SLU vs. MCW

[mt14]

Hi, please help me decide between these two schools. I’ve been putting off making a decision for like 6 months because I keep going back and forth. I’m OOS for both schools and have no support system at either. I want to go into surgery, likely General, or maybe anesthesiology. Not really sure I want to do academic medicine, but will probably do research in Med school for matching purposes. Tuition is about the same for both. Likely want to match back to East coast.

MCW:
Pros
-nice facilities/hospitals
-great research opportunities, apparently easy to find too
-supportive environment, laid back people
-good match list I think, but lots of midwest matches that may just be regional preference?
-great elective rotation options
-higher PD ranking (45)
-scholarly pathway options
-froedtert hospital surgical departments rated better nationally, and affiliation with children’s

Cons
-really wasn’t a fan of the area, I definitely prefer city vs suburb, and it’s cold
-large class
-curriculum is lots of PBL (I think?) which I’m not that big on
-housing actually tiny bit more expensive than St. Louis

SLU:
Pros
-love the idea of getting to live in the city
-established program with good name recognition, people in my area outside of Midwest actually recognize the school name, have never heard of MCW
-research distinction option
-ability to do research at Washington university
-students seemed very supported and stress-free
-pretty good match list nationwide
-more diverse (More students from outside Midwest)
-was actually my reach school stats wise, students at interview seemed smarter?
-new hospital
-nice curriculum I think?

Cons
-lower PD ranking (73)
-have to go to another school for solid research opportunities
-old facilities
-university hospital lacking in some surgical departments (CT), and low performing ranking
-probation history



Please help!!!!! Any additional info about either school is highly appreciated too, especially curriculum wise because interview days didn’t really discuss it much

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[TheDataKing]

MCW for a more friendly environment, research opportunities, and slightly better reputation (PD rankings are subject to huge bias). I also wouldn't want to be the guinea pig for a new curriculum at SLU. I know a few people who have gone to MCW and matched back or to the east coast - their match list is likely weighted towards the midwest because a lot of students come from there. Where you do away rotations and come from will help you match and you will be able to so I wouldn't worry about that yet

 

[Zen Arcade]

MCW for a more friendly environment, research opportunities, and slightly better reputation (PD rankings are subject to huge bias). I also wouldn't want to be the guinea pig for a new curriculum at SLU. I know a few people who have gone to MCW and matched back or to the east coast - their match list is likely weighted towards the midwest because a lot of students come from there. Where you do away rotations and come from will help you match and you will be able to so I wouldn't worry about that yet

I would consider MCW to be a higher ranked school simply because it has held its reputation as a mid tier for so long(aside from PD rankings and US news, which are all higher than SLU). It doesn’t have an affiliated undergrad which is why the name isn’t as well known among the general population... this shouldn’t matter to you because it doesn’t help you get into the good residencies. I talked to a resident who went to SLU when they were on probation... it wasn’t a good situation. Apparently they’ve cleaned up their problems since then, but why go to a school that has a recent negative track record when you don’t have to? Also, MCW doesn’t have much PBL... they only have one group session as week and the rest is lectures. Pretty much everything about the education you will receive at MCW is a positive- much more research funding, excellent clinical opportunities, and a well established mid tier that matches well. I think MCW is the clear choice here unless location is a deal breaker.

 

[CHIOTR]

MCW is about 10-15 minutes from downtown Milwaukee (a bit more at rush hour, but surface streets are easy if the highway is jammed), so you aren't really stuck in suburbia. It would be fairly easy to live in Milwaukee and commute to MCW. So if that's a big concern for you, it's pretty easily managed.

It is definitely cold in the winter, but Milwaukee is amazing in the summer. Now, this year will be different because most of the festivals are cancelled due to Covid, but typically there is always something going on here. I moved here from Chicago, and thought I would miss the "big city." But Milwaukee is basically a condensed version of Chicago, without a lot of the traffic and expense. If you like to go out, Milwaukee has the second most bars per capita after New Orleans. 😉

 

[mt14]

Thank you all for your input! If anyone has any comments on SLU (positive or negative) that’d be appreciated