UK or UofL?

[Astrid]

Are there any University of Kentucky or University of Louisville students out there? I'm trying to decide between the two and am looking for some student perspectives.. what do you like? what do you hate?

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[KyGrlDr2B]

I don't know of anyone from U of L on here and only one person from UK. I'm going to UK in the fall and I've talk to him about it. His name is Hannibal. I don't think he's been getting on here lately, but maybe you could email him or something. There aren't many KY people on here, although several are thinking about going to UK next year. Hope I've helped.

 

[Astrid]

Thanks! I thought nobody was going to reply! I'd like to talk to your friend Hannibal if possible. Can you PM on this forum? Also, why did you choose UK? I'd love to hear your impressions too. I liked UK in general though they dont really seem interested in giving students a lot of elective time to try research or anything outside their standard curriculum. i like that you're not in lecture all day, but the payoff for that is the no summer break thing (I know, boo hoo). Also, I've tried to get a list of residency matches and they dont seem to publish it anywhere. Have you seen one? Are you a current UK student?

 

[WSUreds]

I would have to say that U of L is better for reason and one reason only. Rick Pitino is there not Tubby Smith. Sorry Tubby fans, but the next coach of the Wildcats is Billy Donovan.

 

[Astrid]

you just had to go there. <img src="graemlins/laughy.gif" border="0" alt="[Laughy]" />

 

[KyGrlDr2B]

Well, here is a post I found about UK. Perhaps you can PM, icq, or email Hannibal. Warning: he did his undergrad at Uk as well and is a 3rd year right now so he is pretty tired of Lexington. Do not let that deter you. lol. He seems pretty jaded.

<a href="http://www.studentdoctor.net/cgi-bin/ubbcgi/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic&f=2&t=000179]http://www.studentdoctor.net/cgi-bin/ubbcgi/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic&f=2&t=000179" target="_blank">http://www.studentdoctor.net/cgi-bin/ubbcgi/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic&f=2&t=000179]http://www.studentdoctor.net/cgi-bin/ubbcgi/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic&f=2&t=000179</a>

I am not currently at UK, i go to Marshall Unversity. I chose UK because of the shorter days and block system, mostly. Other things factored into it (more familiar with Lexington, etc). My number one thing was that I can't study as soon as I get home, I like to rest for a little bit. At U of L, by the time I drove home and ate, it would be late evening and time to study all evening. I think if you contact U of L, they might give you an email address of whoever took you on the tour. My tour guide told me if I had any more questions to feel free to ask them for it.

I know they encourage research time in the summer, after first year we get I believe 5 weeks to do it. You can also do it maybe one or two afternoons a week during the school year.

Oh and by the way, Billy Donovan used to coach at Marshall. lol. I can't seem to get away from him, I think he is following me.

 

[mongoose]

I may not be the best person to ask, but at least I can weigh in with my two pennies. If you don't like them, then no harm done I guess. I think they are both great schools. If it comes down to it, I will choose Louisville over Kentucky. (I find out about U of L on Wednesday!).

1. Facilities: Louisville hands down here. While Kentucky was not horrible or anything, I think it was fairly obvious that Louisville was quite a bit ahead. At least that is my opinion after having taken the short tour of each.

2. Student Camaraderie: I think Louisville is a little bit ahead here. I really liked the fact Louisville has a school sponsored outdoor grill with beer after each anatomy exam. Is that cool or what? Kentucky seemed very good in this department as well, but I give Louisville the nod by a little. It seemed to me the current students were very comfortable with their classmates.

3. Town: In my opinion, Louisville has more culture than Lexington. From minor league baseball to the Louisville Slugger museum to Kentucky Kingdom, I think Louisville, as a town, has more to offer.

4. College affiliated sports teams: While it is true that I am a big Kentucky basketball fan, I still give the edge to Louisville here. I have a sneakin' suspicion that Pitino's boys will be beating the stuffing out of Tubby's boys in the next few years. And everybody likes a winner more than a loser, eh? Also, Kentucky's football team is just putrid and Louisville's is pretty decent.

