UCSF vs. Washington University

[loafy42]

Hi, I was hoping that I could get people's opinions on UCSF vs. Washington University. For me,
the money is not that big of an issue - I'm more interested in what types of feelings people have
about the two schools and their curriculums/students. This is a really difficult decision for me,
so I'd appreciate any input. Thanks!

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[BlackPuma]

WHAT the heck...another wAsh u question

UCSF ur comparing UCSF to st. louis?

san francisco?

<img border="0" alt="[Wowie]" title="" src="graemlins/wowie.gif" /> <img border="0" alt="[Wowie]" title="" src="graemlins/wowie.gif" /> <img border="0" alt="[Wowie]" title="" src="graemlins/wowie.gif" /> <img border="0" alt="[Wowie]" title="" src="graemlins/wowie.gif" /> <img border="0" alt="[Wowie]" title="" src="graemlins/wowie.gif" /> <img border="0" alt="[Wowie]" title="" src="graemlins/wowie.gif" /> <img border="0" alt="[Wowie]" title="" src="graemlins/wowie.gif" />

the pple at UCSF write the damn boards! Girl....somebody give me a trout...I feel like slapping someone

 

[Procrastinator]

I've seen both school a little bit so I can give some info. Students at both schools seem equally happy. Both schools are probably about equal education-wise. SF has a strong edge in location, but WashU has a strong edge in affliated hospitals (Barnes-Jewish is awesome; UCSF's Moffit-Long sucks). Either school is awesome and you can't go wrong either way.

 

[gobears]

WatchaMaCallIt, I'm really curious as to what schools you applied to and interviewed at. It just seems that you like to give your opinion on every single freakin medical school mentioned on SDN. How many of these schools have you actually seen?

Bottom line: Are you giving good advice to people who ask for it or are you just spreading rumors?

 

[The Mesentery]

I'd pick UCSF only because I've been there before...

 

[Hero]

IMO, SF is better than St. Louis.

 

[Mr.D]

I interviewed at both schools (rejected from WashU, waiting for UCSF) and was really impresed with both of them. They both are research oriented and match well. The only two significant differences that I can recall are the location and the structure of the academic curriculum.

1- SF vs. St. Louis: I come from LA so a big metropolis is appealing to me, but STL is still a livable and exciting. In terms of student and patient diversity, I would side with UCSF.

2- Curriculum: STL is more traditional and lecture based, meaning more class time per week and less time for extra curr./personal time. UCSF, while they're curriculum is undergoing some trimming and rearranging (I think Vader can comment more on this than I can), is more pragmatic and is structured so that classes can end around 12 everyday and integrate more student interaction and small group discussion.

I think BOTH are excellent institutions. It's all a matter of personal taste (whether you like a big city, traditional curriculum, etc.) You can't go wrong with either one (assuming $$ is not an issue). Oh btw, Barnes-Jewish Hospital is awesome! It's the most impressive hospital that I visited during my interviews this year. Good luck with your decision.

 

[Original]

I didn't apply to UCSF, but I got in.

<img border="0" alt="[Laughy]" title="" src="graemlins/laughy.gif" /> -- just kidding; I started out saying something else and found the truncation funny. I was going to say I didn't apply to UCSF, but I got into WashU. I revisited the place very recently and it's nothing short of breathtaking. I'm F'ing confused at this point. I'll revisit Duke and hopefully they'll treat me like crap so I can go to WashU.

 

[vyc]

Original makes me laugh.

i haven't seen either school but i agree that SF is way cooler than St. Louis.

 

[Original]

•••quote:•••Originally posted by vyc:
•Original makes me laugh.
•••••awesome

 

[Epi]

You can't go wrong with either school. I say you just flip a coin.
heads - UCSF
tails - Wash U
Ok, you can do best out of three if you really want to.

 

[Procrastinator]

SF is an cool city, but St. Louis impressed me also. It seems like a majority of the St. Louis bashers on SDN have never been there, so take what they say with a grain of salt.

