

Anyway good luck. I honestly don't think you can go wrong with either of those three options. And don't rule out USC/Keck just because it's not ranked as high. California is a tough nut to crack for residencies, unless you are a student in a CA med school.
 
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Go to the undergrad where you would have the most fun/like yourself the most. Simple enough, if you are smart enough to get into a Bac/MD program, you are smart enough to get into a medical school on the same level.

If it was me, I would go to Princeton or USC. USC for location (Los Angeles as a whole, not the immidiate location) and school atmosphere or Princeton for the overall reputation. I actually considered going to Rice coming out of high school, visited, and didn't like the fact that it was so small.
 
Personally I had great fun when I visited Rice. Texas Medical Center is enormous and has a ridiculous amount of research facilities.

My USC stayover was mediocre. Trekkie, I'm sure rotating in LA County is quite an experience, but I found it mindblowing that the USC Hospital was setup like a hotel, whereas LA County reminded me of a disintegrating prison (with the requisite prisoners from the prison ward walking around with their guards). Thank god they're building a new LA county hospital, they need it.

Then again, I want to be an ophtho, and USC had nice ophtho facilities.

I enjoyed my Princeton stay, although not as much as my Rice stayover. It's also quite small, in that it has about 4,000 undergrad students whereas Rice has about 2,700 undergrad students. I'm comfortable at both small and large schools.

I'm back to square one. Keep the advice coming...
 
I think square one is as far as you are going to go with advice from this board. Really, the decision comes down to your own preferences. Obviously some people like smaller schools, some people like larger ones; some people like urban settings, some people like rural ones; and so on and so forth.

These are all great options, so you should be more than happy with whatever you decide is best for you.

A quick point about "hotel" vs. "prison" hospitals: I think what you observed at USC is common throughout the healthcare system, and you might even have noticed the same phenomenon at Baylor. Ben Taub is not exactly a Days Inn, while Hermann Hospital right next door is the Bellagio. (Actually, I don't think Hermann is a Baylor teaching hospital, but it really does look like the Bellagio! Maybe Methodist is a more appropriate comparison.) It's good to go someplace that has a mix of hospitals, and honestly the hospitals you probably wouldn't want to be a patient at can really be great hospitals at which to be a student, because you end up with a lot of hands on experience.

Also, you mentioned visiting Rice. Were you here for Owl Weekend? And if Rice was your best visit, I think that's the way your decision should be leaning at this point.
 
I think you should throw USC out of the window off the bat. It's like Rice/Baylor Lite. So it boils down to Rice/Baylor and Princeton. Rice and Baylor are both top of the line programs for undergrad and med school, repsectively. Plus, they're cheap and will keep in the proximity of your family and friends during your schooling. Princeton is a great school, but is it worth the extra money in tuition and time spent in completing an application/taking the MCAT/flying all over the country interviewing? That's your call. I think the only reason you might choose Princeton is for the added prestige over Rice, which is very small. Likewise, it's never smart idea to choose a school based on raw prestige. There you have it.
 
Eugenie98 said:
Personally I had great fun when I visited Rice. Texas Medical Center is enormous and has a ridiculous amount of research facilities.

My USC stayover was mediocre. Trekkie, I'm sure rotating in LA County is quite an experience, but I found it mindblowing that the USC Hospital was setup like a hotel, whereas LA County reminded me of a disintegrating prison (with the requisite prisoners from the prison ward walking around with their guards). Thank god they're building a new LA county hospital, they need it.

Then again, I want to be an ophto, and USC had nice ophto facilities.

I enjoyed my Princeton stay, although not as much as my Rice stayover. It's also quite small, in that it has about 4,000 undergrad students whereas Rice has about 2,700 undergrad students. I'm comfortable at both small and large schools.

I'm back to square one. Keep the advice coming...

Yup. You should go somewhere else. You won't fit in here.
 
Trekkie, I was at Rice for Owl Weekend and once before that.

Jalby, I live in the NYC, not Texas, so I'm not sure if you're implying something based on a belief that I'm from texas and wouldn't fit into the cali lifestyle/atmosphere.

