School with Best Name

[unicorn06]

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I was wondering what you all think the medical schools with the best name recognition AMONG THE NON-MEDICAL POPULATION are. The following would be my guess at the top ten:

1. Harvard
2. Yale
3. Stanford
4. Columbia
5. Mayo
6. Cornell
7. Duke
8. Dartmouth
9. Hopkins
10. Brown

 

[DropkickMurphy]

I would like to be the first to say: Who cares?

 

[jbone]

I would like to be the first to say: Who cares?

I guess gunners do. 👎 🙄

 

[unicorn06]

I would like to be the first to say: Who cares?

Idealistically maybe you shouldn't, but in the real world, it matters what the general public thinks of your education. If you plan to interact with the rest of society, society's opinion of your education and credentials is important.

 

[jbone]

Idealistically maybe you shouldn't, but in the real world, it matters what the general public thinks of your education. If you plan to interact with the rest of society, society's opinion of your education and credentials is important.

Then I would agree w/ your list.

 

[BaylorGuy]

Then I would agree w/ your list.

I'm with jbone...no matter if you have an MD, PhD, MS, etc. Harvard is most likely to get the best name recognition...most probably followed by Yale, Princeton, etc. (I.E. what most wuold call "reach schools")

I thought your original post was asking which medical school has the best name....like Stanford med (Keck). I think we should do that instead.

 

[indo]

Nobody knows what the hell Mayo is. Most of those schools are recognized by the non-medical population for their undergrad schools.

 

[WhatUpDoc!]

IMHO, I don't see how Johns Hopkins could not be #1 when it comes to med school recognition. Like indo said, most of the schools on the OP's list are recognized for their undergrad programs (most notably Harvard/Yale). I'm no movie buff or anything, but I can remember at least three movies I've seen within the past 2 years that have mentioned something about Johns Hopkins (Exorcism of Emily Rose, The Prince and me, and I forgot the name of the other one). You can't beat Hollywood when it comes to engraving names in the public mindset 👍

 

[owenmichael]

Nobody knows what the hell Mayo is. Most of those schools are recognized by the non-medical population for their undergrad schools.

I'd say globally more people have heard of Mayo just because of its international reputation (the clinic). Plus Mayo has the second best hospital in the uS (behind JHU I think). But I agree, most non-medical populations in the US would definately know a Harvard or Stanford over Mayo.

 

[owenmichael]

I was wondering what you all think the medical schools with the best name recognition AMONG THE NON-MEDICAL POPULATION are. The following would be my guess at the top ten:

1. Harvard
2. Yale
3. Stanford
4. Columbia
5. Mayo
6. Cornell
7. Duke
8. Dartmouth
9. Hopkins
10. Brown

I agree with the above list, probably put Hopkins higher, take brown of the list, and add maybe Penn?

 

[kimmcauliffe]

I agree, mostly. Ivy League schools will always be up there, along with JHU and Stanford. I think it's important not to underestimate UCLA and UPenn too, as these are schools that are really hard to get into. Ohio State University also ranks up there, as they had been listed consistently as one of the top ten med schools for the past few years.

 

[golftrippy]

Nobody knows what the hell Mayo is. Most of those schools are recognized by the non-medical population for their undergrad schools.

The name recognition thing is pretty funny...when I say I got into Brown people go crazy...yeah its a great school with a top-notch match list, but when I tell people I'm excited about by U Pitt interview they go "What?"

 

[Iwy Em Hotep]

The general public would be very impressed with an MD from MIT School of Medicine. 🙄

 

[jbone]

The general public would be very impressed with an MD from MIT School of Medicine. 🙄

 

[zzman]

As a student who nothing about med schools before actually applying

1. Harvard (yep)
2. Yale (yep)
3. Stanford (...ok)
4. Columbia (yup)
5. Mayo (whats that??) maybe U penn
6. Cornell (yep)
7. Duke (yup)
8. Dartmouth (yup)
9. Hopkins (yup)
10. Brown (yup)

 

[zzman]

The name recognition thing is pretty funny...when I say I got into Brown people go crazy...yeah its a great school with a top-notch match list, but when I tell people I'm excited about by U Pitt interview they go "What?"

