SUNY Upstate v Drexel

[whournameiz]

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I just got off the waitlist for Upstate and not sure which way to go.

Drexel was a much nicer school than Upstate but more expensive and I'm not so sure about its reputation.

Can anyone offer some insight?

 

[rpkall]

Upstate!

The cheapness factor is important; cost of living around Syracuse is also low, and you can get a nice place.

I don't know much about Drexel, but I really liked Upstate's administration and their dedication to producing good clinical physicians (rather than hardcore research focus). But, they have some decent research there if you're into that. The RMED program at Upstate also looked good to me; it's a cool opportunity if you want to get involved in patient care in a more intimate way (rather than being one of 5 rounding students poking a patient on giant wards), no matter what discipline you ultimately want to get into (though it's more applicable for primary care fields or rural specialties, etc).

 

[2009doc]

Hands down Upstate!

i'm surprised you thought drexel was a (much) nicer school...i personally thought it was a really ugly (sole) building...anyhow, i interviewed at both and thought that the drexel students stressed alot how easy med school was and how they never went to class (major turn off for me personally), while the upstate students stressed how happy they were, how great the administration was and how laid back and friendly all their other classmates were.

that being said, i'm not sure as far as reputation- take a look again at the match list. drexel *might* be better for specialties...i don't remember off hand. if you are interested in general medicine of any type then upstate is clearly superior, as that is its specialty. but still i know that if you want to stay in ny, upstate matches well in many good hospitals in ny.

as far as location, i don't think its really discussing- of course philadelphia would be more fun than syracuse. but you would save a ton of money in syracuse (and even if you pay out of state for the first year- upstate would still be cheaper).

i saved my strongest best reason for upstate for last---- upstate is surrounded by many hospitals!!!! the major turnoff for me about drexel was the fact that there was no hospital near campus, so how likely is it that you will supplement your first two years course work with extensive patient exposure- not very. in addition, some of drexel's rotations (if i remember correctly) are in pittsburg and rural pennsylvania! i personally wouldn't want to travel all over the state to fulfill all my rotations.

good luck with your decision. don't stress too much, either way the effort you put in will ultimately decide your future. neither school will make or break your future...regardless, one day you will be a doctor!!! 🙂

 

[DubZteR]

I just got off the waitlist for Upstate and not sure which way to go.

Drexel was a much nicer school than Upstate but more expensive and I'm not so sure about its reputation.

Can anyone offer some insight?

I'm not sure what exactly you mean by "Much nicer" and I don't know much about Drexel but I know that Upstate was the friendliest place where I interviewed. I also liked the facilities and there seemed to be a lot of growth and construction which is a plus to me. Also, according to the AMA, it is one of the few schools that has an affliliation to top training facilities such as Harvard's Children Hospital (http://www.ama-assn.org/vapp/freida...,240152,00.html) and the only school (other than Harvard) which has an affiliation to Brigham/Women's Hospital (http://www.ama-assn.org/vapp/freida...,240438,00.html).

Either way, good luck in making your decision!

 

[criminallyinane]

I'm not sure what exactly you mean by "Much nicer" and I don't know much about Drexel but I know that Upstate was the friendliest place where I interviewed. I also liked the facilities and there seemed to be a lot of growth and construction which is a plus to me. Also, according to the AMA, it is one of the few schools that has an affliliation to top training facilities such as Harvard's Children Hospital (http://www.ama-assn.org/vapp/freida...,240152,00.html) and the only school with an affiliation to Brigham/Women's Hospital (http://www.ama-assn.org/vapp/freida...,240438,00.html).

Either way, good luck in making your decision!

BWH is a Harvard hospital in Boston, not an Upstate hospital. Med students at Harvard rotate at BWH, not Upstate students... I'm not sure where you got this information, but it is incorrect. Children's is also a Harvard hospital.

 

[DubZteR]

BWH is a Harvard hospital in Boston, not an Upstate hospital. Med students at Harvard rotate at BWH, not Upstate students... I'm not sure where you got this information, but it is incorrect. Children's is also a Harvard hospital.

Yes, I'm quite aware that both hospitals are located in Boston but according to the AMA, it clearly says that both hospitals have an affiliation with Upstate Medical School. I'm also aware that Harvard med students rotate at these hospitals but at Upstate, senior med students have a lot of free elective time in 4th year to go "away" and pursue their interests if this is something they want to do. This is one of the many reasons why I chose to go to Upstate.

