Stanford vs. Northwestern vs. Cornell

[isabella1]

Hey guys,

I am trying to chose between Stanford and Northwestern (and Cornell if I get in--I find out in March), and I was hoping any current students at these schools could help shed some lights regarding pros and cons of each school.

I am from Wisconsin, so Northwestern is close to home. The curriculum is PBL based, which I think could be really great, and the class seems to be younger, which is nice because I am not taking time off before medical school.

However, I am very committed to interdisciplinary learning, and I think Stanford is best for pursuing any kind of joint degree or even electives at the other graduate school. Additionally, I am extremely interested in global health, and I know Stanford has an amazing Global Health Program. Also, they have amazing weather! (although, does anyone know how bad spring time allergies are?) That being said, I know Stanford is very research focused, and while I can see myself doing clinical research, I do want to make sure I will get a solid clinical education wherever I end up. (my passion is more in the clinical stuff) Given that Stanford is in Palo Alto and is very research focused, do you think clinical education suffers?

Finally, Cornell is a great school, with a solid clinical education and it's in NYC (my favorite city in the world), but it does not have many opportunities for joint degrees. The students talked a lot about how great rotations are, how collaborative everyone is, and how much they liked PBL.

My other concern is that all three schools are in ritzy parts of town, and I want to make sure I get exposure to a variety of different patients, all three schools say they have access to a diverse patient population, but how true is this really?

I love Stanford's campus and interdisciplinary education, Cornell's location in New York City, and Northwestern's location near family. Do any current or prospective students at these schools have any opinions on the pros and cons of these three medical schools?

I know that I am very lucky to have been admitted to Stanford and Northwestern, and to have interviewed at Cornell. Thanks for your help in discussing this decision with me. I know some people on sdn don't like these kinds of threads, and I can understand why. I'm very sorry if this bothers you, and if it does, please just leave this thread.

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[Schnitzy]

Hey guys,

I am trying to chose between Stanford and Northwestern (and Cornell if I get in--I find out in March), and I was hoping any current students at these schools could help shed some lights regarding pros and cons of each school.

I am from Wisconsin, so Northwestern is close to home. The curriculum is PBL based, which I think could be really great, and the class seems to be younger, which is nice because I am not taking time off before medical school.

However, I am very committed to interdisciplinary learning, and I think Stanford is best for pursuing any kind of joint degree or even electives at the other graduate school. Additionally, I am extremely interested in global health, and I know Stanford has an amazing Global Health Program. Also, they have amazing weather! (although, does anyone know how bad spring time allergies are?) That being said, I know Stanford is very research focused, and while I can see myself doing clinical research, I do want to make sure I will get a solid clinical education wherever I end up. (my passion is more in the clinical stuff) Given that Stanford is in Palo Alto and is very research focused, do you think clinical education suffers?

Finally, Cornell is a great school, with a solid clinical education and it's in NYC (my favorite city in the world), but it does not have many opportunities for joint degrees. The students talked a lot about how great rotations are, how collaborative everyone is, and how much they liked PBL.

My other concern is that all three schools are in ritzy parts of town, and I want to make sure I get exposure to a variety of different patients, all three schools say they have access to a diverse patient population, but how true is this really?

I love Stanford's campus and interdisciplinary education, Cornell's location in New York City, and Northwestern's location near family. Do any current or prospective students at these schools have any opinions on the pros and cons of these three medical schools?

I know that I am very lucky to have been admitted to Stanford and Northwestern, and to have interviewed at Cornell. Thanks for your help in discussing this decision with me. I know some people on sdn don't like these kinds of threads, and I can understand why. I'm very sorry if this bothers you, and if it does, please just leave this thread.

I'll throw some thoughts out there, and hopefully, they help.

Northwestern and Cornell are both urban, while Stanford is suburban. Stanford is close to San Jose (yuck) and SF, but again, you aren't actually living in the cities.

