to buy or not to buy...quick poll for my purchase

[175961]

ok....within the next hour or so i may or may not buy the MSAR book, i've read lots of pros and cons and opinions but i'm still left with the hanging feeling of "is it worth it with the wonderful World Wide Web at my fingertips". so its in your hands....should i buy it or not?? give me your vote and help me decide.

p.s. i'm really interested in just a yes or no answer, i've read through lots of posts on the topic so i've heard lots nay and yea answers. i guess this is just me being an undecided, basket case over buying it.

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[Jolie South]

ok....within the next hour or so i may or may not buy the MSAR book, i've read lots of pros and cons and opinions but i'm still left the hanging feeling of "is it worth it with the wonderful World Wide Web at my fingertips". so its in your hands....should i buy it or not?? give me your vote and help me decide.

p.s. i'm really interested in just a yes or no answer, i've read through lots of posts on the topic so i've heard lots nay and yea answers. i guess this is just me being an undecided, basket case over buying it.

you should get online US News access. You can compare schools side by side and it has pretty much the same info as the MSAR.

what US News doesn't have you can get from the AAMC.

This is spoken by someone whose MSAR has been collecting dust on a shelf.

 

[ChubbyChaser]

THe usnews hasnt been updated since 2006 though. The MSAR i think is comingout with the latest edition in april. You might wnat to wait.

 

[patzan]

Your pre-med advising office likely has one you can borrow.

 

[Crixivan]

Your pre-med advising office likely has one you can borrow.

This was true in my case (though it was an older edition).

If you are going to be applying to a wide range of schools, it might be of some use to you. If you just want to know something about a few schools in your region, you can just ask somebody to PM you what you want to know.

I heard someplace that USN and MSAR differ regarding the numbers. One shows admitted stats while the other shows matriculated stats or something like that.

 

[Maxprime]

I think you should spend a few more hours thinking about it.

 

[Jolie South]

This was true in my case (though it was an older edition).

If you are going to be applying to a wide range of schools, it might be of some use to you. If you just want to know something about a few schools in your region, you can just ask somebody to PM you what you want to know.

I heard someplace that USN and MSAR differ regarding the numbers. One shows admitted stats while the other shows matriculated stats or something like that.

i just think USN is more user friendly. i was functioning off of an old MSAR, so I didn't even have totally correct numbers anyways.

Plus, like I said you can compare schools side by side on one screen, which you obviously can't with the MSAR. USN also has indebtedness/financial info and of course the rankings, which I know don't mean a whole lot. They do give you a general idea though.

You could always go to the pre-med office to look at theirs if there was something that couldn't be found in USN.

 

[doinmybest5840]

If you already have a good idea of where you're applying, it might not be as useful, but I found it to be extremely helpful in narrowing down schools. It had a lot of information outside of numbers that I found to be helpful (e.g. mission statement, general info, selection factors, diversity programs, special features, etc.). It saved a lot of time since I didn't have to go through all the schools' websites trying to find that sort of info myself.

 

[Paulz]

Lol 50/50. I bought it and it has every med school in the country and the average GPA and average science GPA, as well as some other good info including typical hosuing, fields graduates of the school particularly go into, the tuition. It has a lot of good info. If your planning to apply I'd recommend getting it.

 

[175961]

today was a hella busy day for me and i'm gonna hit the sack early....keep those votes coming in and i'll take a look at the poll in the morning. thanks everyone for your input and help!!

 

[LizzyM]

Every school has a secondary fee of $50-100. If you avoid one ill-advised secondary application thanks to the MSAR, then the thing will have more than paid for itself. Go for it.

Furthermore, when you do write those secondaries, if there is any essay question that provides the opportunity to describe why you'd be a good fit for that school, you'll actually have an idea of what the school is looking for.

 

[MattD]

I agree, it's kind of a racket the aamc has going, but it IS a good resource. I found it very useful when i was applying.

 

[taponthecloud]

Don't buy it. The school websites are regularly updated and most reliable.

 

[pakbabydoll]

Buy it!

 

[Bananas Foster]

Agreed with LizzieM, its super useful.

but libraries exist.

seriously, borrow it, you're not going to need the 2008 MSAR when your doing your residencies.