5. Professionalism: I don't know if I am the only one who noticed this, but I was really turned off by the little snide remarks the Kentucky folks made regarding the Louisville program. (This was not just one isolated incident. One of my interviewers even made a negative comment about Louisville. On the weekend of the financial aid seminar at Kentucky, one of the current students UK brought in to talk to the prospective students made a negative remark about U of L as well.) I thought it was extremely unprofessional and I really don't want to be associated with that kind of stuff. Louisville, on the other hand, chose to take the high road by accentuating the positive aspects of their program rather than pointing out the negatives of Kentucky's program.

As you can see, I was fairly impressed by Louisville. It was a much nicer school than I was expecting pre-interview. I was definitley pleasantly surprised. I still think UK is a fine program, but just not quite as good as U of L. Another thing you may want to think about is what each program stresses. Louisville seems to be more into research while Kentucky is more into primary care. Pick your poison.

These are just my thoughts, though. It will be an irrelevant issue for me if I get into Cincinnati.

 

[KyGrlDr2B]

I'd like to point out that at my U of L interview, snide remarks were made about UK at three occasions. First, during the orientation talk before our individual interviews. Then, both of my interviewers did it as well. So, don't go thinking that it is all one-sided. At my Uk interview, nothing was said about U of L.

The applicants at U of L were just plain rude and stuck up. No one wanted to speak. At least at Uk, most were nice and chatty. Also, Louisville is a tad dirtier than Lexington. And I was told by the students not to walk by myself to and from my car to the classroom building because it borders the projects. Being a female, that really turned me off. I want to feel safe. If I want the so-called culture Louisville claims to have, I can drive an hour to it or 2 hours to Cincy or a few hours to Tennessee. UK wins by a tad more than a margin, but not by a landslide.

 

[WSUreds]

Wow, look at these hillbillies go at it. I think that the Hatfields and McCoy's would be proud of yall. U of L or UK who cares, UC still kicks your booty no matter what. And what is bluegrass?? Grass is green.

 

[WSUreds]

Oh yeah, I love the state motto on the sign into Kentucky, "Where education Pays." Kentucky is proud that it is 48th in the country ahead of West Virginia and Mississippi. Go Big Blue!

 

[KyGrlDr2B]

*rolls eyes*

Um, where was the first artificial heart transplant?? Kentucky?? WHAT? They had a team of hillbillies do that? I can't believe it.

 

[WSUreds]

I think that was at U of L, there K-Y girl. Anything else good come out of UK besides Ashley Judd?

 

[mongoose]

Hey, KyGrl, I didn't mean for my comments to be inflammatory. I was just stating the case from what my experiences have been. At UK, I did hear several negative comments made about Louisville. It made me want to puke, really. It is also sad to hear that Louisville acted in this way toward UK at your interview. It makes me want to scream "Can't we all just get along?" in my best Rodney King voice. Anyway, I stand by my comments as they are drawn from my personal experiences with the two schools. As stated before, I still think UK is a fine institution. It just seemed a little behind U of L to me. I had a feeling you would be able to point out the other point of view in reply to my post and I am glad you did. I think that was the point of this thread: to get various opinions on the two schools.

As for you, WSUreds, I agree with you. The proof is in the last line of my previous post where I said it would be an irrelevant point if I get in at Cincinnati. UC is at the TOP of my list right now. U of L in 2nd. UK in 3rd. UT-Memphis in 4th. And about the Hatfields and McCoys: I grew up in far eastern Kentucky, where the two families had their famous feud. A little piece of history worth learning about if you ask me.

 

[KyGrlDr2B]

Originally posted by WSUreds:
•I think that was at U of L, there K-Y girl. Anything else good come out of UK besides Ashley Judd?•••

Last time I checked, U of L was IN Kentucky.

And mongoose, I know what you meant, I just didnt want you to think it was all one-sided because I know it happens both ways. It's all good.

 

[Astrid]

Hah! I love what I started! Just to add to it, I heard more anti-UK sentiments at U of L than at UK. But, WHOSE COUNTING? I had okay feelings about both schools, though neither seem to be the perfect match for me. I thought UK had a better (cleaner) facility.. especially labs. and a better all round daily routine. BUT, what is up with still using letter grades. And, it is very primary care oriented (not nec. a bad thing, just maybe not right for me) On the other hand, U of L students are in lecture all day every day. That sucks for people like me who do best learning material on their own. Oh, and what is "black monday"?!? they HAVE to get you drunk on their bill after that. But, besides that they have more elective time, definately a cooler city (in my opinion... and i grew up in lexington so i can bitch about it), and the admissions people were definately more encouraging when I said I wanted to try research. But, all that being said, I'd be fine at both, though I'm secretly hoping to not go
to either.