From the AMA-Freida "Medical School Affiliations" section of the website:

Brigham and Women's Hospital
75 Francis St
Boston, MA 02115

Identifier: 24-0438




Basic information
Institution service type: General hospital
Type of ownership or control: Other Non-Profit


Clinical environment
1,017 Number of paid physicians/dentist on staff (excludes clinicians in practice arrangements)
725 Number of beds
96 Number of bassinets
622 Average daily census
9,444 Annual births
42,184 Annual admissions
54,626 Annual emergency department (ED) visits
598,283 Annual non-ED outpatient visits
16,836 Annual inpatient surgeries
12,148 Annual outpatient surgeries
74,195 Annual number of Medicare days
18,845 Annual number of Medicaid days



--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Special clinical resources



Yes Cardiac ICU (30) Beds
Yes Medical Surgical ICU (40) Beds
No Pediatric ICU (0) Beds
Yes Neonatal ICU (46) Beds
Yes Burn care (10) Beds
No Physical rehabilitation (0) Beds
No Psychiatric care (0) Beds
No Hospice
Yes Pain management
Yes Palliative care
Yes Trauma center (level 1)
Yes Transplant services
Yes Positron Emission Tomography
Yes MRI


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Medical school affiliation
This institution has the following affiliations
Relationship Institution

Major
02401
Harvard Med Sch

Graduate
03515
SUNY Upstate Med Univ Coll of Med







--------------------------------------------------
Children's Hospital
300 Longwood Ave
Boston, MA 02115-5737

Identifier: 24-0152




Basic information
Institution service type: Children's general hospital
Type of ownership or control: Other Non-Profit


Clinical environment
64 Number of paid physicians/dentist on staff (excludes clinicians in practice arrangements)
322 Number of beds
0 Number of bassinets
256 Average daily census
0 Annual births
17,687 Annual admissions
51,006 Annual emergency department (ED) visits
331,315 Annual non-ED outpatient visits
0 Annual inpatient surgeries
12,293 Annual outpatient surgeries
45,986 Annual number of Medicare days
16,891 Annual number of Medicaid days



--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Special clinical resources



Yes Cardiac ICU (21) Beds
No Medical Surgical ICU (0) Beds
Yes Pediatric ICU (18) Beds
Yes Neonatal ICU (26) Beds
No Burn care (0) Beds
No Physical rehabilitation (0) Beds
Yes Psychiatric care (18) Beds
No Hospice
Pain management
Palliative care
Yes Trauma center (level 1)
Yes Transplant services
Yes Positron Emission Tomography
Yes MRI


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Medical school affiliation
This institution has the following affiliations
Relationship Institution

Major
02401
Harvard Med Sch

Graduate
02405
Boston Univ Sch of Med

Limited
02416
Univ of Massachusetts Med Sch

Graduate
03201
Dartmouth Med Sch

Graduate
03515
SUNY Upstate Med Univ Coll of Med

Graduate
03005
Univ of Nebraska Coll of Med

 

[criminallyinane]

I imagine that means that some of the residency/fellowship programs at Upstate have training rotations at BWH, or something of that sort. It definitely does not mean that med students at Upstate will be rotating through BWH as part of the regular curriculum. Any medical student in the country can rotate through BWH/Children's if they apply for an away elective, so that is not unique to Upstate. Syracuse is a great place to go to school, but I just wanted to correct this misinformation.

 

[DubZteR]

I imagine that means that some of the residency/fellowship programs at Upstate have training rotations at BWH, or something of that sort. It definitely does not mean that med students at Upstate will be rotating through BWH as part of the regular curriculum. Any medical student in the country can rotate through BWH/Children's if they apply for an away elective, so that is not unique to Upstate. Syracuse is a great place to go to school, but I just wanted to correct this misinformation.

I wasn't trying to imply that Upstate students do their regular clerkships at these two hospitals so if that's how my message came across then I'm glad you clarified that.

The point I was trying to make to the OP who's trying to decide between schools was that Upstate does have affiliations with those two Harvard hospitals and so this may (or may not) help if they want to train there in the future. Whether the affiliation is for a post-grad program I don't know but as an incoming student this is something I'm going to try and find more info on.

 

[criminallyinane]

I wasn't trying to imply that Upstate students do their regular clerkships at these two hospitals so if that's how my message came across then I'm glad you clarified that.

The point I was trying to make to the OP who's trying to decide between schools was that Upstate does have affiliations with those two Harvard hospitals and so this may (or may not) help if they want to train there in the future. Whether the affiliation is for a post-grad program I don't know but as an incoming student this is something I'm going to try and find more info on.

I don't think that any affiliation Upstate may or may not have with the Harvard hospitals would help with matching at BWH or Children's; as I recall, they hardly have any matches to those institutions every year. Upstate is a good school but it's important to emphasize the positive qualities of its actual teaching hospitals as opposed to extrapolating meaning from a (weak and not very direct) connection to Harvard hospitals.

 

[DubZteR]

I don't think that any affiliation Upstate may or may not have with the Harvard hospitals would help with matching at BWH or Children's; as I recall, they hardly have any matches to those institutions every year. Upstate is a good school but it's important to emphasize the positive qualities of its actual teaching hospitals as opposed to extrapolating meaning from a (weak and not very direct) connection to Harvard hospitals.

