SUNY upstate vs Drexel

[mrfrosty47]

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so, ive been placed on SUNY upstates "high priority waitlist." does anyone know how many people are placed on this list and the chances that i'll get in?

also, ive been accepted to drexel and was wondering which school would you guys rather go to? drexel is in a nice area and ive heard that its a very friendly environment. but its really expensive. on the other hand, SUNY is a LOT cheaper. what do you think?

 

[stinkycheese]

Upstate. Why spend all that money to go to a similar quality school? Unless you hate Syracuse and love Philly.

 

[LorinE]

so, ive been placed on SUNY upstates "high priority waitlist." does anyone know how many people are placed on this list and the chances that i'll get in?

also, ive been accepted to drexel and was wondering which school would you guys rather go to? drexel is in a nice area and ive heard that its a very friendly environment. but its really expensive. on the other hand, SUNY is a LOT cheaper. what do you think?

I am in a similar situation MrFrosty. I have been accepted to Upstate and the only other interview I've had has been at Drexel and it went well.
Drexel is closer to my family and Philly is a more exciting city in my opinion but the people in Syracuse are really nice and the rent and tuition there are really really cheap.
Down sides: Philly's cost and no dorms so even if you wanted to consider it to save money, you couldn't. For Syracuse, (much farther from where I live), and the winters are brutal - or so I've heard.
Right now I am leaning towards Upstate but then again Drexel hasn't actually offered me a spot - at least not yet.

 

[albinomidget]

Upstate. Why spend all that money to go to a similar quality school? Unless you hate Syracuse and love Philly.

What makes it a similar quality school? US News rankings? Have you been to both to compare for yourself?

 

[tigress]

hehe, so my husband goes to Drexel and his brother goes to SUNY upstate. Here's what I can tell you based on what they say:

SUNY upstate is a great school and really inexpensive. Winters in Syracuse are horrendous, like really awful, so consider how much that will factor into your plans. Syracuse is a pretty boring place (unless you're into skiing!), but I'm sure there's something to do anywhere you go. Profs there are reported to be good. It doesn't really have the friendly attitude of Drexel, but it's definitely not ultra-competitive or anything. For clinical rotations you get to choose between Syracuse and Binghamton, so you do have the option of spending your winters without a guaranteed snowstorm every single night, at least in the last 2 years of med school. At Syracuse, you have the option of cheap housing in the dorm, which is really convenient.

I have a few posts on these forums lauding Drexel, and I don't want to seem like a groupie . But really it's a great school. The biggest downside is price, of course. Drexel has an awesome curriculum, wonderful and helpful faculty, and a very friendly, congenial atmosphere. Philly is a great city to live in (e.g. right now we have the Dali exhibit!). Also Drexel is very diverse, which is a bonus that is probably actually due to the lower numbers required to get in. (btw, there are plenty of awesome students; my husband had 3.6 GPA, 36 on MCAT, and Drexel is great for him because he's sort of shy and not an ultra-competitive type).

All in all, though, in your situation I'd truthfully probably choose SUNY, just because it is a good school and so much less expensive. Difficult decision between two schools of similar quality, as mentioned above. Good luck!

 

[Uegis]

I just checked on AAMC, the tuition for Drexel was 38K this year, up from 34K the year last year. That's a crazy jump. But i'm sure it'll level off after this year. But I would imagine Upstate to be much cheaper.

 

[whournameiz]

bump any other opinions?

 

[Zephyrus]

bump any other opinions?

Drexel is not appreciably different from SUNY upstate in terms of quality, location, or prestige, but it's much more expensive. SUNY, hands down.

Z

 

[timmah2k]

Just curious...what was your GPA?

 

[whournameiz]

is it true that u can be considered a NY resident after a year for SUNY upstate? does anyone know what you have to do?