 

[otter]

Is St. Louis really that cool now?. Maybe things have changed since I last went there for an overnight visit for WashU undergrad. The only reason I didn't apply to SLU Med was because of St. Louis. Maybe I should include them in my list if I need to reapply next year. (No, WashU is out of my league )

 

[warpath]

I don't know about UCSF but I got into Wash U.
These are the things I liked about it:
1) Students have a lot of power there. They can even make the administration revamp courses if they don't like the way they're structured.

2) First year is very laid back. When we were there for the revisit weekend, they had a neuroscience block. The studens said that some days, they don't even have any classes scheduled. And of course Pass/Fail doesn't hurt either.

3) Ample research opportunities. Very easy to get into research (and I mean as easy as a phone call).

4) Student run clinic. I thought this was awesome. The students actually run a free clinic. All the attending does is approve diagnosis and treatment plan. The students do everything else, including getting drugs for pharmaceutical companies.

These are just a few things that come to mind.

 

[Vader]

•••quote:•••Originally posted by Procrastinator:
•I've seen both school a little bit so I can give some info. Students at both schools seem equally happy. Both schools are probably about equal education-wise. SF has a strong edge in location, but WashU has a strong edge in affliated hospitals (Barnes-Jewish is awesome; UCSF's Moffit-Long sucks). Either school is awesome and you can't go wrong either way.•••••I don't know what you mean by this, but you have only to look at the US News rankings or ask physicians in the know to get an idea of the outstanding quality of Moffit-Long hospital. UCSF has some of the best clinical departments in the nation and is known for excellent patient care. Moffit is actually the UCSF hospital and is located at the Parnassus campus (where the medical school resides). The affiliated hospitals include SF General, Mt. Zion, and the VA. All are excellent places and offer a diverse patient population and a wealth of clinical experience.

loafy42,
Are you coming to UCSF's revisit weekend? I encourage you to do so or to schedule an alternate time to visit again. If you have specific questions about UCSF, please feel free to contact me.

 

[la9s]

hi loafy. I just got done making the same decision myself . I loved both schools when I visited, but was more blown away by Wash U, since I wasn't really expecting to love it and their facilities were unreal. But, given some distance from the interview visits, what really struck me was how different the student body was at each school. Obviously, both schools have super smart and motivated students who are interested in a lot of different things, but just sitting around with the students, there seemed to be a big difference in the kind of kids who go to Wash U and the kind who go to UCSF. Did you notice this at all? Of course, there will be people at each school who you can find to hang out with, but I could just see myself fitting in better with one group, given my interests and personality style. Sorry if this sounds ridiculous, but this is how I made the choice. Good luck!

 

[gobears]

•••quote:•••Originally posted by la9s:
•I just got done making the same decision myself . I loved both schools when I visited, but was more blown away by Wash U, since I wasn't really expecting to love it and their facilities were unreal. But, given some distance from the interview visits, what really struck me was how different the student body was at each school. Obviously, both schools have super smart and motivated students who are interested in a lot of different things, but just sitting around with the students, there seemed to be a big difference in the kind of kids who go to Wash U and the kind who go to UCSF. Did you notice this at all? Of course, there will be people at each school who you can find to hang out with, but I could just see myself fitting in better with one group, given my interests and personality style. Sorry if this sounds ridiculous, but this is how I made the choice. Good luck!•••••Hey La9s, congrats on your acceptances. How do the students at UCSF differ from the ones at Wash U? I'm really curious. By the way, I'll be at Wash U too.

