Title

[sliceofsupreme]

---

Members don't see this ad.

Resolved! Thanks.

 

[KnightDoc]

Hey guys, I was recently admitted to Rice University and had a great interview for the Stony Brook BS/MD program. Although Stony Brook hasn't rendered a final decision, my interviewer said he was thoroughly impressed with my level of maturity, responses to medical ethics questions, and medical experience as a high school student. I have made a pros and cons list for the two schools below:

Rice (undergrad)
Pros:

• Close to home: strong support system with family and friends
• Strong connections with some research professors and doctors from the Texas Med Center (can continue my research in the lab from HS)
• Strong community and support system at Rice (highly collaborative; know a lot of upperclassmen and Rice grads)
• Close proximity to Texas Medical Center
• Feeder school to Baylor College of Medicine (would love to stay in Houston)
• Better overall college experience?

Cons:

• Must go through traditional pre-med route (maintain high GPA, MCAT, ECs, etc)
• Cost: 45k annually (when compared to Stony Brook)
• Uncertainty of handling Rice's academic rigor (basically working harder/more stress)

Stony Brook BS/MD
Pros:

• Near full tuition scholarship for undergrad: 20k annually (less undergrad debt)
• Conditional acceptance into med school
• Lowered stress (maintain a 3.4 min. GPA and min. MCAT)
• More time to focus on hobbies/research (maybe a co-authored publication?)
• Earlier start/motivation to do med-related activities for personal interest instead of for "pre-med requirements/ECs"

Cons:

• Lower ranked undergrad school at #91
• New, unfamiliar location (in Long Island, NY from TX)
• Commitment to the same location for the next 8 years
• Consideration of applying to other medical schools at the end of undergrad (especially with TX in-state med schools having super low tuition)
• Losing the traditional college experience??

*** If this helps, here are my med experiences in HS: 4 yrs of hospital volunteering, 4 yrs of surgical observation (open heart & orthopedic surgeries), 4 yrs of medical volunteering trip abroad, 2 yrs of research internships, 1 yr of medical internship with a well-known cardiothoracic surgeon, clinical research publication with a well-known hospital, a full & extensive research project for this upcoming summer in the Texas Medical Center for publication in PubMed (w/ presentation at that medical school)

Thank you guys so much for your time! I just want to hear people's thoughts, especially for those who decided to undergo the BS/MD route.

I'll give you the same advice you probably already got on College Confidential -- get the offer from Stony Brook first and then ask the question. Right now you have a month to get back to Rice and you don't have a BS/MD offer, so you have no decision to make!

Any decent interviewer will have you leave feeling good about the interview and the school, so him blowing kisses at you doesn't mean anything, as you will learn the hard way as you mature even more than you already have. You might or might not get in, but anyone who has ever had an interview will tell you, an interviewer saying nice things to you is indicative of nothing. 🙂

 

[Highwalk]

Stony Brook's medical school is strong. There is no guarantee that you'll be accepted at Baylor even if you attend a feeder school. I would take the BS/MD.

 

[KnightDoc]

Thank you so much! I will definitely make another post if I actually get in.

And then you'll get the same advice you've probably been getting for the past year -- it all depends on your risk aversion, since Stony Brook is clearly not your first choice for either UG or med school, and it's not nearly as prestigious as Rice (or many med schools, for that matter!), but it is a bird in the hand!! 🙂