UCI vs. San Antonio

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medic8m

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I need help.. Ive been admitted to UC Irvine and UT San Antonio. My girlfriend lives in S.A. and the tuition and cost of living is 1/3 the cost.. However, Irvine is in my home state and probably a little more prestigious. Any advice? Should cost of med school be that much of a consideration? or relationships?

I Should also mention I wouldnt have to pay rent in San Antonio (live w/girlfriend) - and Im planning on marrying this girl. She would be willing to move to Cali but couldnt for a few years.

Anybody attend S.A.? How is the education?

Any advice is appreciated, thanks

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personally, I wish I was at UT SA.

its about 10 mins from my home :(


prestige take into account, depends on what you want to go into.

But in the end, i dont think it really matters unless its between Harvard and UTSA.

A friend of mine has the scores on step 1 and 2 and the grades for derm. Had he gone to a ucsf or a harvard, he might have had more derm interviews. he's coming from a state school now and managed 2 interviews.

Aside from that, where would you be happier? (hint hint next to the Spurs? :D :clap: ) You're happiness with where you are has just as much an influence on how well you do as anything else. If you're not happy, you're not going to do well as you could.

cost : should be factor, but not a deciding factor.

can't say much about the education except that I might be biased. Some friends of mine, they're parents work there. So......
 
Originally posted by medic8m
However, Irvine is in my home state and probably a little more prestigious.

I wouldn't say that. UTSW is definately more prestigious. But I'm not sure I would choose to go there over Irvine.
 
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Originally posted by lmbebo

But in the end, i dont think it really matters unless its between Harvard and UTSA.

A friend of mine has the scores on step 1 and 2 and the grades for derm. Had he gone to a ucsf or a harvard, he might have had more derm interviews. he's coming from a state school now and managed 2 interviews.


Thanks, I think you are right. I was a little concerned about residency but like you said the differences between these school arent huge.

Irvine is really one on of the most expensive places to live in California as well

thanks for the advice Imbebo
 
Originally posted by Jalby
I wouldn't say that. UTSW is definately more prestigious. But I'm not sure I would choose to go there over Irvine.

Isn't UTSW in Dallas? Anyway the difference between UCI and UTSA is minimal as far as prestige. At UCI you will be paying a in state tuition which is a lot of money savings probably more than you would save by living for free in San Antonio.

If you want to do residency in California I would definitely go to UCI.

As far as location, Irvine >>>> San Antonio
:thumbup:
 
Originally posted by Goober


If you want to do residency in California I would definitely go to UCI.



This is actually a great concern to me. I plan to do my residency back in California. My fiance will be able to move with me at that time. I hope it wont be a problem. I could go to Irvine, but we would have to be apart for a while. Tough decision here.

Does anyone know how likely it would be to go back to California for residency? I plan on general surgery.. I guess what residency I choose would probably make the difference.
 
Originally posted by Jalby
I wouldn't say that. UTSW is definately more prestigious. But I'm not sure I would choose to go there over Irvine.

Sorry Jalby, but UTSW is in Dallas and is more prestigious than UCI. UTSA is in San Antonio and is less prestigious that Irvine.

Honestly, I would go to UCI.
 
go to irvine and import your girl when you can.
 
Originally posted by HollyJ
Sorry Jalby, but UTSW is in Dallas and is more prestigious than UCI. UTSA is in San Antonio and is less prestigious that Irvine.

Honestly, I would go to UCI.

Thanks HollyJ. In your opinion is the prestige issue going to be a an issue as I apply for residency?

Strictly speaking, I wouldnt have even applied to any schools outside of Cali if it weren't for my girlfriend.
 
My bad. I totally misread the post. Yeah, I would say UCI has more prestige than UTSA.

I would 100% recommend going to UCI. You will be almost gaurunteed a surgery residency in California and the lifestyle there is much better than UTSA. I wouldn't even take a second thought (Even having to be seperated for a while)
 
You probabaly won't even see her that often especially you go into General Surgery.....
 
I am about to graduate from UT Medical School at San Antonio and I am getting ready to match. I interviewed in Emergency Medicine and was offered an unbelieveable amount of interviews...not based on solely on grades...not based solely on board scrores...but based on the reputation of the caliber of students they (we) put out. I did an away rotation at one of the more "prestigious" schools mentioned elsewhere in this thread...and from my observation, prestigue does not automaticall equal quality education or definite residency acceptance. What it comes down to is that you will get out of medical school what you put into it. If you work hard, study, get good clerkship evals (very important), and decent board scores, it doesn't matter where you go, you will get plenty of interviews. I ran into plenty of people from Cali on the interview trail...so I was getting the same interviews they were. You can always do a month rotation at any of the Cali programs and be offered the gratuitous "you rotated here" residency interview. Just my opinion.
 
Is it fair to ask your GF to just wait around for you? I would say go with her, save yourself all of the debt. It'll be worth it in the end when you can afford to buy a home together sooner. I'm really big on stability and the less you pay back on your loans, the better off you will feel about yourself.
 
Originally posted by AlreadyInDebt
Is it fair to ask your GF to just wait around for you? I would say go with her, save yourself all of the debt. It'll be worth it in the end when you can afford to buy a home together sooner. I'm really big on stability and the less you pay back on your loans, the better off you will feel about yourself.


How will he save himself any money? His tuition rate as a nonresident at UTSA will be much higher than at UCI where he says he is a resident. The amount that he saves without having to pay rent is not going to be offset by the much larger amount in tuition for having to pay out of state tuition.
 
Thank you for all the advice, I have decided to go to San Antonio and be with my girlfriend. Being with her far outweighs going to Cali. In the end, I want to be happy while Im in school. I think if I work hard I should be okay. I wonder if simply being from California will help me get a residency there?

Thanks pman95! I needed to hear that. Hey, whats up with school starting in June?!
 
Beats me..I started in July :laugh: :laugh: :laugh:
 
Originally posted by medic8m
I wonder if simply being from California will help me get a residency there?

Without a doubt, yes. Unless you can be a great student at UTSA or are only interested in community medicine, it will be extremely hard to get to california. A quote from the residency director at one of our good programs "Generally we only take USC students and top 10 med school students"
 
Originally posted by Jalby
Without a doubt, yes. Unless you can be a great student at UTSA or are only interested in community medicine, it will be extremely hard to get to california. A quote from the residency director at one of our good programs "Generally we only take USC students and top 10 med school students"
lp

I meant, do you think me being from California originally (before med school) will matter in getting residency there?

Also, from published match lists, it appears many people match in California that arent in the top ten med schools. (and not just community medicine)
 
40% of Californians who get into med school end up staying in California. 60% of the people accepted are exported. Almost 90% of the people in Cali med schools are californians. They are going to be able to get the vast majority of the Cali spots with the top people out of states getting the other best spots.
 
hey medic8m,

i matched SA and will be attending in the fall, well, july. i know i would like to do at least one rotation in CA and if my dreams come true, eventually end up in residency there. if i had the choice you did, i would probably go with UCI for the higher chance of residency in the state, but i didnt even touch any of the CA schools cuz i figured with even residents having a tough time, i wouldnt even stand a chance. but LD is definitely hard... and if you are sure about your gf, and think you would be happy with her and being at UTHSCSA, then by all means come to TX. i definitely try to believe that as long as i do well, i can go where i want... with a little luck of course. you're fortunate to have the choice though, and good luck with your final decision.

that being said, hope to see you in SA!
 
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