Rochester or Mayo??

[zab79]

Help! So, I'd finally decided on going to the University of Rochester-with its awesome clinically-minded, biopsychosocially focused curriculum and its interesting patient population, and was totally psyched with my decision. It worked with my girlfriend, who found a great sustainable agriculture organization to work with there, and we were all ready to head to upstate NY in August.

But then, I got a call from Mayo yesterday, saying that I got in off the list! Mayo has incredible resources, and the price is right, but I really don't like the idea of being in class 8-5 every day and not having much mention of biopsychosocial issuse and being a Jew learning largely at a huge Catholic hospital... So, any thoughts??? Does anyone know of any good sustainable ag/organics groups in or around Rochester, Minnesota? (Of course the two schools had to be in towns with the same name.) Any advice, ideas, insight would be greatly appreciated. THANKS!

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[pekq]

What is your goal in life? If it's commando surgery, highly specialized experimental therapy, academic medicine and etc. I recommend you go to Mayo. Else, UR will be just fine since it seems you are already prepared to settle there. As for location, both places are named Rochester and located in an artic wasteland.

 

[mpp]

There are over 1,700 staff physicians at the Mayo Clinic plus another 2,000 residents, plus 7-8,000 at IBM...I think there are quite a few Jewish people...I wouldn't worry about that. While one of the hospitals is a Catholic hospital, I promise, they don't discriminate. The other hospital is a Methodist hopsital. There are Jewish people in every class.

I'm not sure what you mean by 'no mention of biopsychosocial issues'. We have several courses that include topics in growth & development, psycopathology, behavior, etc. What specifically are you looking for and I'll let you know how it is covered.

I'm not sure what an 'organic group' is, but there are certainly people into sustainable argiculture and so forth here. However, Rochester is definitely not San Francisco, but neither is Rochester, New York. But if you want agricultural opportunities, this place is in the middle of farm country.

Class schedule is heavy first year...because we spend half of second year in the clinic/hospital. Class is not mandatory so if you prefer learning outside of the classroom, you can skip many classes if you want. 90% of class notes are availalbe on-line and syllabi, in general, are very good.

Money wise, there is nothing better. It's cheap and safe to live nearby, or live 5 miles out of town if want to have your own organic farm. Tuition is the lowest private school, by far, in the country...Mayo graduates have the lowest average debt in the nation (including public schools) and have one of the highest average USMLE Step I scores (236 last year). Everyone gets at least one paid away rotation (with an apartment, car, travel, etc. all paid) with opportunities for others (everyone in the last few years that have wanted to do away international rotations (Swaziland, Bangladesh, Nepal, etc.) have been approved with all expenses paid).

Let me know if you have any specific questions.

 

[OldLady]

sounds like you are set on Rochester, I would stick to your guns. don't worry about the religion thing- I'm in a mixed marriage and have found Jews in strange places, I am sure you could make it work in MN.

 

[zab79]

Thanks for your advice, y'all. Please keep it coming.

mpp-Thanks for the insight. I'm not at all worried that I'd be discriminated against at St. Mary's-it was just a bit disconcerting and foreign to me to have crucifixes on the hospital walls. In the sexual health segment of the curriculum, is abortion or non-heterosexual health discussed?
I had forgotten that lectures are optional--good point. But I'm still curious when people get the time to become involved in the community, have personal lives, and study if they're in class from 8-5 most days. That is how it generally works for the first three semesters, isn't it? As for the biopsychosocial issues I was referring to, I'm wondering to what extent topics are covered such as giving quality care to mentally ill or homeless patients, addiction and its various treatment options, recognizing social factors in risk assesment for diseases, knowing how to diagnose dermatological disorders on people of different races, and attempting to understand different cultures' views on death or healthcare in general. I guess I'm wondering if you feel like you are taught to see patients in a larger context rather than just a person with a collection of symptoms presenting on a given day. Rochester is very strong on this, and that's the type of medicine I hope to practice.

That's awesome about the support given for overseas rotations/research, and that's one of the very strong points of Mayo. I'm really honored to have been offered a spot. I know neither of the Rochesters is anything like SF, but really, what is? If you want to reply in private messages, that'd be fine too. Again, thanks for all of your help. I know I can't go wrong in either place--I'm totally excited.

 

[CrazyCozak]

Ironically Mayo School is also located in Rochester.. Rochester, MN 😀

 

[fullefect1]

Mayo is incredible. Sorry for my ignorance for actual details, but I would go with Mayo because of their high board scores, and how highly respected the school's reputation is.

 

[ZekeMD]

I absolutely love the University of Rochester (I'm going there so I'm biased), but Mayo is...well...Mayo. It is WAY WAY cheaper, plus the reputation is great. Both are great schools, but for the price you can't beat Mayo.

 

[meanderson]

I'm from a completely different part of the country, but it's going to be cold as hell at both schools, right? Cost would be a huge deal for me and I would easily pick mayo, but the importance of cost varies from person to person. I think Mayo has a slightly better reputation in the medical community and a much greater reputation amongst non-medical people(not important though unless your big on name dropping to outsiders).

Don't worry about the jewish thing. If it were me and I had to freeze either way, I'd go to mayo.