Honestly I knew Pitt was top 20, but didn't get all that excited just because it doesn't have the reputation. If i told non-medical commu. people I got a Tufts interview they would most likely be more impressed than if I told them I got a Pitts inter.... sucks :/

 

[jbone]

As a student who nothing about med schools before actually applying

1. Harvard (yep)
2. Yale (yep)
3. Stanford (...ok)
4. Columbia (yup)
5. Mayo (whats that??) maybe U penn
6. Cornell (yep)
7. Duke (yup)
8. Dartmouth (yup)
9. Hopkins (yup)
10. Brown (yup)

I don't know about Brown. If you were to ask someone (ordinary person) about Brown, they would think UPS, not the medical school (at least here in the west). Out here I would replace Brown with UCLA, I guess it depends on where you live.

 

[hannahx]

Okay - regarding ALL of the "ranking" BS lately, WTF??!

How come everyone is so interested lately? 🙄 Although, I have noticed a number of newbie posters on here within the last couple of days..

Coincidence?? I think I know a gunner when I read their post! 😀

According to an ivy-specific college guidebook I was flipping through, "out of 100 students polled, only FOUR students could name all EIGHT Ivies. The most commonly named: Harvard, Princeton, and Yale. The most often forgotten: Brown and Darmouth. School most often mistaken for an Ivy (list alphabetically): Duke, Johns Hopkins, MIT, NYU, and Stanford."

Interesting - sort of, but who the &$% cares? I don't. I'll be happy to get into any US med school that is a good FIT.

Y'all should be worrying more about your GPA and MCAT scores in your "what are my chances" threads. AND be getting ready for my party tonight!

 

[Labslave]

Y'all should be worrying more about your GPA and MCAT scores in your "what are my chances" threads. AND be getting ready for my party tonight!

 

[ghostchild]

I got my MD at home in my spare time from the University of Phoenix. 👍

 

[dr.z]

I'm with jbone...no matter if you have an MD, PhD, MS, etc. Harvard is most likely to get the best name recognition...most probably followed by Yale, Princeton, etc. (I.E. what most wuold call "reach schools")

Yeah, everyone knows Harvard.

 

[unfrozencaveman]

Honestly I knew Pitt was top 20, but didn't get all that excited just because it doesn't have the reputation. If i told non-medical commu. people I got a Tufts interview they would most likely be more impressed than if I told them I got a Pitts inter.... sucks :/

Pitt is such a downer in that way. I keep hearing my mother qualify to people "yeah it's a really good school apparently"

 

[DropkickMurphy]

Idealistically maybe you shouldn't, but in the real world, it matters what the general public thinks of your education. If you plan to interact with the rest of society, society's opinion of your education and credentials is important.

I don't think most people know where their physicians went to school. So this discussion is a moot point.

 

[spot the cat]

I thought your original post was asking which medical school has the best name....like Stanford med (Keck). I think we should do that instead.

Mayo. Who'd name a med school after a condiment?

 

[thegenius]

Idealistically maybe you shouldn't, but in the real world, it matters what the general public thinks of your education. If you plan to interact with the rest of society, society's opinion of your education and credentials is important.

In the real world, you will get respect and fame from just about anyone if they know you are a doctor.

Even if you are an MD or a DO, the vast majority of patients won't know and won't care.

This is not hypothetical but based on what my dad and uncle (both physicians) told me over this past vacation. They said that if I don't want to go into academic medicine, it won't matter at all where I go to medical school.

Period.

 

[QuantumMechanic]

Mayo. Who'd name a med school after a condiment?

that was a stupid joke. 😴

 

[riceman04]

I was wondering what you all think the medical schools with the best name recognition AMONG THE NON-MEDICAL POPULATION are. The following would be my guess at the top ten:

1. Harvard
2. Yale
3. Stanford
4. Columbia
5. Mayo
6. Cornell
7. Duke
8. Dartmouth
9. Hopkins
10. Brown

not mayo among the non-medical population

 

[unicorn06]

The general public would be very impressed with an MD from MIT School of Medicine. 🙄

How about Princeton SOM? I bet that one would look good on a resume!

 

[silas2642]

How about Princeton SOM? I bet that one would look good on a resume!