I'm not so sure the prestige of Princeton is just slightly greater than Rice's.
For areas of study outside of the sciences, Princeton probably has a great deal more prestige, especially in the NE and the West. In the South, Rice and Princeton are probably on even standing.

When people ask me what schools I'm considering and I say Rice/Baylor and Princeton, most say "ohhh princeton! congratulations!" followed by "where's/what's Rice/Baylor."
 
When I decided to go to Rice, the response I usually got from people was something akin to "wow, I always thought you were smart." They figured it was a community college somewhere. On the other hand, in the educational world, Rice enjoys a surprising amount of prestige, and that's apparent when you go to interviews and interact with admissions people. Now that Rice has won the College World Series, more random people know about the school.

Eugenie, did you go to the pre-med panel thing during Owl Weekend?
 
Eugenie98 said:
When people ask me what schools I'm considering and I say Rice/Baylor and Princeton, most say "ohhh princeton! congratulations!" followed by "where's/what's Rice/Baylor."

Hahahaha.. no wonder :laugh:
 
Eugenie98 said:
When people ask me what schools I'm considering and I say Rice/Baylor and Princeton, most say "ohhh princeton! congratulations!" followed by "where's/what's Rice/Baylor."

Ahh, prestige is your biggest concern. Figures. Go to Princeton, you won't be happy elsewhere.
 
Hey, I find that offensive, I'm not a prestige *****! It's just that if I somehow end up deciding to not be a physician, Princeton probably has better facilities for those other areas of study.

Trekkie, are you the fellow who gave me Navin's email address? The pre-med who is doing all the health policy research? The one whom I basically interrogated after the first pre-med panel in february?
 
I think everybody is changing their vote to going to Princeton. I'm just saying that I don't think you would fit into the type of people who end up at USC/Keck.
 
Eugenie98 said:
Hah, are you the fellow who gave me Navin's email address? The pre-med who is doing all the health policy research? The one whom I basically interrogated after the first pre-med panel in february?
who? me?

I don't think so. :(
 
Jalby said:
I think everybody is changing their vote to going to Princeton. I'm just saying that I don't think you would fit into the type of people who end up at USC/Keck.
Now I am curious...what type of person is that?
 
Trekkie963 said:
Now that Rice has won the College World Series, more random people know about the school.

WE LET YOU WIN! IT WAS A PITY THING! :p :rolleyes: ;)
 
rager1 said:
WE LET YOU WIN! IT WAS A PITY THING! :p :rolleyes: ;)
Haha! But really, I felt sorry for Stanford. What was it...three failed attempts in four years? I had at least one high school classmate on the opposing team and didn't know anyone on the Rice team, so I was actually glad to see my old classmate hit a homer against us. Even more glad when Rice won, though.

We finally got all of the sports-related glory we truly deserve!

...or something.

But we digress...
 
I would agree with TheFlash and throw the USC right out the door first of all, but that is my opinion only. As far as the other choices, I agree with trekkie that while Rice's reputation isn't as widespread publicly, it definitely isn't unknown in academia. If I were in your shoes, I would chose the Rice/Baylor program, saving the hastle of applying later and the pain we all go through now. If you do well in school at either Rice or Princeton, you haev a great chance of getting into Baylor anyhow, so I would chose a school that is right for you. I must disclose that I am biased as a Rice student, but I probably would chose Princeton if it was only for undergrad. I hope you had fun on owl weekend. Oh, and trekkie I pm'ed you.
 
Princeton is really overrated academically, and everyone who goes to Rice seems to really like it. Baylor is pretty rad, and cheap too if you are a state resident.

My vote is Rice/Baylor. Congrats on the superb track record as well.
 
All the USC B/MD people I know got full rides during undergrad. If you were able to get into the B/MD program, I don't understand how you could still be paying full tuition. Another food for thought: many B/MD people wind up going to schools like Hopkins, USCF, UCLA, etc., so I really doubt you're at a disadvantage by going to USC for undergrad. I don't know anything about the Rice/Baylor program, but to me, it'd be a no-brainer to choose either one over Princeton, especially if USC's giving you a full ride. But if you're an attention/prestige *****, by all means go to Princeton.
 
