U of Arizona Phoenix v Tuscon

[gogetter898]

curious as to the differences between these two programs? There seems to be more info on rank and such regarding the Tuscon campus but I thought the Phoenix campus was more prestigious? Not sure but if anyone has insights on match lists, drawbacks, draws, etc.

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[m1redsox]

U of A-Tucson is roughly 40 years older than Phoenix. Because it was the first, it is typically considered the more prestigious of the two. It has more connections, has graduated far more students, and is ranked higher by PDs and USWNR. Phoenix has a higher median MCAT and GPA according to MSAR, which is pretty arbitrary and not an indication of strength of program. U of A-Tucson receives $54 million in NIH funding compared to $3 million at Phoenix, so Tucson will also have more research opportunities.

The only advantages I could foresee at Phoenix is the fact that they have ties to Barrow and Mayo Clinic in the area.

 

[Go2Mars]

In terms of medical school itself, I would say Tucson. In terms of location, I would say Phoenix.

I would say the University of Arizona Tucson due to its long history. With medical schools, I am with the belief that it is generally safer to attend an institution that has more years of established rotations, experienced faculty, and a curriculum that has worked for decades. Tucson was established in 1965, while Phoenix was established in 2012. One thing to keep in mind is that the Creighton Phoenix medical school opened recently in Phoenix. If you prefer to be the only medical school in town, then Phoenix could be an issue 😉

I do not see many drawbacks with the Tucson medical school except the location (which matters a lot for the next 4 years). Phoenix is the capital of Arizona and is claimed to be the "economic, cultural and political heart of Arizona". Phoenix is also ranked in the top cities in Arizona, while Tucson is not even on the list from what I saw. From the articles I have read, Phoenix also has an NBA team, established restaurants, and a nightlife. In terms of lifestyle, you may enjoy Phoenix more if you are an outgoing individual. I have read though that Tucson also has nightlife, so you will also need to research into all of this.

It is hard to find the match lists of both schools. From quick searches, they both do very well at matching within Arizona and nearby states. Overall, it is up to you. You cannot go wrong with either choice since both schools are doing very well currently.

 

[Alby]

I’m alum from UACOM-PHX. I can’t speak to Tucson since I didn’t go there but I can tell you that PHX was a great school for me. I graduated in 2015, so things have changed a bit, but I completed residency (2020) at the associated hospital (BUMCP) so I worked with the students.

The class size is smaller than Tucson which i liked, although it has increased since I was there. My class was (and still is) very tight.

Clinical anatomy is very well done.

The campus is new and beautiful.

We were required to do research, which was a pain but in the long run was good for us.

The hospital (BUMCP) is well regarded and a great institution for learning, not a malignant environment.

There are great volunteering opportunities including the local low income clinic that most Med students spend time in during preclinical years.

We got a lot of experience in preclinical years .

The administration actually cared about us.

You can’t beat the location, DTPHX is a fun city and campus is within walking distance to the Suns arena (basketball)

We do very well in the match.
Check out this video


I’m not saying you can’t get these things in Tucson but this was my actual experience so take it for what it’s worth.

 

[HeftyGo37]

I'm not sure if you saw my post in the school specific thread, but I compiled a match list for the last 6 years for UA-PHX. It is very impressive! Not sure if you know what you know what specialty you want to do, but UA-PHX has consistently but several students into top specialties and top programs. I can't speak for UA-Tucson, so you might have to get that info yourself, but here is the UA-PHX match info attached based on the match day videos UA-PHX has put out.

Please note:

• This list is not exhaustive and is not perfect. Some students were hard to hear and every match may have not been announced in the videos.
• There may very well be typos or incorrect names/locations (I'm just trying my best here).
• I could not find a video that displayed all the matches for the 2020 match. I just listed the ones I was able to glean from summary videos.
• Radiology matches are listed as "Diagnostic Radiology" unless noted otherwise by the student (ex. Interventional Rad.)