Here is something for someone who is deciding between UCLA and Stanford. Some of it is relevant to this discussion.
"I would say we have a very social and laid back class. The LA area is also a lot more conducive to partying than Palo Alto. Also, UCLA's class size is about 150 while Stanford's is one of the smallest, which means I think you will have a higher chance of meeting people who share your interests.
It is P/F all 4 years. We do get written evaluations during 3rd and 4th year, which I think Stanford probably has too (you need some time of clinical clerkship evaluations) but I'm not sure.
Classmates: It is hard to give a description since there are many different people in the class. Most are between 22-25, with some older ones. They are mostly friendly, helpful, non-competitive. They are not nerdy either and care about more than just academic stuff.
The workload was not bad first block, but is a lot heavier now. You will definitely need to spend time studying. The material is not really hard, but just a huge volume. The stress isn't so high though because it is p/f so you don't have to worry about struggling to be perfect. It is definitely manageable especially if you don't put it off, and you won't fail unless you completely disregard your work. We have about 24 hours of class per week. First year it is typically 10 hours of lecture, 4 hours of pbl, 3 hours of doctoring/clinical skills (where we learn how to do a history and physical), 4-5 hours of anatomy lab, and 2.5 hours of histopathology lab. Everything is integrated so you will be doing the anatomy of an organ system while you are learning about it in lecture.
Something that kind of turned me off about Stanford and towards UCLA was that Stanford seemed to narrowly focused on research while UCLA seemed to have a better balance with clinical focus. Most people do some research, but it isn't mandatory and most people finish in 4 years and not 5 like Stanford. I also think we have a better selection of hospitals to train in over the 3rd and 4th years. Our main UCLA hospital is better and newer than Stanford's, and we also get exposure to the VA, Santa Monica Hospital, Kaiser, 2 LA country public hospitals (Harbor and Olive View), and Cedars-Sinai (one of the top private hospitals in the country).
The faculty are for the most part very approachable and into what they teach. They welcome shadowing and seem to want to make you interested in their field. We get exposed to them in lecture settings but also in PBL, since each 8 person pbl group (which switches each block) gets their own faculty "tutor".
Both areas are expensive but UCLA has lower tuition and an automatic 5K scholarship the first year. Also, you are guaranteed housing in Weyburn Terrace for your first 2 years, which most ppl take advantage of. It is very nice grad student housing, a 15 minute walk or shuttle ride away from class, in the middle of Westwood village. There are studios and 2 bedroom apts and townhouses. It is about 1000k/month and that includes all utilities including internet and cable tv.
I'm sure i've left something out, so if you have any more followup or specific questions, feel free to ask."
amusing.
