Rush Medical College vs. UTMB School of Medicine

[Neurd2017]

A little background - I am a Texas resident who wants to go into either surgery or oncology - I am super interested in trauma surgery but am open to other types of surgery that will mesh with my lifestyle.

I am choosing between Rush Medical College in Chicago and UTMB School of Medicine in Galveston, TX.

I went to college at Tulane University and grew up in the suburbs outside of Dallas, TX - so I have never lived in a tiny community like Galveston, and I have never lived in a LARGE Metropolitan area like Chicago (I would not count Dallas as the same caliber of city as Chicago)

I have a dog that I have had throughout college and is definitely going to be going with me to medical school - so his quality of life is something that is important to me

One big thing that is making my decision difficult is that STEP 1 is Pass / Fail now - so where you go to school now matters a lot more than it used to.

Rush Medical College - Chicago, Illinois
Pros

• INCREDIBLE PROGRAM, pretty difficult to get into - will set me up for competitive residencies (and I plan on specializing in competitive areas)
• Doors across the entire nation will be opened from going here - so I will not be stuck in Texas for the rest of my career - where as UTMB will largely set me up in Texas
• The opportunity to experience what it is like to live in a large city
• Community Service initiatives - there are so many opportunities at Rush because this is one of their core values and is ingrained in the entire program
• Smaller program - 144 students - so more direct interactions with teachers and faculty

Cons

• The weather - I’ve never truly experienced cold weather and I love to do outdoor activities and roller blade and walk my dog and go to parks - so know that will be limited in Chicago
• The loan package is $86,000 a year which is QUITE a lot more than UTMB
• Cost of living is much higher
• My pup will be stuck in a small apartment for a lot of the day - probably not as great quality of life for him

UTMB School of Medicine - Galveston, Texas

Pros

• Most cost-effective program I could imagine - I would only need to take $30,000 a year here
• Has many different distinction programs including global health, and aerospace medicine
• Oldest Medical School in Texas so has a great reputation in Texas and would open many doors in Texas
• Also since it is the oldest school in Texas, they have had a lot of time to perfect their program and they know what they’re doing - STEP 1 pass rate is 100%
• The students are pretty laid back and chill which I appreciate a lot
• Will be able to have a larger house with a backyard for my dog - and have the beach - I love the sun
• Will be able to have a more active outdoor lifestyle
• Closer to my family

Cons

• 230ish students so a huge program - less personalized
• Very small island with limited resources on the island in terms of living
• Very touristy place during the spring and summer (which I really don’t like)
• Will probably be limited to Texas residencies and opportunities after that - and I have no idea if I want live in Texas for the rest of my life
• It is VERY VERY hot a lot of times and the hurricanes are always a possibility

Summary: I genuinely do not know what to do - these places are complete polar opposites.

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[gulli_97]

I agree that clinically Chicago may be better than Galveston but UTMB does match fairly well and you can still go OOS for residencies, granted not the scale of Rush. I don't think the much higher COA at Rush is worth it, both schools are relatively the same caliber as medical programs. In reality, I believe this is more of a question of would you rather pay much more to go to school in Chicago vs Galveston? From your post, I think you are leaning Chicago.

 

[deleted850921]

Sounds like you’re leaning Rush by the way you wrote this post, but yea 200k is just too much of a cost difference here imo. I would recommend UTMB

 

[Office Visit]

COA is huge. 200k is not worth living in Chicago and a smaller class size. If you perform well on Step 1/2 (Step 2 now probably being more important with Step 1 being pass/fail), get decent grades, and do research at either school you should be able to match just fine. But having 200k less in debt will be huge in the long run.

 

[doctork12345]

I've also been deciding between Rush and my state school this cycle so feel free to PM me if you want to discuss more! I think Rush is excellent but in this case, I would choose UTMB. The cost difference is huge and I'm from the Chicagoland area and can tell you that winters in Chicago are no joke! If spending time outside is important to you and your pup then that will be hard for a significant portion of the year in Chicago.