Re: allergies, as a Midwestern who had horrible allergies, my allergies went away when I moved to the West Coast. Well, not exactly: many of the plants and pollens I was allergic to in the Midwest are not on the West Coast

Northwestern, Stanford, and Cornell are all research-heavy schools, however, they're also excellent hospitals. Although Stanford places a high-value on research, that does not mean the quality of clinical teaching is poor. Although the emphasis on research may not be your thing now, you never know: you might fall in love with basic or public health research.

In terms of rent: Cornell>Stanford>Northwestern. Northwestern is in downtown Chicago, however, the rent in the area (as well as in neighborhoods nearby) isn't as bad as Manhattan or Silicon Valley

Good luck

 

[Megatron2016]

Stanford unless amazing financial aid/scholarship somewhere else or you really cannot envision yourself being happy there for whatever reason.

 

[deleted284725]

Have you completely ruled out St George's in the Caribbean? I just saw a very convincing banner ad.

 

[thlaxer]

Have you completely ruled out St George's in the Caribbean? I just saw a very convincing banner ad.

 

[isabella1]

lol...

Thanks for your post Schnitzy!

 

[kpcrew]

real question?
The other schools are excellent but they don't compare with Stanford.

 

[ilikesports]

I also agree with a poster above.

The answer is simply: Stanford.

It's really not that hard of a decision.

(This is coming from someone pretty unbiased as I haven't applied to any of the named schools and I'm not from any of the states that host those schools)

 

[jogaboy10]

Why did you chose Stanford? If you're unbiased, what's your reason?

 

[Saragam]

All of those are incredibly expensive schools, and I am not sure how cost factors into your decision.

I have heard that Stanford has good financial aid and many opportunities for students to earn money as TAs and such. My experience with Cornell was that the aid was disgustingly low for a school that is in Manhattan and costs as much as it does, with as few students as it has (relatively). That was the number 1 reason I withdrew.

Finally, for what Northwestern offers (at least compared to these other 2 schools), it is definitely not worth its price tag. Just my opinion.

 

[isabella1]

Thanks guys. Any other feedback on the Northwestern vs. Cornell side?

 

[Phildobaggins]

Thanks guys. Any other feedback on the Northwestern vs. Cornell side?

*Disclaimer - I currently go to Northwestern, so I'm clearly biased*

With that said, I would chose NW over Cornell every time, and I have yet to hear someone say they regret coming here. The students all seem to love it.

As some people have mentioned, NW has a younger group of students as opposed to Cornell, which has more non-traditional students. I also love NW's curriculum, which has a very limited amount of lecture time, all of which is optional to attend (they record lectures so you can watch them at home at 2x speed). Afternoons are generally free time, and you really have the ability to do a lot of things with it.

NW is also in an amazing part of Chicago. To me, Chicago a perfectly sized city - plenty of activities and events, but not overwhelming like NYC can be. It is pretty expensive, but I can't imagine Cornell being cheaper.

On a more subjective/rumor-y note, I've heard people saying the students at Cornell are not very happy. Many people end up going there simply for the name/prestige (which is great), and are too wrapped up in all that and are too competitive. So take that with a grain of salt...

 

[Duotone]

*Disclaimer - I currently go to Northwestern, so I'm clearly biased*

With that said, I would chose NW over Cornell every time, and I have yet to hear someone say they regret coming here. The students all seem to love it.

As some people have mentioned, NW has a younger group of students as opposed to Cornell, which has more non-traditional students. I also love NW's curriculum, which has a very limited amount of lecture time, all of which is optional to attend (they record lectures so you can watch them at home at 2x speed). Afternoons are generally free time, and you really have the ability to do a lot of things with it.

NW is also in an amazing part of Chicago. To me, Chicago a perfectly sized city - plenty of activities and events, but not overwhelming like NYC can be. It is pretty expensive, but I can't imagine Cornell being cheaper.

On a more subjective/rumor-y note, I've heard people saying the students at Cornell are not very happy. Many people end up going there simply for the name/prestige (which is great), and are too wrapped up in all that and are too competitive. So take that with a grain of salt...

Is that a good or bad thing?

 

[Phildobaggins]

Is that a good or bad thing?

Depends on what you're looking for, honestly. I came straight from undergrad, and was not quite ready to give up my social life. At NW, there are plenty of people my age that I can hang out with.