UCI vs Mayo-Arizona

[Deleted member 815276]

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[begoood95]

How important for you is it to stay close to friends and family? If you're willing to branch out, then I would choose Mayo-AZ. Higher ranked, the basic research will be fine, and given that the curriculum is the exact same as Mayo-MN, I'm sure they'll match just as well. I think this comes down to how important it is for you to stay close to home

 

[DSM_302.0]

I'm in at Mayo AZ and a CA state school and I'd by far pick Mayo, especially if it's $40k cheaper. Phenomenal research opportunities and limitless funding. I also really loved the selective weeks where you can do whatever you want. All other variables controlled for, I think it'll be easier to match into anything from Mayo than from UCI.

Mayo is considered one medical school with multiple campuses, so the Rochester rankings apply to AZ.

Though of course you'd get a phenomenal education at either place, so congrats!

 

[thenucleusaccumbens]

Mayo MN student here. Mayo AZ is considered the same school, just a different campus (one LCME accreditation, etc). So yes the rankings are the same. I'm sure the AZ campus students will match just as well.

It's funny, I remember when Hofstra first started and people were worried they would have a terrible match list. Turns out that was unfounded and they actually have had impressive matches and Hofstra is actually a new school. Mayo AZ isn't really a new school, it's just a new campus (for the med school at least - the hospital in AZ has been around for a while and has been ranked the best hospital in the state for some time too.. and MN students have been rotating down there forever). There's no reason why they wouldn't match well.. Mayo consistently has one of the highest avg Step scores in the country (which I think has a lot to do with our curriculum). The first class at AZ has really high stats (3.89/516) so no reason to think they won't do just as well on Step.. plus Mayo Clinic is Mayo Clinic.

 

[thenucleusaccumbens]

I appreciate the reply! Your comments definitely helped ease some of my concerns. Was wondering if you could comment on how mandatory attendance has been for you? How many required hours of attendance in a typical week? What happens if your sick/have an emergency and can’t make it? Etc

Typically in 1st year you will have 4 hours of class each day (which consists of a mix of small group, lab and lecture - how much time spent on each is block dependent) in the morning from 8am until noon. Most afternoons are free unless you have "basic doctoring" (longitudinal class throughout 1st year where you see standardized patients and learn how to do a history/physical). The school is mindful about not scheduling basic doctoring sessions during busier class blocks like anatomy. Some days you'll also get out of class before noon, it really depends on the block. In 2nd year it flips and class is 4 hours in the afternoon from 1-5pm with certain mornings spent seeing patients in clinic or the hospital as part of the "advanced doctoring" longitudinal course (this is a really helpful class as it integrates what you learn in the organ blocks, for example if you're in cardio you'll see patients with heart disease, etc.) In 2nd year most of class time involves short lectures followed by small group sessions with problem based/case based learning led by faculty preceptors.

If you can't make it to class for whatever reason it's not a big deal at all. I missed almost a week of class for a conference I was attending and let the school know and was fully accommodated. Have also missed other times when sick and when I had some family stuff that came up, and never had any issues with any absence. People are really nice and understanding. Faculty and TA's will work with you if you need help catching up with anything too. In terms of the dress code, I only dress up when I know I'm seeing patients. As long as you aren't wearing pajamas or like a profane t-shirt to class nobody cares, unless it's a patient day which you will know of in advanced.

I was skeptical of the attendance thing at first too but now I'm really grateful as the classes were so well taught and prepared me very well for Step 1 (and also 3rd year - the "advanced doctoring" sessions will get you real comfortable with seeing patients on your own). Also never felt like I didn't have enough time to study on my own because there was always plenty of time after class.

 

[Cookiess]

Background: Im from CA and my ultimate goal is to match at an academic institution in Southern California (ie UCLA, UCSD, USC, UCI). Im not sure what speciality yet, but would like to keep my options open.

