Texas Tech Lubbock VS UTMB Sealy

[HungryBee]

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I pre-matched with TTUHSC Lubbock. I feel like Lubbock is the better choice, but I'm so much more excited about Sealy. I'm trying to decided which school should be ranked higher on my list, and I feel like I'm picking between my head and my heart.

TTUHSC Lubbock
Pros

• MD/PhD program, and if I'm not accepted before matriculation, transfer rates into the program are supposedly excellent
• Fabulous church nearby I'd love to join
• Good amount of research in the area I'm interested in
• No one goes to class, so there's a lot of freedom
• Low cost of living

Cons

• I really don't want to live in Lubbock
• Mandatory Spanish classes, though it's not a huge part of the curriculum
• One of the faculty members say some really nerve-racking things about new changes in the curriculum
• No one goes to class, so some current students complained about a lack of community
• I didn't like any of the student panelists or tour guides I got to meet, though my interviewers seemed nice
• Students are assigned to regional campuses after matriculation, so you can't know where you're going to wind up. (MD/PhDs are exempt from this.)
• I have literally no interest in sports, and watching different games seems to be a major activity for med students

UTMB Sealy
Pros

• Galveston makes me much more excited
• I loved the student panelists, and my interviewers were amazing.
• Major institutional focus on the kind of research I love
• Rotating through multiple locations, so you won't get stuck in a city you hate for 2 years
• Much closer to my family

Cons

• Not been interviewed for their MD/PhD program, and there's no clear path to transfer in.
• Higher cost of living
• No clear religious community for me
• Longer commutes, and you don't have a set home base for rotations. They say that they help with housing some, but I would probably need to find a new church every few weeks for a while.
• I've had a lot less access to chatty, unfiltered students and administrators, so my current view is probably overly rosy.

Summary: TTUHSC Lubbock seems to generally be the better choice, and it would save me money. It would also open more doors with the MD/PhD program. However, Sealy has successfully made me much more excited about their school.

 

[olofmeister]

I interviewed at both of these schools and I pretty much had the same thoughts. Sealy seems like a better student experience and thus will likely make you more successful in medical school, which is the most important thing. Plus you'll be close to family!

For me, the difference in cost of living isn't big enough to make me choose one over the other. Honestly I think you should consider the difference in weather if you haven't already (because they're A LOT different lol). Personally I ranked UTMB #1.

 

[da_voidz]

How important is the MD/PhD to you? Is it a dream to run your own lab one day?

I might just be restating the obvious to you, but from my POV, if you take the MD/PhD out of the equation, UTMB would be the clear-front runner. So if I'm you, maybe I would re-frame as what's more important: having the MD/PhD or enjoying the support and location of UTMB?

 

[HungryBee]

How important is the MD/PhD to you? Is it a dream to run your own lab one day?

I might just be restating the obvious to you, but from my POV, if you take the MD/PhD out of the equation, UTMB would be the clear-front runner. So if I'm you, maybe I would re-frame as what's more important: having the MD/PhD or enjoying the support and location of UTMB?

Thank you. I needed to think that through. At least for right now, I'm ranking UTMB above TTUHSC Lubbock. They just seem to have so many more research opportunities, and I have met many MDs who are doing awesome science.

I have been dreaming having my own lab for the last decade, but I want that because I want to mentor students and conduct great research that tangibly helps people. I think that an MD and a research fellowship would still allow me to do those things, although maybe not in the way I had had in my head.