 

[Astrid]

oh yeah, mongoose, I couldn't go to the financial aid seminar at UK. Did I miss anything interesting besides them telling you to fill out your FAFSA?

 

[mongoose]

Astrid -- Why be secretive about your hopes? I would rather go to Cincinnati as either UK or U of L. But, I definitely wouldn't be ashamed of either Kentucky school, though. In fact, I would be very proud at either institution. So, who is your secret first choice? And you didn't really miss anything necessary at the UK seminar. It was informative, though. KyGrl can tell you about it as well.

 

[Astrid]

Vandy or Columbia. But I gotta get real rich and real lucky.

 

[Firebird]

Originally posted by WSUreds:
•Oh yeah, I love the state motto on the sign into Kentucky, "Where education Pays." Kentucky is proud that it is 48th in the country ahead of West Virginia and Mississippi. Go Big Blue!•••

"Education Pays" is not the state motto. "United We Stand, Divided We Fall" is our motto. Lately everyone is using it, too.

Nice way to stereotype people.

As for bluegrass, there is a certain species of grass found widely in Kentucky that has a blue tint to it.

And when it comes to sports teams, let's see. The Reds and The Bengals. Basically Cincinnati has refined loosing into an art form.

Cincinnati had recently come to be one of the more dangerous cities to live in, with all the riots and civil unrest.

Although I do have to complement 700 WLW for being one of the better radio stations. Gary Burbank is hilarious and Bill Cunningham is the man.

 

[WSUreds]

Oh so you wanna go there huh?

I know its not the state motto, but if it is not why is it on every big sign into the state???? Only a truly backwards state would do this. Do you have answer to that no?? Why, cus education in Kentucky doesn't pay!!

There is no bluish tint to any grass in Kentucky or anywhere, you know that, I know that, the world knows that. So don't pretend.

I didn't criticize any sports in Kentucky, well cus there is only one, basketball, UK basketball. I am fan of UK, but hate their fans, the most obnoxious people on earth. Oh by the way, UC is ahead of UK in the polls this year. For the last 150 years, Kentucky's professional sports has been in last place everytime, b/c they have none. And by the way, the Reds have the third most World Series titles in the MLB and no doubt the best team ever.

And about safety, I think you check the rankings Louisville has always been ahead of Cincinnati in crime and murder rate. Cincinnati is and will always be one of the safest and most liveable cities in the country.

 

[TheSouth]

Well, I was turned down at both schools the first time, and got into UL the second, but I'm going to Pikeville instead. I was not really impressed with either place to tell you the truth. I don't know which one I'd pick. Both programs are good, UL is in a more "unsafe" neighborhood, so ladies watch out. Although my mother went to Nursing school there which is even in a worse neighborhood and she was fine. Lexington's downtown area is much nicer (I'm from Louisville and went to school in Georgetown which is right by Lexington so I know both quite well) and they have Tolly Ho's for all of your 24 hour munchy needs!
I thought that UK was more snobby though as far as their admissions dept goes. They just flat out told me I wasn't good enough for their school and that was it. They didn't care that I earned my grades while working full time, but oh well. UL at least told me to take a hard summer class and if I did well, they'd give me a shot.