Hey, don't laugh... I applied there. Wait a minute, did I just get punk'd?

 

[BaylorGuy]

Hey, don't laugh... I applied there. Wait a minute, did I just get punk'd?

Nice on Ashton...you're almost as funny as him


j/k I hate that damn show

 

[tennisnr]

I agree, mostly. Ivy League schools will always be up there, along with JHU and Stanford. I think it's important not to underestimate UCLA and UPenn too, as these are schools that are really hard to get into. Ohio State University also ranks up there, as they had been listed consistently as one of the top ten med schools for the past few years.

Ohio St. belongs nowhere near there imo. And it hasn't been in the top 10 in anything. Maybe you're thinking of UMich?

 

[EctopicFetus]

Idealistically maybe you shouldn't, but in the real world, it matters what the general public thinks of your education. If you plan to interact with the rest of society, society's opinion of your education and credentials is important.

Not to sound like a complete ass but as someone who is further along with my medical education than you. I can fully assure you that this is incorrect.

In the medical field patients have NO idea where you went to med school. Think about it, it is almost all controlled by insurance companies and word of mouth.

Let me explain, Lets suppose Dr. X went to harvard (your #1) and you need your appendix out but he only takes insurance from Company A, but you have insurance from Company B 99.9999% of patients end up at docs who take their insurance.

As for point # 2, if someone you loved was terminal and a doctor from the #108th med school in the country was the world's foremost expert and has done some amazing things but there is also a Harvard doc there but no one likes him. Everyone you know will say the go to the guy who went to the 108th med school.

Think of it like this, ask your parents (or yourself) if you know where your doctor, laywer, and accountant went to school. 99+% of people have no idea. What they DO know is how they are treated and if they have good word of mouth.

Using your logic the DOs would have no business cause they are "inferior"

 

[roboyce]

Not to sound like a complete ass but as someone who is further along with my medical education than you. I can fully assure you that this is incorrect.

In the medical field patients have NO idea where you went to med school. Think about it, it is almost all controlled by insurance companies and word of mouth.

Let me explain, Lets suppose Dr. X went to harvard (your #1) and you need your appendix out but he only takes insurance from Company A, but you have insurance from Company B 99.9999% of patients end up at docs who take their insurance.

As for point # 2, if someone you loved was terminal and a doctor from the #108th med school in the country was the world's foremost expert and has done some amazing things but there is also a Harvard doc there but no one likes him. Everyone you know will say the go to the guy who went to the 108th med school.

Think of it like this, ask your parents (or yourself) if you know where your doctor, laywer, and accountant went to school. 99+% of people have no idea. What they DO know is how they are treated and if they have good word of mouth.

Using your logic the DOs would have no business cause they are "inferior"

Amen!

 

[ny skindoc]

Practicing physicians will tell you that hardly any patients will ask where they went to med school. A study I saw recently asking patients about things they look for in a physician indicate that "graduating from a prestigious med school" ranks about last, and is important to 2-3% of respondents.Most people have not a clue as to what are top med schools and generally dont seek out doctors based on it- How many amongst your family and friends can tell you where their doctors went to med school? Harvard and Yale will impress but thats about it. Tell people you went to "Univ of CA at San Francisco and they will have no idea what that is,even though its better than many of the schools listed above.Most patients go to physicians who are recommended to them by friends,relatives or other physicians,or who accept their health insurance or are convenient. Of course there are good reasons to go to the top schools,you will get a great education and it will open many doors professionally, but dont count on most people knowing anything about medical schools.

 

[SpeedRacer]

Practicing physicians will tell you that hardly any patients will ask where they went to med school. A study I saw recently asking patients about things they look for in a physician indicate that "graduating from a prestigious med school" ranks about last, and is important to 2-3% of respondents.Most people have not a clue as to what are top med schools and generally dont seek out doctors based on it- How many amongst your family and friends can tell you where their doctors went to med school? Harvard and Yale will impress but thats about it. Tell people you went to "Univ of CA at San Francisco and they will have no idea what that is,even though its better than many of the schools listed above.Most patients go to physicians who are recommended to them by friends,relatives or other physicians,or who accept their health insurance or are convenient. Of course there are good reasons to go to the top schools,you will get a great education and it will open many doors professionally, but dont count on most people knowing anything about medical schools.

plus i think it matters to most medical people where you trained, not where you went to med school

 

[BaylorGuy]

I think this is all socially relevant more than education relevant. I.E. if you are at some party and someone asks you where you went to school....to them, it'll sound more impressive if you went to Yale Med than Poo Poo med school.