UCI:

Pros:

* Closer to home/family/friends/SO

* No mandatory lectures

* Better basic science research? (Can someone comment on this. Ive heard basic science research is lacking at Mayo)

* Diverse patient population

* Weather

* Felt like I got along better with the students here

Cons:

* About 40k more than mayo

* Not as highly ranked

* Clinical facilities are not as good as Mayo

I'm not sure about Mayo AZ, but our match list this year was very CA heavy with a good number of matches to academic institutions in Southern California (and matches to UCI in Ophthalmology, EM, Neurology, Orthopaedic Surgery, OBGYN, and a few others). I think it's also important to consider where you think you would enjoy being more over the next four years in terms of campus/student body vibe, support system, and overall location.

 

[cassyfrog]

Here's the UCI match list they sent in an email!

 

[UTEPcummingsej]

Hey! I feel like Mayo-AZ has to match really well based on what I know about the school, but that is just my two-cents. You should talk to Mayo students to confirm this, but I really think they'll think that the match list at Mayo AZ shouldn't be a major worry. I think it comes down to how badly you want to stay in CA, but with Mayo you should be able to match back into CA!

 

[pamHalpert]

Hey! Just thought I would comment since I am the spouse of a UCI med student who just matched at UCLA!! We were really hoping to stay in CA and I feel that UCI really helped us achieve this. Most (~85%) of his class matched in CA and many at top institutions like UCLA & Cedars Sinai. Based on our experience and that of my other friends who went to medical schools elsewhere, the location of your med school is highly correlated to where you match. Each school is highly interested in keeping their students local and it helps during interviews to have experience with that patient population! (Plus, I believe that institutions with relationships to hospital systems (like Mayo) especially want their students to stay in their hospital) This is also true for UCI - lots of students match back in with competitive specialties! So, since we were in similar shoes 4 yrs ago, I recommend choosing UCI if you really want the best chance at matching into a CA residency!

But, can't really go wrong either way!! Congrats on the acceptances and feel free to ask me any questions!

 

[Cookiess]

Hey! Just thought I would comment since I am the spouse of a UCI med student who just matched at UCLA!! We were really hoping to stay in CA and I feel that UCI really helped us achieve this. Most (~85%) of his class matched in CA and many at top institutions like UCLA & Cedars Sinai. Based on our experience and that of my other friends who went to medical schools elsewhere, the location of your med school is highly correlated to where you match. Each school is highly interested in keeping their students local and it helps during interviews to have experience with that patient population! (Plus, I believe that institutions with relationships to hospital systems (like Mayo) especially want their students to stay in their hospital) This is also true for UCI - lots of students match back in with competitive specialties! So, since we were in similar shoes 4 yrs ago, I recommend choosing UCI if you really want the best chance at matching into a CA residency!

But, can't really go wrong either way!! Congrats on the acceptances and feel free to ask me any questions!

Based on what I've seen so far regarding match lists, I agree with what PamHalpert.

 

[thenucleusaccumbens]

As a Mayo student, I've not met anyone who wanted to match to CA (or anywhere else in the country for that matter) who was not able to do so, including in the most competitive specialities at the best programs. I know a number of current 4th years who were from CA originally and said they wanted to match back home and there was no issue. Most Mayo grads get their top choice program/specialty. Historically about 25-30% of Mayo grads stay at Mayo, but again I have not met anyone where that was not by choice. I think if you were comparing similarly ranked schools, like UCI vs UMass or UCI vs UMN - then that would be a different story and location becomes much more important, such that you would be wise to pick UCI if you want to match back to CA. However when you are coming from a top tier school, that does change things, based on what I've seen.

 

[pamHalpert]

Congratulations on your spouse matching and thanks for the reply! I appreciate the advice
since your spouse just matched, would you happen to know how many students matched to their top choice?

Thanks a lot! Everyone I know matched into their top 3 and out of that probably ~70% to their top choice. In the end though, everyone is really stoked about the outcome. Overall, I'm super proud of this class! They worked hard and honestly the match list speaks for itself.

