UCSD vs Mayo (Arizona)

[Pancakedrawer64]

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[darkpauladin]

If the money isn't a huge deal to you, I would pick UCSD -- you have support networks there already which will make med school easier. Your post also comes off like you'll be substantially happier at UCSD anyways.

 

[tbonez71]

UCSD no question, especially if you don't care about the research or academic side of things.

 

[thenucleusaccumbens]

If the money isn't a huge deal to you, I would pick UCSD -- you have support networks there already which will make med school easier. Your post also comes off like you'll be substantially happier at UCSD anyways.

I agree that OP does seem to prefer UCSD and that having support systems nearby can really help.
As a Mayo student though I just wanted to share some stuff I wrote in another thread to another person who was also torn between Mayo AZ and a UC school, as some of what I wrote addresses the cons OP has for Mayo

about it being a "new school" (it's really not)

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.

about class attendance requirement

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.

 

[KdotLB]

How much less debt we talkin about?


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[liquidcrawler]

.

 

[trobinsonmd]

I'm an MS4 at NYU, and I did an away rotation at UCSD. Hated how cliquey it seemed, residents seemed overworked so they weren't that into helping out the med students from what I saw. I wouldn't really worry about Mayo being a new school... it's really not... they take their exams at the same time as the MN campus and it's almost the same thing, just in a different state. Still the extremely prestigious research institution that it always has been. If you're interested in matching into a competitive specialty or want to pursue academics, I would definitely select Mayo because it presents more research opportunities. In addition, UCSD is sliding down in the rankings every year, while Mayo is always either consistent or climbing. I'm friends with a few residency directors at NYU and they seem to hold private schools like Cornell, Mayo, Sinai, Duke, etc... in a lot higher regard than schools like UCLA, UCSD, UNC, UCD, etc... don't worry about debt, go to the school that is going to open the most doors for you professionally, not to mention, cost of living in AZ is half of what it is in SD... feel free to DM me if you have any specific questions

 

[nimbus]

I'm an MS4 at NYU, and I did an away rotation at UCSD. Hated how cliquey it seemed, residents seemed overworked so they weren't that into helping out the med students from what I saw. I wouldn't really worry about Mayo being a new school... it's really not... they take their exams at the same time as the MN campus and it's almost the same thing, just in a different state. Still the extremely prestigious research institution that it always has been. If you're interested in matching into a competitive specialty or want to pursue academics, I would definitely select Mayo because it presents more research opportunities. In addition, UCSD is sliding down in the rankings every year, while Mayo is always either consistent or climbing. I'm friends with a few residency directors at NYU and they seem to hold private schools like Cornell, Mayo, Sinai, Duke, etc... in a lot higher regard than schools like UCLA, UCSD, UNC, UCD, etc... don't worry about debt, go to the school that is going to open the most doors for you professionally, not to mention, cost of living in AZ is half of what it is in SD... feel free to DM me if you have any specific questions

I did med school at NYU and residency at UCSD. Although residency was hard work, I found UCSD to be a more relaxed, friendlier, less hierarchical place to train than NYU. Take that with a grain of salt because my experience is not recent and it may be department specific. My department was full of surfers with very high board scores.

I don’t know anything about Mayo Scottsdale but I know La Jolla is overrun in the summer with people from Arizona escaping the summer heat.

 

[trobinsonmd]

I did med school at NYU and residency at UCSD. Although residency was hard work, I found UCSD to be a more relaxed, friendlier, less hierarchical place to train than NYU. Take that with a grain of salt because my experience is not recent and it may be department specific. My department was full of surfers with very high board scores.

I did med school at NYU and residency at UCSD. Although residency was hard work, I found UCSD to be a more relaxed, friendlier, less hierarchical place to train than NYU. Take that with a grain of salt because my experience is not recent and it may be department specific. My department was full of surfers with very high board scores.

Agree that it’s more relaxed... I think another important factor to consider is research opportunities. UCSD is the only major academic medical center in the area, so research opportunities are scarce compared to NYC, which will afford you many of the most prestigious research opportunities in the country. I think if you want more of a relaxed medical school experience and you aren’t going for a career in academics or a competitive residency, you’ll get by with UCSD, but if you are interested in pursuing a competitive residency or want to enter academics/are passionate about research, NYU is unequivocally the place for you... not to mention, New York is a very fun city (for the little free time you’ll have in Med school)

 

[nimbus]

Agree that it’s more relaxed... I think another important factor to consider is research opportunities. UCSD is the only major academic medical center in the area, so research opportunities are scarce compared to NYC, which will afford you many of the most prestigious research opportunities in the country. I think if you want more of a relaxed medical school experience and you aren’t going for a career in academics or a competitive residency, you’ll get by with UCSD, but if you are interested in pursuing a competitive residency or want to enter academics/are passionate about research, NYU is unequivocally the place for you... not to mention, New York is a very fun city (for the little free time you’ll have in Med school)

Not sure if you read my post.

I thought we were addressing mayo Scottsdale vs UCSD for the OP.

I graduated from med school at NYU and did my residency at UCSD so I know both places well. You may not have gotten the complete picture of the research enterprise surrounding UCSD during your month here. Many of their departments are in the top 10 for NIH funding. There’s also the Salk Institute, the Scripps research institute, J Craig Ventor institute, and a multitude of others all located on the mesa. It is also a mecca for both established and startup biotech firms.

Anyway the OP should look at the match lists of the respective schools. They will see that the opportunities are very similar.

 

[trobinsonmd]

Not sure if you read my post.

