althoughinstead
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I’m deciding between two medical schools and would appreciate any insights from current students, alumni, or others familiar with them.
Penn State College of Medicine (Hershey, PA)
• Tuition is more expensive at $60k/year, though I haven’t received a financial aid award yet, so that may change.
• I currently live in Baltimore, so it wouldn’t be a big shift — it’s only about 1.5 hours away.
• My partner will be in Hagerstown, MD, and I also have family in Baltimore and New York, so I’d be close to them.
• I’m used to the more mild weather here and really enjoy the outdoors — there’s great access to hiking and nature in the area.
• Even though it’s a small town, I like that I’d still have access to large cities for day trips.
• Offers a three-year accelerated program in a specialty I’m interested in, and a smaller cohort program at their University Park campus that would take about $20k/year off tuition — though neither option is guaranteed, so I can’t fully count on them.
University of Florida College of Medicine (Gainesville, FL)
• Tuition is currently $25k/year with the aid they’ve offered me.
• I have a lot of family in South Florida, so I’d be closer to them, though they’re still about 5–6 hours away by car, so visits would likely be less frequent.
• The Florida heat and humidity are pretty uncomfortable for me, so that’s something I’ve been seriously considering.
• Curriculum and clinical opportunities seem comparable to Penn State, and they also have strong home residency programs.
I’m not entirely sure which specialty I’ll go into, but right now I’m interested in psychiatry, neurology, physical medicine, and orthopedics. That could all change though, so I’m not sure how much that should factor into my decision.
I don’t mind living in small towns as long as I have access to small gyms, yoga studios, saunas, museums, bookstores, diverse restaurants, and good coffee shops and workspaces.
Thanks in advance for your help!
Penn State College of Medicine (Hershey, PA)
• Tuition is more expensive at $60k/year, though I haven’t received a financial aid award yet, so that may change.
• I currently live in Baltimore, so it wouldn’t be a big shift — it’s only about 1.5 hours away.
• My partner will be in Hagerstown, MD, and I also have family in Baltimore and New York, so I’d be close to them.
• I’m used to the more mild weather here and really enjoy the outdoors — there’s great access to hiking and nature in the area.
• Even though it’s a small town, I like that I’d still have access to large cities for day trips.
• Offers a three-year accelerated program in a specialty I’m interested in, and a smaller cohort program at their University Park campus that would take about $20k/year off tuition — though neither option is guaranteed, so I can’t fully count on them.
University of Florida College of Medicine (Gainesville, FL)
• Tuition is currently $25k/year with the aid they’ve offered me.
• I have a lot of family in South Florida, so I’d be closer to them, though they’re still about 5–6 hours away by car, so visits would likely be less frequent.
• The Florida heat and humidity are pretty uncomfortable for me, so that’s something I’ve been seriously considering.
• Curriculum and clinical opportunities seem comparable to Penn State, and they also have strong home residency programs.
I’m not entirely sure which specialty I’ll go into, but right now I’m interested in psychiatry, neurology, physical medicine, and orthopedics. That could all change though, so I’m not sure how much that should factor into my decision.
I don’t mind living in small towns as long as I have access to small gyms, yoga studios, saunas, museums, bookstores, diverse restaurants, and good coffee shops and workspaces.
Thanks in advance for your help!
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