UCLA vs UMass

[frazzledmeatball]

Hello! I am extremely grateful to be in this position and to have these opportunities. I would love some advice while making this decision! Thank you all so much!
Some things to consider: I am not fixed on any speciality just yet. However, my interests currently lie in some competitive specialities (particularly surgical specialities) and I am not as interested in primary care as of now (though again, that could change). My eventual career goals are to work in an academic setting and to do policy work aimed at ameliorating health disparities in medicine and in the speciality I am in. I hope to get an MPH or take a research year before applying to residency. I hope to end up back on the East coast or Boston area for residency/practice. Lastly, both schools have the same grading format.

UCLA DGSOM
Pros

• prestige factor - name has national recognition, has a much higher PD ranking (UCLA is #10 as compared to Umass which is about #61), in terms of match lists, I am not sure how to compare them so I linked them below , prestige may matter more because of STEP 1 P/F but not sure about this
• new curriculum - didactics are covered in one year with no summer break, third year is free to pursue a dual degree/research/scholarly pursuit, not quite sure if this is a pro or a con, however, considering I want to do research and/or pursue a dual degree, I like how this is integrated in the four years
• grad programs in one area - I like how the medical school is close to all the other UCLA grad programs. I am interested in policy work and health equity work so I would love to collaborate with the school of public health.

Cons

• about 30K more expensive per year than UMass - Also, throw in additional costs associated with moving everything across the country and visiting home on breaks, I am taking on full unsubsidized and private loans for medical school so this may matter, the first year will come out to be 105K in loans
• really far from home (on the opposite coast) - I am very close to my family and never lived far from them, I am worried about moving to a place where I don't know anyone, I do feel that it will be a rough transition but it could get better with time
• lots of logistical things to manage - I'll have to convert to California residency to get in-state tuition after my first year. I know this is a long process and some people have to try a couple times. The requirements of being in state also will prevent me from leaving the state for 365 days. I know the first year can be bad in terms of homesickness, and so I am a bit worried about this as well.
• vibes - I have been getting some competitive vibes from the student body. Being so far from home, I am worried about a cut-throat environment. The out-of-state students also seemed to be very homesick and stressed overall.

UMASS
Pros

• slightly cheaper because I qualify for in-state tuition
• close to family and home - the school is about 30 minutes from my home and this could help me save some money if need be due to easier logistics, I know the city extremely well already so no learning curve there, I have lots of connections with my undergrad organizations and can continue and expand upon the work I have been doing for the past few years. I can also start new initiatives and have the connections to pursue that
• I have heard that they have an excellent reputation in Massachusetts and match as well as some of the higher ranked schools. I heard that they have good connections with a lot of the Harvard residencies in Boston ( a student told me there is good umass representation at Harvard's plastic surgery residency as well as ortho). I have attached the match list below for comparison. The school is also top 10 for primary care and the teaching is absolutely phenomenal.
• vibes- I felt that the student body is extremely supportive and not cut throat at all. They all seemed very relaxed and happy

Cons

• doesn't have as much prestige and has a much lower PD ranking, wondering if Step 1 will exacerbate this, about 53% of students get their first choice in the match and I have heard most match primary care
• lower research ranking - I do want to get deeply involved with research so I am worried about this
• rotate through mostly smaller community hospitals
• very very primary-care focused
• not as many connections to other grad schools, I would have to look elsewhere for a dual degree during my gap year
• In a way, staying here makes me feel as if I am staying in my comfort zone. I do understand that medical school is hard no matter where I go and it will be here too. For some reason, I can't shake this feeling though.

Summary: Overall, I keep going back and forth as to which school to attend. Some people are telling me that being close to a support system is very important in medical school and so I should choose the closer school. Others are saying that prestige gives you a significant advantage in residency applications and academic medicine later on so I should choose the more prestigious school. And others say that student loans can prevent you from pursuing further fellowships/opportunities, and so I should choose the cheaper school. Lots of factors to consider!

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[BritainKittenMittens]

What location do you want to eventually match to and practice? I think if you want to maximize your chances of something competitive, you have to go with UCLA over UMass.

 

[frazzledmeatball]

What location do you want to eventually match to and practice? I think if you want to maximize your chances of something competitive, you have to go with UCLA over UMass.

Thank you - just added that in! I would like to match/practice back in the northeast, preferably Boston/NYC.

 

[srirachamayonnaise]

Given that you want to match in NE, probably UMass is an easier choice. But UCLA will get you back east very easily. I would pick UCLA because of the breadth of the experience you will possibly get at a larger medical system.