P.S.--where is turkeyman??? i wonder if he ever got that acceptance 😀 😀 😀 😀

 

[QofQuimica]

unicorn, seriously, please stop posting these rankings threads. I know you're anxious and eager like the rest of us, but they don't show you off in a very positive light.

 

[owenmichael]

unicorn, seriously, please stop posting these rankings threads. I know you're anxious and eager like the rest of us, but they don't show you off in a very positive light.

I just don't see what the issue is with having rankings threads. I started the other one about "top ten schools in your opinion." If people want to discuss rankings, LET THEM. Isn't SDN supposed to be a place where people can discuss issues pertaining to med school. If so, I really think someone who wants someone elses opinions on whats school has a better name is entitled to discuss that there. I'm not trying to be an ass (sorry if i'm coming across that way), it just seems like for some posts, theres way more people criticizing the OP for even posting than giving their opinions/answers.

 

[golftrippy]

I just don't see what the issue is with having rankings threads. I started the other one about "top ten schools in your opinion." If people want to discuss rankings, LET THEM. Isn't SDN supposed to be a place where people can discuss issues pertaining to med school. If so, I really think someone who wants someone elses opinions on whats school has a better name is entitled to discuss that there. I'm not trying to be an ass (sorry if i'm coming across that way), it just seems like for some posts, theres way more people criticizing the OP for even posting than giving their opinions/answers.

Haha, yeah I think some people only complain about these threads because they want to look like the saints of SDN...my opinion...this is actually an interesting topic

 

[QofQuimica]

I just don't see what the issue is with having rankings threads. I started the other one about "top ten schools in your opinion." If people want to discuss rankings, LET THEM. Isn't SDN supposed to be a place where people can discuss issues pertaining to med school. If so, I really think someone who wants someone elses opinions on whats school has a better name is entitled to discuss that there. I'm not trying to be an ass (sorry if i'm coming across that way), it just seems like for some posts, theres way more people criticizing the OP for even posting than giving their opinions/answers.

The bolded is my point. How many of these threads do we really need?

My opinion or answer is that I don't care where the OP, or you, go to med school. I don't know you, I have no way to decide which school would be best for you even if I wanted to, and my values and preferences are likely quite different than yours or hers. You can go to med school wherever you can get in, based on any set of criteria that are meaningful to YOU. Pick based on USNWR rankings if you want. Pick based on scholarships you're offered. Pick based on the weather, or the alignment of the planets, or the beautiful alliteration that the name of the school makes as it rolls off your tongue. But don't expect me and a bunch of other perfect strangers to know where YOU should go. I have enough problems with picking my own school.

P.S. I'm not trying to be an a$$ either. Maybe I'm just cranky right now, but I suspect that I'm not the only one who wishes people would just make their own decisions and stop posting these ridiculous, superficial angst-ridden threads. Picking between one top school versus another is not a "real" problem. As far as getting a good education goes, you can't go wrong by choosing either one, you know what I mean?

 

[owenmichael]

Delete

 

[owenmichael]

The bolded is my point. How many of these threads do we really need?

My opinion or answer is that I don't care where the OP, or you, go to med school. I don't know you, I have no way to decide which school would be best for you even if I wanted to, and my values and preferences are likely quite different than yours or hers. You can go to med school wherever you can get in, based on any set of criteria that are meaningful to YOU. Pick based on USNWR rankings if you want. Pick based on scholarships you're offered. Pick based on the weather, or the alignment of the planets, or the beautiful alliteration that the name of the school makes as it rolls off your tongue. But don't expect me and a bunch of other perfect strangers to know where YOU should go. I have enough problems with picking my own school.

P.S. I'm not trying to be an a$$ either. Maybe I'm just cranky right now, but I suspect that I'm not the only one who wishes people would just make their own decisions and stop posting these ridiculous, superficial angst-ridden threads. Picking between one top school versus another is not a "real" problem. As far as getting a good education goes, you can't go wrong by choosing either one, you know what I mean?