 

[Procrastinator]

Hey Vader, I know that you are on the UCSF payroll and all, but all I meant by that comment was that the building is extremely dilapidated. Anyone who's been to the admissions office (in the adjoining building) knows that whole facility needs to be blown up and built from scratch. WashU facilities, on the other hand, are new and gorgeous. I don't feel inclined to comment on UCSF's clinical training until I have taken electives at a school so I wasn't talking about that. I'm sure there are good doc's at both places. Don't get so butthurt over a difference in opinion

 

[loafy42]

•••quote:•••Originally posted by la9s:
•hi loafy. I just got done making the same decision myself . I loved both schools when I visited, but was more blown away by Wash U, since I wasn't really expecting to love it and their facilities were unreal. But, given some distance from the interview visits, what really struck me was how different the student body was at each school. Obviously, both schools have super smart and motivated students who are interested in a lot of different things, but just sitting around with the students, there seemed to be a big difference in the kind of kids who go to Wash U and the kind who go to UCSF. Did you notice this at all? Of course, there will be people at each school who you can find to hang out with, but I could just see myself fitting in better with one group, given my interests and personality style. Sorry if this sounds ridiculous, but this is how I made the choice. Good luck!•••••I'd also be curious to hear about your impressions of the students at both places. I liked the students in both places, but I thought that the people at Washington University seemed more a little more conservative and a little more like those academically hardcore premeds who study a lot. In contrast, the people at UCSF seemed more laid-back, more diverse, and involved in a wider variety of activities. Again, these are just impressions, and I'm not trying to argue that they have any objective weight to them.

Thanks to everyone who has responded - it's nice to hear different perspectives on this issue, especially from future UCSF and Washington University students.

 

[la9s]

Loafy, that's exactly what I'm talking about. Seems like you liked the student vibe more at UCSF so definitely take note of that when you're making your decision. For me, all the other aspects of the schools were pretty trivial differences (I think I would have loved St. Louis or San Francisco. Obviously, according to this list, that's not too common), so I just made the decision based on who I want to hang out with for four years. And I'm purposely shying from characterizing the students at each school, because I really don't want to sound like I think one environment is better than the other. I just see myself more easily at one school than the other, so that's where I'm headed. I'd say just go with your gut. You can't go wrong.

 

[Vader]

•••quote:•••Originally posted by Procrastinator:
•Hey Vader, I know that you are on the UCSF payroll and all, but all I meant by that comment was that the building is extremely dilapidated. Anyone who's been to the admissions office (in the adjoining building) knows that whole facility needs to be blown up and built from scratch. WashU facilities, on the other hand, are new and gorgeous. I don't feel inclined to comment on UCSF's clinical training until I have taken electives at a school so I wasn't talking about that. I'm sure there are good doc's at both places. Don't get so butthurt over a difference in opinion •••••There are actually plans for building a new hospital. Currently, several options are being considered. When you refer to the "extremely dilapidated" building, I think you are referring to Clinical Sciences and the adjoining old University Hospital, which is the oldest building on campus. There are actually much newer buildings within the Parnassus complex, however.

Frankly, I don't know why you would base a decision on the "new and gorgeous" state of the hospitals. I think what is much more important to you as a medical student (or resident) is the quality of the teaching and the patient population. But then again, different things are important to different people. To each his/her own.

 

[loafy42]

Not that this will influence my decision all that much, but for curiosity's sake, would any of
you turn down a full ride from Wash U to go to UCSF, where I would have to take out loans? I am endlessly fascinated by the wide variety of opinions expressed about this topic and on
SDN in general.

 

[Original]

•••quote:•••Originally posted by loafy42:
•Not that this will influence my decision all that much, but for curiosity's sake, would any of
you turn down a full ride from Wash U to go to UCSF, where I would have to take out loans? •••••Not in this life.

 

[Original]

UCSF is great, and "all" things being equal I might very well choose it over WashU; but in your case WashU is a no brainer

 

[Doctor Wyldstyle]

Exactly.

•••quote:•••Originally posted by Procrastinator:
•SF is an cool city, but St. Louis impressed me also. It seems like a majority of the St. Louis bashers on SDN have never been there, so take what they say with a grain of salt.•••••

 

[booya23]

Go UCSF...been there, done that.