 

[KendallJennerSniperLady69]

UCLA easily

You say you wanna match back to the NE, but I would actually bet on you loving CA and wanting to stay here after 4 years ! There's are reasons why everyone wants to come and hardly anyone willingly leaves !

 

[thetenthletter]

Both are great options. UCLA will likely afford more opportunities but UMASS will have no problem getting you into surgical specialties. I recently spoke to some students at UMASS who do not regret turning down a higher-ranked, more expensive program.

The prestige difference will matter more if you want to get into higher tier residency programs.

 

[Putkernerinthehall]

I'd be careful not to discount the two very big advantages of UMass --- your family/support system and the lower cost. You certainly seem to think family is important, so don't discount that. UMass is an excellent medical school and it can get you where you want to go.

 

[Biscuitboy11]

Congrats! A tough decision... Am I wrong that you can get instate tuition in California after one year? If so, economics might not be that different. Tried a little research, but someone here will know instantly. Anyway, UCLA is by far the better school, I believe. The Worcester campus of UMass seems a bit soul-crushing, flash impression from a Mass resident. More importantly, I strongly believe life should be an adventure, and four years of the prime of your life is no small amount. Let med school be a new beginning! Unless super strong reason to stay, like an SO that can’t move, get out of the northeast for a while, it’s a big world out there. I’m not anyone’s therapist, but strong family ties keeping you near home for school are almost a reason to get away... BTW, I’d advise someone in similar circumstances from California to go to the northeast.

 

[Banco]

UMass has a great reputation in the northeast. If that's where you want to match and family is important to you, then I'd pick it. You yourself can see the amount of strong Boston/NYC/Northeast matches in UMass's list. Plus it's significantly cheaper to boot.

 

[Putkernerinthehall]

Congrats! A tough decision... Am I wrong that you can get instate tuition in California after one year? If so, economics might not be that different. Tried a little research, but someone here will know instantly. Anyway, UCLA is by far the better school, I believe. The Worcester campus of UMass seems a bit soul-crushing, flash impression from a Mass resident. More importantly, I strongly believe life should be an adventure, and four years of the prime of your life is no small amount. Let med school be a new beginning! Unless super strong reason to stay, like an SO that can’t move, get out of the northeast for a while, it’s a big world out there. I’m not anyone’s therapist, but strong family ties keeping you near home for school are almost a reason to get away... BTW, I’d advise someone in similar circumstances from California to go to the northeast.

COL in LA (near UCLA) is insane. You either pay a whole lot for something nice or you pay still a lot for something cramped. It's obscene.

 

[BritainKittenMittens]

COL in LA (near UCLA) is insane. You either pay a whole lot for something nice or you pay still a lot for something cramped. It's obscene.

Looking at the COA between Total Cost of Education and Student Budget/Cost of Attendance - David Geffen School of Medicine - Los Angeles, CA, it's a difference of 8k. Many people would happily pay that difference to be in Westwood over Worcester. If we're talking about 30k first year + 24k for the remaining 3 year in COA difference, you have to go with UCLA.

Agree with @Biscuitboy11 in trying something new, and matching back to the Northeast from UCLA should not be a problem. In the end, this a personal choice and if being close to family is very, very important to you, you have to follow your heart.

 

[Go2Mars]

Family/friend support, economics, and location are 3 huge factors to be considered. The reason is that you will be under the stress of medical school for the next 4 years.

I would say UMASS for 3 reasons: you qualify for cheaper tuition, your family and friend support is very close to you, and you want to end up in the East Coast when you are older. As a California native myself, you are correct that California kids can sometimes be cutthroat and competitive. UCLA itself probably does not have those vibes but from what it sounds like, you felt safer and more comfortable with the UMASS student population.

 

[lanadelreyy]

You've gotten many great responses and it doesn't seem you can go wrong. UCLAs opportunities would make it appear worth it, but your personal ties in terms of location may mean UMass is a better option for your personal situation

 

[frazzledmeatball]

You've gotten many great responses and it doesn't seem you can go wrong. UCLAs opportunities would make it appear worth it, but your personal ties in terms of location may mean UMass is a better option for your personal situation

Thank you so much! Yes maybe I have been stressing about this too much haha - but I genuinely appreciate all of these responses! I think a big concern of mine is also Step 1 going P/F....do you or does anyone else have any insight on this?

 

[BritainKittenMittens]

Thank you so much! Yes maybe I have been stressing about this too much haha - but I genuinely appreciate all of these responses! I think a big concern of mine is also Step 1 going P/F....do you or does anyone else have any insight on this?