Looking at Eugenie's cost estimates, it would seem that he has gotten a full ride for USC undergrad. I think the only disadvantage to USC undergrad would be if he doesn't like USC--because of its size, location, ranking or whatever. You can definitely get into a good med school from any of the undergrads listed, it should come down to where the OP would be happiest.
 
Lemme reiterate my not being a prestige ***** , but a pragmatist :p

After talking with a few dozen people from different areas I'm leanings toward Rice/Baylor.
 
I chose Princeton (several years ago) over a BA/MD program.

Princeton is great because they really have the most money per student to spend on undergraduates...and they do so very nicely. Right now, I don't know if you know...but Princeton no longer gives out loans to their undergraduates. So, if you haven't gotten a finaid package yet (and your parents aren't loaded), you will get a very very nice package. I am honestly jealous of those students that are getting this deal. I also think that the name opens up tons of doors..because yes it is and has been for several years (since I was a frosh) the number one undergraduate institution in the country. Additionally, they have one of the best faculty across the board...Most of my professors (especially in the sciences) were teaching from textbooks that they had written. All of this impressive and was impressive to a 17 year old. Further, at 17 who really knows they want to be a doctor. right?
Now that I am 25...I WISH I had gone the BA/MD route. Having entered college in 1996...I would be in my FINAL year of med school at this point. Instead, I am entering Fall 2004. Nothing has changed...I STILL want to be a doctor..>I just was too afraid to commit at that age. The up side is that although I had my ups and downs at Princeton..because I didn't go to med school right away, I got job offers quite easily because of the name. Additionally my DOWNS in undergrad weren't AS bad in the eyes of med school adcoms because I attended such a prestigious institution.

I say all this to say...Do I think Princeton is the best undergrad in the country? HELL YEAH...if you want everything you could possibly think of hadned to you on a silver platter (and you are white...) YOU WILL HAVE A BLAST (the school leaves alot to be desired for minority students..but it is improving). However, If you are positive you want to be a doctor..without a shadow of a doubt...it doesn't matter what undergrad institution you went to..because you are only as good as the last place you have been. You could do the BA/MD route and end up at Baylor for your MD. Or you could go to Princeton, enjoy the prestige but suffer through the ridiculousness of the premed curriculum, and end up at Drexel. (Now my disclaimer..I LOVED Drexel and I will be attending it turned out to be one of my top choices given my situation (i have a son and lectures ONLINE nuff said)...but I know it's not Baylor.) Just think about that.
 
Bullhorn, what field(s) did you work in after Princeton?
 
My degree was Molecular Biology..I worked first as a Research Specialist for about a year but hated it because my PI was ******ed. I moved into more work I had done as work-study during school..in nonprofit. I winded up running the backend of an inititative of United Way ie. finances, grant writing, research, marketing etc. By graduation from princeton, i had job offers from JP morgan, a small biotech firm doing research, Robert WOOD J as the research specialist, and several teaching positions for biology (i thought i would teach..didn't work out.)


IF you go to Princeton, I woudl suggest being premed but not a science major. You'll have better admission luck according to our stats.
 
to the OP-

i am a senior molecular biology major at princeton right now. you can PM me with questions if you have any questions about pton.

y
 
so far, I've heard one really solid piece of advice, don't worry bout USC. and like the previous posters said, it comes down to Rice vs. Princeton for Ugrad. I myself go to Rice and my best friend goes to Princeton, so I feel like i have a pretty solid understanding of the campus lifestyle for each. In all honesty, you can't go wrong with either school. If I were you, I would base my decision on the non-academic factors: size, location, diversity, etc... Also, being Rice/Baylor is GOING to make ur ugrad fun. You can major in whatever u want, take any class you want (along w/ pre-med reqs), not become obsessed with grades, and most importantly not have to worry about the dreaded MCAT, recommendations, interviews, or applications. I'd say Rice/Baylor hands down. Feel free to PM or IM me if you have questions about Rice. (i'm not R/B, but i have a bunch of friends who are)
 
Eugenie98 said:
Then again, I want to be an ophto, and USC had nice ophto facilities.


