Rutgers NJMS vs Wake Forest

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Which would you choose?

  • Rutgers NJMS

    Votes: 4 30.8%
  • Wake Forest

    Votes: 9 69.2%

  • Total voters
    13

nastixnmed

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Apr 27, 2024
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Rutgers NJMS (~95k COL as an in state student)
Pros:
- in an urban area
- very community oriented, working with a disadvantaged population
- Pass/Fail preclinical (new)
- every student I have talked to loves it there
- near my mom and significant other attending school on long island (~45 min commute to both)
- want to wind up in Boston (or NYC) for residency
- med school is connected to the hospital

Cons:
- Need to work to find research yourself (AKA interest groups don't send out lists of opportunities)
- Accepted students day was short, didn't get to meet or socialize with many people to understand class culture (but have spoken over the phone with current students).
- I'd choose to live in a nearby city, so commuting would take 20-30 minutes (but I would live in a city, which I prefer)
- Expensive COL
- facilities are run down, med school looks like a prison lol
- they aren't very intentional about putting a lot of thought into their ceremonial events (like award ceremonies or, for example, accepted students day lol)


Wake Forest (~101k COL after 9k scholarship)
Pros:
- Very close to nearly my entire family, who I haven't had the chance to live near my entire life (grandparents, aunts, cousin)
- Brand new medical school building, beautiful study spaces
- I loved the school when I toured, all of the students were very welcoming
- P/F pre-clinical
- students seem very happy

Cons:
- Far from mom and significant other (8.5 hr drive, or a flight)
- slightly more expensive, but COL would be lower which may offset the cost
- not a very urban area, although I did think Winston-Salem was cute
-Need to drive between med school and hospital
- may be overshadowed by the other, more prestigious NC med schools like Duke and UNC
- may be harder for me to wind up in Boston or NYC due to a lack of connections
- less diverse area
- some PBL education (rest of lectures are optional, though)

Overall: Having the opportunity to live near my grandparents feels very hard to let go of, and now that the costs are very similar it makes in-state tuition less of a deal-breaker. I am probably looking at doing IM residency and subspecializing from there, and I know I will be happy with the education I receive wherever I go.

EDIT: please let me know your reasoning if you voted!
 
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