 

[mpp]

Thanks for your advice, y'all. Please keep it coming.

mpp-Thanks for the insight. I'm not at all worried that I'd be discriminated against at St. Mary's-it was just a bit disconcerting and foreign to me to have crucifixes on the hospital walls. In the sexual health segment of the curriculum, is abortion or non-heterosexual health discussed?
I had forgotten that lectures are optional--good point. But I'm still curious when people get the time to become involved in the community, have personal lives, and study if they're in class from 8-5 most days. That is how it generally works for the first three semesters, isn't it? As for the biopsychosocial issues I was referring to, I'm wondering to what extent topics are covered such as giving quality care to mentally ill or homeless patients, addiction and its various treatment options, recognizing social factors in risk assesment for diseases, knowing how to diagnose dermatological disorders on people of different races, and attempting to understand different cultures' views on death or healthcare in general. I guess I'm wondering if you feel like you are taught to see patients in a larger context rather than just a person with a collection of symptoms presenting on a given day. Rochester is very strong on this, and that's the type of medicine I hope to practice.

That's awesome about the support given for overseas rotations/research, and that's one of the very strong points of Mayo. I'm really honored to have been offered a spot. I know neither of the Rochesters is anything like SF, but really, what is? If you want to reply in private messages, that'd be fine too. Again, thanks for all of your help. I know I can't go wrong in either place--I'm totally excited.

Sexual health..we have a course in sexual health. It's quite all-encompassing, for lack of a better word. We also have good psychopathology course on mental illness (lots of patient contact in this course) which includes addiction (as well as some hands on training in what they call behavior modification (i.e., helping people to stop doing what probably isn't good for them). The dermatology thing is funny cause I guarantee that we spend more time covering dermatology in the first two years than any other curriculum in the country.

I think you'll find it's all in there. U of Rochester probably has some things it does better than Mayo (not that I could imagine what they might be 'cause Mayo does things quite well), but hands-down the cost and the incredible facilities are hard to beat. Rochester is more diverse than most people would think (if that's what you're looking for)...again, it's no New York or San Francisco. Don't worry about the curriculum.

As far as time to find things to do outside of school, there's plenty, and nearly everyone is involved in some sort of extra-curricular stuff whether it's volunteering, sports, music, etc. If you want to do something, you'll find the time. Again, I wouldn't worry about the hours. Medical school is a lot of work no matter where you go, but you'll always find time for yourself.

And who knows, maybe you'll come here and can start the first all inclusive Organic Jewish Dermatological and Sexual Mental Health Interest Group...'cause we sure could use some more interest groups...I guarantee that people would be interested...

 

[pekq]

I could see this thread getting confusing when you start to compare the cities of Rochester

 

[Fermata]

While both are good schools.....Mayo is just phenominal.

 

[efex101]

I have to agree with MPP but again, I will be attending Mayo. Do not let the small town fool you for Rochester is very very diverse..and you are not obligated to attend classes everyting is provided online and you can study w/o going to class if that is what how you learn best. I have met tons of Jewish physicians at Mayo while doing research so you will have a Jewish community in Rochester. The price is well...just phenomenal for a private school and the board scores are amazing. The bottom line regardless of what anyone writes on this board is that YOU have to be sold on Mayo, if your heart is NOT set on going there then go to Rochester either way you will become a physician.

 

[Bendrix]

Guys, there's no question that the WFMC is an absolutely, positively great institution. But let's not kid ourselves - Rochester, MN is the nation's most homogeneous community with a medical school. That may not be a reason to turn down a seat at Mayo, but the truth should be acknowledged here.

 

[efex101]

I have to disagree because Nashville where Vanderbilt is at, is actually (and I from the Nashville area) more homogenous than Rochester. Rochester is a small town don't get me wrong here with about 100,000 people but it is very diverse as far as ethnic groups more so than Nashville....for a small town it is diverse. I guess it all boils down to what you are used to, if you come from SF or LA then yeah Rochester will seem homogenous but if you come from Nashville or Louisville where there are medical schools then Rochester is quite diverse.

 

[BigBopper]

I have to disagree because Nashville where Vanderbilt is at, is actually (and I from the Nashville area) more homogenous than Rochester. Rochester is a small town don't get me wrong here with about 100,000 people but it is very diverse as far as ethnic groups more so than Nashville....for a small town it is diverse. I guess it all boils down to what you are used to, if you come from SF or LA then yeah Rochester will seem homogenous but if you come from Nashville or Louisville where there are medical schools then Rochester is quite diverse.

Nashville 2000 census

White 65.91%
Black or African American 26.81%
Asian 2.38%
Hispanic or Latino(of any race) 4.72%

http://nashville.areaconnect.com/statistics.htm


Rochester, MN

White 90.30%
Black 2.70%
Hispanic 2.40%
Asian 4.30%

http://www.cityrating.com/citystats.asp?city=Rochester&state=MN


I dunno, seems like Rochester is way more homogeneous to me 😕

 

[MDT]

Not to be too picky, but if you use the same source for Rochester, MN (http://rochestermn.areaconnect.com/statistics.htm) as you did for Nashville, the demographics are the following:

Rochester, MN
White: 87.5%
Black: 3.57%
Asian: 5.63%
Hispanic: 2.99%

These numbers are from the 2000 census. I would guess the numbers have changed since 2000, because I know that the Somalian population in Rochester has grown significantly in the last several years.

However, there is no question Rochester is less diverse as a population. You should remember however that the Mayo Clinic attracts patients from all over the state, region, country and the world. I would guess the patient population at the Mayo Clinic is more diverse than the city's population.
Plus, Olmsted County where Rochester is located, was just listed as the #2 county for best places to live in America for quality of life!
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/5023308/

 

[efex101]

Dude or dudette for the size though IMHO Rochester is much more diverse...than Nashville but whatever...go wherever just be happy.