Ultimately, I think you should go where you feel most comfortable and where you feel like would support your needs the best! Med school is hard work and a good support system is crucial. My spouse was able to do well because he had my support and the support of his friends and family nearby. That was really important to him! The curriculum also worked well with his learning style. So bottom line is to choose where you feel like you can succeed! And if your main concern with UCI is the ability to match into great programs, then I can assure you that this is not a problem. You can see for yourself on match lists that plenty of people match into UCLA, UCSF, USC, etc. I suggest you compare the match lists but most importantly select wherever you feel you fit in best! Best of luck to you!

 

[Cookiess]

@Cookiess @thenucleusaccumbens You both have been awesome and have provided me with great advice! I really do appreciate it. So being as objective as you can, I would like to know both of your opinions on whether either of these schools would have any kind of significant advantage in allowing me to match to UCLA, USC, or UCSD in a semi-competitive to competitive speciality? We'll leave UCI out just cause it would obviously be easiest to match to UCI from UCI.

I think you would be able to match back to the academic programs you listed regardless of where you end up choosing. I will add that networking and connections may slightly favor UCI, considering that you are interested in Southern California for residency.

Some of the MS4s I’ve talked to mentioned that their faculty advisors were able to help with things like away rotations just with a phone call or email on their behalf to colleagues they knew from local programs.

There are also a lot of regional conferences and meetings that happen within Southern California where you would have opportunities to interact with faculty from the regional programs you’re interested in. Not to say you wouldn’t have access to those opportunities if you were a Mayo student, but you may be more aware of them as a med student in Southern California. (I’m not sure if my point came across well, but an example would be joining the OC Medical Association and potentially interacting with faculty from your programs of interest at their meetings).

 

[thenucleusaccumbens]

I disagree that you'd have a better chance matching in a competitive specialty at UCLA, USC, or UCSD, coming from UCI, over Mayo. While the location of UCI may help, you have to balance that with the fact that Mayo is ranked much higher (#6 for Mayo vs #46 for UCI - while certainly this is not the most important thing, it is a consideration, particularly with competitive specialities). Mayo also has higher average Step scores. Grades are another important thing for competitive specialties and class rank/AOA if you go to a school that does that (Mayo is true pass/fail with no AOA). Ultimately your performance in med school is the most important thing. I definitely don't think you'd have any problem matching to the programs you mentioned coming from UCI - it's an excellent school. I just don't agree that you'd have a better chance coming from UCI over Mayo.

 

[Cookiess]

I disagree that you'd have a better chance matching in a competitive specialty at UCLA, USC, or UCSD, coming from UCI, over Mayo. While the location of UCI may help, you have to balance that with the fact that Mayo is ranked much higher (#6 for Mayo vs #46 for UCI - while certainly this is not the most important thing, it is a consideration, particularly with competitive specialities). Mayo also has higher average Step scores. Grades are another important thing for competitive specialties and class rank/AOA if you go to a school that does that (Mayo is true pass/fail with no AOA). Ultimately your performance in med school is the most important thing. I definitely don't think you'd have any problem matching to the programs you mentioned coming from UCI - it's an excellent school. I just don't agree that you'd have a better chance coming from UCI over Mayo.

I'm not saying that attending UCI would give OP the better chance to match into a competitive specialty at UCLA, USC, or UCSD than Mayo. I'm saying that OP could consider networking/connections as one of the minor factors amongst the many other factors in making his/her decision.

 

[thenucleusaccumbens]

@thenucleusaccumbens @Cookiess just wanted thank you both again for all the amazing information and insight you have given me. You both have been so helpful and I really appreciate it! Going to have to process all this and really think about it, but it seems like where ever I end up ill be able to reach my goals.
Again, thank you for all the help. I’m incredibly grateful.

Good luck to you and congrats on your acceptances! you can't go wrong

 

[Cookiess]

@thenucleusaccumbens @Cookiess just wanted thank you both again for all the amazing information and insight you have given me. You both have been so helpful and I really appreciate it! Going to have to process all this and really think about it, but it seems like where ever I end up ill be able to reach my goals.
Again, thank you for all the help. I’m incredibly grateful.

You're welcome! Glad I could help.