I understand, maybe you should just ignore the thread then. It's pretty obvious what the threads are about based on the topic. Again, some people come here for opinions and more often than not instead of getting opinions, they meet an onslaught of criticism. So if you don't care, just don't read the thread.

I'm sure the OP has thought about the criteria important to him/her, but was just looking for an outside opinion. As you'll note, some people did care and gave the OP their opinion.

And yes I agree with you can't go wrong by choosing either one, and sometimes its hard for me to read posts that say "Harvard vs. Stanford" just because i'm envious and wish I was in that position, but again, I don't think the OP should be criticized for having great opportunities at great schools.

Sorry Q, honestly not trying to be an ass, I might just be crabby too🙂 I note that you've been on SDN for a while and probably see the same threads popping up all the time, so maybe thats why you get frustrated with those threads. But newbs (which I think the OP was) may not realize this stuffs already been covered.

 

[p00psicleSTICK]

... umm a lot of people don't know about Mayo.

 

[qr321]

UCLA is actually very well-known among non-medical population. LA has something to do with it.

 

[TheMightyAngus]

The bolded is my point. How many of these threads do we really need?

My opinion or answer is that I don't care where the OP, or you, go to med school. I don't know you, I have no way to decide which school would be best for you even if I wanted to, and my values and preferences are likely quite different than yours or hers. You can go to med school wherever you can get in, based on any set of criteria that are meaningful to YOU. Pick based on USNWR rankings if you want. Pick based on scholarships you're offered. Pick based on the weather, or the alignment of the planets, or the beautiful alliteration that the name of the school makes as it rolls off your tongue. But don't expect me and a bunch of other perfect strangers to know where YOU should go. I have enough problems with picking my own school.

P.S. I'm not trying to be an a$$ either. Maybe I'm just cranky right now, but I suspect that I'm not the only one who wishes people would just make their own decisions and stop posting these ridiculous, superficial angst-ridden threads. Picking between one top school versus another is not a "real" problem. As far as getting a good education goes, you can't go wrong by choosing either one, you know what I mean?

I agree with Q and EctopicFetus (what a username!), 100%.

On another note, unless you are a professor with a faculty profile. No one will know where you went to med school anyway.

 

[C.P. Jones]

oh no, i posted here earlier and my post is not here 🙁

well, here's a summary of what i think:

amongst normal ppl....johns hopkins is def. number 1, followed by mayo....plenty of ppl know what mayo is (why do a lot of you not think that normal ppl know what mayo is? i always knew of mayo as being up there w/ johns hopkins when i was a normal non-med person)....next would be yale, and then harvard.....mostly yale b4 harvard b/c i'm from CT and that's how it works around here

for those other schools.....many non-medicine ppl don't even know that schools like stanford have a medical school....in fact, i didn't even know....nor do i care...that stanford has a medical school...as an example of ppl not knowing the medical school b/c the name of the school isn't good enough................also, keep in mind that location is probably a huge factor here. of course someone from california would know stanford med school. after harvard...cornell, columbia....after that...even schools like nyu and ny med just b/c of location for me

and yes, a school like ny med would be ranked high on name alone in my area if ppl don't know other med schools...why?...b/c it's not that important to normal ppl to know all the med schools

 

[p00psicleSTICK]

well mate down in the south NOBODY knows what the hell "Mayo" is, k? Hell a lot of med school applicants don't even know what "Mayo" is until they start applying.

 

[kimmcauliffe]

Ohio St. belongs nowhere near there imo. And it hasn't been in the top 10 in anything. Maybe you're thinking of UMich?

Research. They made the rankings last year, I believe... pretty sure it was OSU and not U Mich

 

[C.P. Jones]

well mate down in the south NOBODY knows what the hell "Mayo" is, k? Hell a lot of med school applicants don't even know what "Mayo" is until they start applying.

but it's Mayo!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! the one and only Mayo!!!!!!!

 

[Jon Davis]

When I first read this thread title, I though of the best sounding name. I disregard the OP's original pathetic post and substitute my own. Which school has the coolest sounding name?

My vote: Universidad Central Del Caribe

Very unique name.