Rochester vs. UCF

[DifficultChoice]

Rochester (COA $90,000, but believe the real cost is significantly higher due to low allocation for housing)
Pros
- Hospital and Medical School are connected
- Pass/Fail preclinical with internal quartiles
- Nature, State Parks, and more nearby
- Close to Toronto (have extended family there)
- Established name recognition, the highest rank (I was accepted at)
- Good class size, 100 students
- Exposure to students in other departments, nursing, pharm, etc
- Pathway program in Medical Education
- easy flights back home

Cons
- Cold weather and snow
- Student culture did not feel as welcoming
- sorted into percentiles for clerkships (1/3 honors, 1/3 high pass and 1/3 pass)

UCF (COA $58,000)
Pros
- close to home, within 2-hours of family
- Lots of things to do in Orlando
- FIRE research program (mandatory guided research project)
- Current class seems very social, young, and close
- Medical city community
- significantly cheaper
Cons
- ABCDF grading preclinical
- Rotations all over Florida
- Lower rank than Rochester
- sorted into percentiles for clerkships

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[chilly_md]

Extended family that is not reasonably close (3 hour drive before counting traffic within Toronto probably) does not count as a pro in my opinion. It would be one thing if it were your parents or a direct sibling.

I don’t think I’d advise on paying $120k+ more on Rochester.

 

[voxveritatisetlucis]

UCF has community hospitals so think that Rochester is worth the extra

 

[chilly_md]

UCF has community hospitals so think that Rochester is worth the extra

UCF supposedly has been known to match well despite that unlike other schools that don’t have their own major academic hospital.