UCLA vs UICOM-Peoria (decision by Wed!)

[campanelle]

Hi everyone, I just got off the WL at UCLA (my dream school) and I couldn't happier. Unfortunately, the happiness comes with a price tag of a whopping 400k... I'm currently holding an A at UICOM-Peoria (IS), and definitely feeling the pressure to come to a decision as the deadline creeps closer. Any thoughts or opinions would be greatly appreciated!!!

DGSOM at UCLA
Pros:
(+++) quickly became my top school after interviewing and I couldn't be more elated
(+++) The faculty are some of the coolest, most compassionate, and genuine physicians (-AND XYZ). Everyone seems to love teaching/mentoring and current students seem to agree
(+++) True P/F for preclinical and clinical, which means less competition among students and better QOL for 4 years
(+++) Living in LA means exposure to a diversity of patients and cases-- very important to me because I want to work with underserved/immigrant populations
(++) Discovery year embedded into year 3 would allow me to deep dive into my passion projects
(++) Feel like I can really become the outstanding physician AND __ that I'd always aspire to be
(+) Super impressive match list despite curriculum changes

Cons:
(---) COA is 400k for 4 years...which for a FGLI student is very worrisome, especially with the recession coming in hot (will try to negotiate with financial aid but not super hopeful)
(--) Higher COL in LA, will also need a car after year 2
(--) Super far away from home 🙁(
(-) Most students match into programs on the West Coast, but I am not too sure if I'd like to stay in Cali or move back to the Midwest for residency
(-) Admissions gave off the vibes of being disorganized and lacked transparency throughout the cycle, hoping it is different for actual admin


UICOM-Peoria
Pros:
(++) COA for all 4 years would be about 220k (was granted a 100k scholarship over 4 years)... basically a 180k difference in debt
(++) IS so I would be closer to family in case anything happens, about a 3 hour drive/train from home
(+) Small, but very chill student-faculty body
(+) Lower COL

Cons:
(---) Match list isn't as impressive as UCLA. I'm not certain what specialty just yet but I'd like to keep my options open
(---) More rural area, and I am interested in urban medicine, also means less stuff to do/eat around the campus
(---) P/F for pre-clerkships, but H/HP/P/F for clerkships with AOA and internal rank
(-) Feels like a med school where I would just get by for 4 years-- no particular EC's, research, or groups that I am particularly interested in
(-) Super small class size of 65, not a super big of a con for me but personally love the feel of a larger class where there are more "niches" and people I can click with

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[DoneDone3451]

UICOM, saving 180k is a ton of money, that is legit a 6-figure difference in debt..... You could be saving money later in life a lot earlier if you go the more affordable route.

I also would tend to view the smaller class size of 65 as a pro; imagine how much easier it is to build meaningful relationships with professors/faculty.

 

[hotsaucemuffin]

Im gonna say UCLA. You seem passionate about it. Maybe there are scholarships you can apply to while enrolled?

 

[ConfusedPremed3000]

As a note regarding the disorganization of the admissions committee, I am pretty UCLA is the one of the 5 most applied to med schools with over 17,000ish applicants and is also the most holistic in the nation (look at their MCAT and GPA ranges from 10-25-50-75-90 percentiles) so I think that might be a reason for their perceived disorganization. Also, they released most of their first round acceptances by mid February and are one of the quickest in terms of giving out WL As (have given over 50 in the first 2 days post April 30 deadline) so I think that's a good sign.

As for cost, yeah, that's a big bummer (and the only reason I decommitted from there for two other similarly ranked or slightly worse schools), but with the two choices you have here, I think the extra 180k might be worth it. I am low-SES myself and totally understand this struggle so you do you! If you are low-SES, UCLA has the LDS loan option (a loan that is interest-free during med school and residency), and that can save a lot of money.

As for the residency matching, the main reason people match into the West Coast is because most are Cali residents that want to do residency there (UCLA is a public school so that makes total sense) but if you look closely at the match list, you will see students match in top-tier residencies in the Northeast, midwest, the South (and Texas). So the match list is self-selecting and should not be a concern; you will not be held back when applying for residency!

 

[hydroflaskhomie]

Only you can decide if the dream is worth 180k extra debt to work yourself out from. I'd probably choose UCLA here, but as I've said before under other posts, I say that with the disclaimer that it is definitely not the right financial decision.

If I were YOU though, especially since you want to go back to the Midwest and you seem not thrilled about being far from home, I think you should definitely stick with UICOM here.

 

[Yhwach]

I would be pissed if i went to UICOM over UCLA.