I thought we were addressing mayo Scottsdale vs UCSD for the OP.

I graduated from med school at NYU and did my residency at UCSD so I know both places well. You may not have gotten the complete picture of the research enterprise surrounding UCSD during your month here. Many of their departments are in the top 10 for NIH funding. There’s also the Salk Institute, the Scripps research institute, J Craig Ventor institute, and a multitude of others all located on the mesa. It is also a mecca for both established and startup biotech firms.

Anyway the OP should look at the match lists of the respective schools. They will see that the opportunities are very similar.

LOLLL I was previously on another post for NYU vs another school and it was 4am, so I totally mistyped... there are a lot of good biological sciences and biotech opportunities for sure in SD, but in terms of clinical research and med student specific opportunities, those organizations are very limited in what they can provide (my gf did her med school at UCSD, so that's based off of her)...Mayo AZ is close to several other academic research institutions, not to mention Barrow is in the area if you're interested in neuro... and the cost of living is way cheaper

 

[nimbus]

LOLLL I was previously on another post for NYU vs another school and it was 4am, so I totally mistyped... there are a lot of good biological sciences and biotech opportunities for sure in SD, but in terms of clinical research and med student specific opportunities, those organizations are very limited in what they can provide (my gf did her med school at UCSD, so that's based off of her)...Mayo AZ is close to several other academic research institutions, not to mention Barrow is in the area if you're interested in neuro... and the cost of living is way cheaper

If a student cannot find a significant research project at Mayo, UCSD or NYU, it is their own fault. Likewise, if a student cannot match in the specialty of their choice from any of those institutions, it is their own fault. Any of those schools can get you into a top 5 neurosurgery or derm program. None of those schools will hold you back. I’ll leave it at that.

 

[trobinsonmd]

If a student cannot find a significant research project at Mayo, UCSD or NYU, it is their own fault. Likewise, if a student cannot match in the specialty of their choice from any of those institutions, it is their own fault. Any of those schools can get you into a top 5 neurosurgery or derm program. None of those schools will hold you back. I’ll leave it at that.

I'd agree with that... I feel that private schools set students up with better research networks, whereas with the public schools, you're kind of more responsible for seeking it out yourself and you have to get shot down 100 times before you find something... based off of my friends experiences at other med schools across the country. If someone is motivated enough, they can match into a top 5 residency program from ANY med school to be honest... one of my buddies just matched Stanford derm from a sub 70 ranked school

 

[genelite]

I'm a 4th year and my brother goes to Mayo AZ. We talk all the time and compare our experiences. Mayo and UCSD are both amazing schools so CONGRATULATIONS, that is so awesome. Maybe this might help you out or not but I would definitely recommend UCSD. The biggest things are Mayo AZ is new obviously and it shows in certain aspects, UCSD is definitely a more established school and there will be more opportunities for research and matching with the established faculty and connections will be so much better and easier at UCSD. student life compared to Scottsdale which can get very dry, and UCSD is in CALIFORNIA! I will also say that Mayo's required 8-5 days are grueling for med students and my bro has a difficult time doing things outside of class and school. Overall you're left with two amazing decisions but I do think there is a clear answer between those two. very luck to be in your position, congrats again and best of luck! let me know if you have any questions and I can run them by my bro

 

[genelite]

I'd agree with that... I feel that private schools set students up with better research networks, whereas with the public schools, you're kind of more responsible for seeking it out yourself and you have to get shot down 100 times before you find something... based off of my friends experiences at other med schools across the country. If someone is motivated enough, they can match into a top 5 residency program from ANY med school to be honest... one of my buddies just matched Stanford derm from a sub 70 ranked school

I think its also important to keep in mind that Mayo is a brand new school with far less connections than most of the other schools. The area is new and their research faculty is also new, its not the same as UCSD which is established. Additionally, like i said above my brother attends and most students don't really have time for the level of committed research like other schools because of the mandatory 8-5 days. UCSD is going to provide for a much better experience in opportunities including research.

 

[thenucleusaccumbens]

I think its also important to keep in mind that Mayo is a brand new school with far less connections than most of the other schools. The area is new and their research faculty is also new, its not the same as UCSD which is established. Additionally, like i said above my brother attends and most students don't really have time for the level of committed research like other schools because of the mandatory 8-5 days. UCSD is going to provide for a much better experience in opportunities including research.

I'm a Mayo student and this has not been my experience at all. Most days class responsibilities will be 4 hours and not from 8-5. There is plenty of time for research, especially since we get selectives - entire weeks off that can be used for research. There are 28 selective weeks in 1st and 2nd year. Other med schools do not have this. We also get 12 weeks of protected research time in 3rd year. Most of my friends are involved in research and have published already. It's certainly manageable.

Also don't know what you mean by "the area is new and their research faculty is also new" - Mayo Clinic in Scottsdale opened in 1987 and the AZ campus is ranked the #1 hospital in the state. The research faculty are not new. Furthermore, AZ campus students have the option of doing research at the FL or MN campuses. The med school campus in AZ might be new, but it's actually not considered a new school and is under the same LCME accreditation as the MN campus. Med students from the MN campus have also been rotating down in AZ long before the AZ med school campus opened. Many of the faculty members were also originally from the MN campus. The curriculum is exactly the same, including exams which are even taken at the same time by AZ and MN students.

And "far less connections"? Students have all of Mayo Clinic available to them. There are plenty of ways to make connections throughout Mayo Clinic by taking advantage of opportunities through selectives and rotations.

 

[sadkmladkds]

what did you pick? I hope it was ucsd