Better learn how to spell ophtho first
 
First, congratulations about the situation you're in. You really can't go wrong there. I think Princeton will open doors, and you can feel good about people telling you, "wow, you go to Princeton" At the same time you can go to Rice/Baylor and people have some doors opened without people saying Wow you go to Rice!!! People have posted about this and it is true. Personally, I think the prestige is ridiculously over rated. When I chose to go to a state school, people always asked me why I turned down the top 10 schools to go there. If I had to go back and make the decision again I wouldn't change a single thing. I've loved my experience here and work, study, and have fun with people that also turned down acceptances to various "elite" schools. The point that I'm trying to make is that your undergrad years will be whatever you make of them. You can go to many schools schools worse facilities than even Rice (not saying that Rice's are bad... just commenting on the post that Princeton's was better) and still have brilliant professors and amazing research experiences. Then, your social life will depend on how you like the student population and the schools environment---this will depend on your feeling.
Bottom line is... if you work hard, you can go anywhere and succeed. Pick the place that you are most comfortable with, but remember that the BA/MD programs are damn comforting. It really allowed me to do many things that I might not have done if I had to worry about GPAs, MCATs yada yada yada....

Good luck with your decision... it's a great position to be in
 
You're clearly a gunner so I'm going to speak from that perspective. The advice about throwing USC out of the window right off the bat is common sense. There is simply no rationale for you to pick the dual USC program over Rice/Baylor.

Second, don't focus on Rice vs Princeton so much. The key part of the Rice/Baylor equation is the Baylor part. It wouldn't matter if the combined program was San Antonio Community College/Baylor. All that matters is that the guaranteed tie-in with Baylor COM is there, so I don't see how it matters that Rice is involved. The opportunities you will or won't have at Rice aren't important because whether the opportunities are fantastic or horrible you're set at Baylor regardless.

So really the decision is Baylor COM vs. Princeton and then who knows what. If you know you want to go to medical school pick Baylor COM. If not go somewhere else. It's that easy
 
southbelle said:
You're clearly a gunner so I'm going to speak from that perspective. The advice about throwing USC out of the window right off the bat is common sense. There is simply no rationale for you to pick the dual USC program over Rice/Baylor.

Second, don't focus on Rice vs Princeton so much. The key part of the Rice/Baylor equation is the Baylor part. It wouldn't matter if the combined program was San Antonio Community College/Baylor. All that matters is that the guaranteed tie-in with Baylor COM is there, so I don't see how it matters that Rice is involved. The opportunities you will or won't have at Rice aren't important because whether the opportunities are fantastic or horrible you're set at Baylor regardless.

So really the decision is Baylor COM vs. Princeton and then who knows what. If you know you want to go to medical school pick Baylor COM. If not go somewhere else. It's that easy

The poster who wrote the drivel above is a blithering idiot so please don't pay any attention to he/she/it.

I really think you should go with Princeton. It'll be the experience of a lifetime. If at ANY point in your undergraduate career, you decide that medicine may not be for you...you'll definitely be glad you decided on Princeton because that school can open up doors for you that no other school can. I'm sure Princeton alumni are well connected in politics, business, law, etc...so your options would be open. In addition, your undergrad career shouldn't be about being premed because you'll be taking classes in other fields outside of biology, chemistry, etc (hopefully). As a result, you should also look at the departments in the social sciences/humanities at the schools you're considering.

Overall, I think Princeton would give you the best education and I think it'll really raise eyebrows come medical school admissions time. If you're good enough to make into the joint BS/MD programs at Rice/Baylor and USC-Keck...then you'll be good enough to get into a top med school after undergrad. Just work hard and stay focused at Princeton and you'll have no problems come time to fill out the med school apps. Congratulations on this achievement and I wish you the best of luck.
 