I don't think anyone really knows how this will go down, but it's hard to imagine that they won't factor that in at least a little. You provided the match lists of the respective schools, so you've at least taken a look at them. I'm the last person to be able to evaluate them, especially since I know that UMass students have a strong interest in primary care and staying local since there are so many students IS and Northeast folks love staying in the Northeast. But keep in mind that for the last 2 years, UMass has had on average a 5 point lead on UCLA in Step 1 scores (235 vs 230 according to US News), and UCLA has the match list it does it spite of that. Higher performance despite lower scores is the pretty much the definition of school bias, which might not necessarily be from the brand but from all the research money pouring in and a world-class medical system with top residencies that UCLA has.

 

[Banco]

Thank you so much! Yes maybe I have been stressing about this too much haha - but I genuinely appreciate all of these responses! I think a big concern of mine is also Step 1 going P/F....do you or does anyone else have any insight on this?

I mean listen it’s hard for anyone to say, but it almost seems like on SDN that step 1 is the only factor for residency selection. Just because step 1 goes away, doesn’t mean all the other factors do too. Step 2 is still scored, you have clinical grades, research, LORs, ECs/work experiences etc. Furthermore, schools that have historically produced strong graduates (and PDs have recruited from these schools) won’t lose that reputation just because step 1 is P/F - UMass is a very strong hospital system and research institution, that won’t just go away over night. New schools are more likely going to be the ones to have this issue.

 

[frazzledmeatball]

Update! So UCLA offered me a scholarship so now the costs of attending either UMASS or UCLA are similar.

The thing is, my heart is still staying UMass. I got into the PURCH program here which is a cohort of 20 students that are very interested in population health/health disparities. I plan to focus my education/career on health disparities research in some way, therefore I feel like its a good opportunity. The other thing is, I am very close to my family and rely on them for support, especially because I have some chronic health issues.

On the other hand, my head is saying UCLA. I feel like UCLA also has a lot going on with health disparities research/community work. And with STEP 1 going P/F, prestige and connections are probably going to matter a lot. The student body here is also very diverse and as a person of color, this is awesome for me. The only things stopping me from going to UCLA now is the distance from family, distance from SO who can't move from New York, the uncertainty about the new 1-year preclinical curriculum, and the competitiveness of the student body that I experienced during our zoom call interactions. I am also worried that I won't be able to match back to NE after because another thing with Step 1 P/F is that location may matter more now than ever.

Maybe I'll adjust to being so far from home after some rough months? Maybe I'll adapt and fit in with the student body? Is the prestige/experience/opportunities Ill get worth all of this? Would love some insight.

 

[thetenthletter]

Update! So UCLA offered me a scholarship so now the costs of attending either UMASS or UCLA are similar.

The thing is, my heart is still staying UMass. I got into the PURCH program here which is a cohort of 20 students that are very interested in population health/health disparities. I plan to focus my education/career on health disparities research in some way, therefore I feel like its a good opportunity. The other thing is, I am very close to my family and rely on them for support, especially because I have some chronic health issues.

On the other hand, my head is saying UCLA. I feel like UCLA also has a lot going on with health disparities research/community work. And with STEP 1 going P/F, prestige and connections are probably going to matter a lot. The student body here is also very diverse and as a person of color, this is awesome for me. The only things stopping me from going to UCLA now is the distance from family, distance from SO who can't move from New York, the uncertainty about the new 1-year preclinical curriculum, and the competitiveness of the student body that I experienced during our zoom call interactions. I am also worried that I won't be able to match back to NE after because another thing with Step 1 P/F is that location may matter more now than ever.

Maybe I'll adjust to being so far from home after some rough months? Maybe I'll adapt and fit in with the student body? Is the prestige/experience/opportunities Ill get worth all of this? Would love some insight.

Congrats on the scholarship! I think you have two really great options.

Although it may seem like the prestige difference is large (ranking difference of 20 ish?), keep in mind that both UMass and UCLA are in the top quartile of all medical schools in the country (there are 165-ish MD, and 30 something DO schools), so you'll still be at a good advantage when it comes time for residency applications with either school. I think differences in prestige are more significant when you consider MD vs DO or ranked MD vs unranked MD. UMass has a ton of research funding and there are a surplus of faculty doing research on healthcare dispairites here (I have been working here for >1 year) so you won't have trouble finding opportunities. Worcester isn't the greatest, but there are some nice towns nearby and it is a <1 hour drive to Boston.

I think ultimately it comes down to what you value more. I am in a similar position and will be turning down a higher-ranked school of similar cost for UMass because of its location and social support, and my plan to match back into the NE (will be easier doing away rotations here). If you want to chat more, feel free to message me.