You're entitled to your own opinion but it's not cool for you to go from telling me " I'm not sure where you got this information, but it is incorrect" to accusing me of "extrapolating meaning from a (weak and not very direct) connection to Harvard Hospitals."

You don't seem to know much about these ties yourself so how can you claim to know if the affiliation is weak or not very direct. You should take a closer look at my last post because for certain affiliations it clearly says "limited" such as with

Limited
02416
Univ of Massachusetts Med Sch

Does it say this for Upstate? No.

If you want to pick a fight then please go elsewhere.

 

[criminallyinane]

I am not arguing. I know much more about Upstate than you may think. There are no programs for medical students at BWH or Children's that I am aware of. There is no advantage for residency that I am aware of. I am merely trying to provide accurate information.

Syracuse has its own excellent hospitals and a pretty good rep. What I am saying is, it doesn't matter if Upstate has some sort of affiliation with BWH or not; it has good hospitals on its own. Since the affiliation with BWH is minor at best, and since it doesn't directly affect the med students curriculum, it should not be a primary factor in one's decision to go to Upstate.

 

[whournameiz]

Since the affiliation with BWH is minor at best, and since it doesn't directly affect the med students curriculum, it should not be a primary factor in one's decision to go to Upstate.

I still haven't decided! but thank you for your inputs everyone. BTW, that won't be be my primary factor but thank you for pointing it out. If there are any opinions other than on Upstates affiliations 😉 ..please let me know!!

 

[eyehope]

This connection will NOT help you match there. Just look at the match lists for the last few years. If I remember correctly (could be wrong), the anesthesiology residency program send its residents to BWH for a labor and delivery rotation.

While Upstate is a good state school, don't use this as a reason to choose Upstate over Drexel.

An Upstate graduate.

You're entitled to your own opinion but it's not cool for you to go from telling me " I'm not sure where you got this information, but it is incorrect" to accusing me of "extrapolating meaning from a (weak and not very direct) connection to Harvard Hospitals."

You don't seem to know much about these ties yourself so how can you claim to know if the affiliation is weak or not very direct. You should take a closer look at my last post because for certain affiliations it clearly says "limited" such as with

Limited
02416
Univ of Massachusetts Med Sch

Does it say this for Upstate? No.

If you want to pick a fight then please go elsewhere.

 

[JCserver3]

I currently go to Upstate (starting MS3 next month) and I like it there. In my opinion, reputation doesn't really matter that much. Anyone can go to any residency program from any US medical school if they work hard enough - this past year there were approx 5 people who matched into Orthopedics and about 2 who matched into Plastic Surgery.
The big question to answer is "where will you be the happiest?" Med school is hard and if you are not happy, you are going to find it harder. Syracuse is cold and there are few days when the sun shines. If you are a outdoor person, there are plenty of places to explore. I find that for the most part the professors are good and really care about the students. Pretty much everyone I've met has been friendly.

Good luck with your decision.

 

[albinomidget]

I'm not entirely sure what the atmosphere is like at Upstate, as I have never seen the campus. However, I think there are some very big differences, and this may impact your decision.

1) The weather is very different b/t Syracuse and Philly. I went to SUNY Binghamton for undergrad, and I am pretty experienced in the upstate NY weather system. I can tell you hands down that the weather is better in Philly.

2) I really have never seen Syracuse as a city (except for driving past it to Turningston at 1am on a few college adventures), but I suspect that Philly will be a very different experience.

3) Clearly, the tuition is a very nice factor in favor of Upstate.

4) I am not sure where you do your rotations at Upstate, but with Drexel I think few people get stuck with rotations in Pitt or rural PA, and of those that do, I hear many of them actually like their rotations.

5) The curriculum is also pretty different between the two schools.

A previous poster claimed that the students seemed very happy at Upstate, and that the administration was great, and that the students were very laid back. I can tell you without any hesitation that the same holds true for Drexel. Additionally, this poster questions the amount of exposure we get during the first two years. In the first year, there is a course that runs for 20 weeks, and each week you practice your interviewing skills on patients in either Hahnemann Univ Hosp. or Abington Memorial Hosp. Also, you must spend 4 days at a primary care's practice to work on your interviewing skills and you get to be as involved with the patients as you want (I basically worked as a 3rd year student, as I would interview the pt., check vitals, and then present the pt. to the doc). We spend at least 4 hours in the ER practicing interviewing skills and comparing how the ER docs interview vs. PCP's. Also, you must complete the Community Education Experience, where you can work with patients in a variety of settings, including playing with kids at the children's hospital ER (you also get to shadow there. I stapled a kids head as a 1st year). Other experiences include teaching high school kids about STD's or you can work at some of the clinics. In second year, we have even more exposure, and it is expanded to doing physical exams as well as history taking. But this seems to be pretty long, and I won't bore you with the details. Suffice to say, we absolutely get plenty of contact with patients.

I think that you will get a great medical education at either school. It really depends on what you are looking for in addition to the education.

If you have any specific questions about Drexel, feel free to PM me.