Get a life. That is so ridiculous. You are just jealous.

Go to Princeton. Don't make the mistake of overlooking the best educational atmosphere in the country.

Go Tigers!

TheFlash said:
Ahh, prestige is your biggest concern. Figures. Go to Princeton, you won't be happy elsewhere.
 
gsx56 said:
Get a life. That is so ridiculous. You are just jealous.

Go to Princeton. Don't make the mistake of overlooking the best educational atmosphere in the country.

Go Tigers!
Good argument, your debate skills are truly impressive. Like totally, go tigers! Dude, we're so fine we'll blow your mind!
 
I went to Rice after being admitted to several ivies (including Princeton) and couldn't be happier with my choice. I wasn't Rice/Baylor, since I didn't decide to go to medical school until fairly late, but I know a lot of people who were. Feel free to PM me if you want more inside info.

Other Rice people -- who knew there were so many owls around here? Which college? I'm Lovett 2001.
 
I'm not trying to argue. You're not worth my time.

Sorry to let you down.

TheFlash said:
Good argument, your debate skills are truly impressive. Like totally, go tigers! Dude, we're so fine we'll blow your mind!
 
This thread is degrading into Flame Wars II. :mad:

:eek: The national response deadline is May 1st. :eek:

I'm looking for a slightly less stressful environment in college. I go to hell-on-earth (Stuyvesant High School): a plus for Rice/Baylor and a minus for Princeton. I want to work in healthcare policy or healthcare management. I would think the Princeton name is helpful in that regard: a plus for Princeton, a minus for Rice/Baylor.

At Princeton I would be concentrating in econ, doing my junior independent work and senior thesis in econ with a healthcare focus, but at the same time I would have to be fulfilling all the premed requirements.

At Rice I would be majoring in econ & poli sci, and probably doing independent research at the healthcare policy center which goes on between Baylor and Rice. I would have fulfilled the Baylor requirements, with the exception of Biology and Organic Chem, through AP Chem, AP Physics, and AP Calculus credit.

I think I'm going bald at age 18 from stress, which is quite sad. I'm sure that if I go to Rice, with all the AP credit and the knowledge that I have the Baylor acceptance in hand, I'll be under slightly less stress. The only problem is, four years ago I came into high school originally wanting to be a computer scientist. Over the course of college I might discover a passion for politics or philosophy or something I haven't really explored in high school. This, of course, has me worried over matriculating at Rice/Baylor. Princeton would open so many more doors if I somehow decide to enter an area outside of medicine.

Keep the advice coming, I appreciate it :thumbup:
 
I thought Princeton practically stopped accepting kids from stuy because everyone picked Harvard/MIT/Yale instead? That was a couple of years ago I guess.

I really wouldnt underestimate Rice. Overall, the student body is a lot more rounded, less elitist, and more "fun" than just about any school out there. My high school sends a ton of people to Rice every year, and sometimes I wish I had picked it over MIT. Seriously, it's totally sweet - everyone loves it, you can gain a pretty broad exposure to lots of subjects because all majors are pretty well represented, and the academics aren't flimsy either.

I'm probably going to get flamed for this, but I think Princeton is really really overrated. 50% of the class is from private schools, and the culture is super-elitist. Plus, relative to Princeton/Harvard/MIT/Yale/Stanford, they are real laggards in placing their graduates into top programs. The came under a lot of flak for producing almost no academicians (from undergrad that is), and while they claim to put a lot of people in Wall Street, if you look at the lists for places like UBS/Goldman/Lehman, etc., you see that Princeton is lacking. And while at every top med school interview, you are pretty much guaranteed to find someone from Harvard or Yale, you won't necessarily run into someone from Princeton. Before someone brings it up, I acknowledge that it's not a BAD school, and has a strong math program as well as good grad programs, especially in government - I just don't think it is what it is hyped up to be, especially for someone who is interested on making it on his own merits.

I applied to Princeton in high school, but knowing what I know now, I think I just wasted 60 bucks and decision-stress. Congrats on being accepted, but I would strongly urge you to run the other way.
 
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