 

[droliver]

The two schools serve different needs. Univ. of Kentucky was founded during a period of time when there was a percieved deficit of future doctors in America & a # of medical schools were created (as was my alma mater the Univ. of South Alabama). Its primary goal was/is to turn out primary care physicians to meet the need of its citizens. Louisville is a fairly old school that resulted from the merger of a # of small schools in the 19th century as a legacy of the Flexner Report on medical education (the start of medical school standardization & accredidation in the USA).
I'm not as familiar with the preclinical years @ UK, but in general the better 3rd/4th year student experience is probably in Louisville due to the much more extensive medical/research community available here. The residency programs likewise tend to have better reputations nationwide, with a few exceptions. UK's clinical departments are also reportedly in very grim financial straits in a # of divisions @ present.
Louisville is a wonderful place to live in I've found & the neighborhood around the hospital is really not bad, in fact a # of students live in nearby apartments. I've never heard of a student, nurse, or resident assaulted in the period of time I've been here (4 years) and I've only heard of just a few car break-ins. People who think that this is a bad neighborhood around a downtown medical center have no idea! visit Charity Hospital in New Orleans, South Alabama MC in Mobile, Johns Hopkins in Baltimore, Tufts in Boston, etc... to see what bad neighborhoods are near med schools.

My medical school South Alabama had a similar relationship to UAB as is UK to UofL. It was younger, smaller, poorer,lower profile, & less prestigious. That being said, I had a wonderful time, made good friends, made good grades, got a great experience, & got a wonderful training position when I graduated. Depending on your career goals in medicine, either school can serve the needs of the majority of the students. If you suspect ahead of time that you want to do the more specialty fields, you're probably better off @ UofL

 

[Firebird]

Originally posted by WSUreds:
•Oh so you wanna go there huh?

I know its not the state motto, but if it is not why is it on every big sign into the state???? Only a truly backwards state would do this. Do you have answer to that no?? Why, cus education in Kentucky doesn't pay!!

There is no bluish tint to any grass in Kentucky or anywhere, you know that, I know that, the world knows that. So don't pretend.

I didn't criticize any sports in Kentucky, well cus there is only one, basketball, UK basketball. I am fan of UK, but hate their fans, the most obnoxious people on earth. Oh by the way, UC is ahead of UK in the polls this year. For the last 150 years, Kentucky's professional sports has been in last place everytime, b/c they have none. And by the way, the Reds have the third most World Series titles in the MLB and no doubt the best team ever.

And about safety, I think you check the rankings Louisville has always been ahead of Cincinnati in crime and murder rate. Cincinnati is and will always be one of the safest and most liveable cities in the country.•••

As far as education goes, several of Kentucky's high schools have won national academic competitions. In fact, Dupont Manual has perhaps one of the best national records. Secondly, our scholarship awards program is excellent, so we are certainly making a step in the right direction.

Yes, there is a bluish tint to some grass in the state. Webster's dictionary defines bluegrass as:

1. a valuable Old World pasture and meadow grass (Poa pratensis) naturalized in America

2. any of several grasses (genus Poa) of which some have bluish green culms;

So I was right.

I can not believe you said Cincinnati is one of the safest and liveable cities in the country. Tell me why you have so many riots? Tell me why the Cincinnati hotels took a total earnings cut last year? These problems, and others, are all a result of the horrible social unrest that is so common in Cincinnati. Like I said, I listen to 700AM all the time, so I know what is going on there.

Anyway, I think this conversation is headed towards the childish side...thanks, but no thanks...

 

[WSUreds]

Still you have no clue what you are talking about. A few good high schools do not make up for the rest of them. Cmon now?? I ramble of many schools in Cincinnati alone that are the tops in the state and the nation, public and private. I think thats why we are a little better than 48 out of 50 in education.

In 1998 and 1999, Cincinnati was voted the most liveable city in the entire United States. So, I think your notions of Cincinnati are based on only a few isolated events. Multiple riots?? I can think of only one and that was last April. Cincinnati has dealt with that situation in the right way and yeah i do listen to 700 and I know what the hell is going on in my city. Yes, hotel occupancy was down, but Hamilton County was voted today as the 4th Best County in the US. How many times are you going to keep getting knock to the mat and try to stagger up and throw some weak punches. I think you should stop worrying about Cincinnati and focus on the extreme poverty that exists in Kentucky, talk about some problems.

 

[Firebird]

Originally posted by WSUreds:
•Still you have no clue what you are talking about. A few good high schools do not make up for the rest of them. Cmon now?? I ramble of many schools in Cincinnati alone that are the tops in the state and the nation, public and private. I think thats why we are a little better than 48 out of 50 in education.

In 1998 and 1999, Cincinnati was voted the most liveable city in the entire United States. So, I think your notions of Cincinnati are based on only a few isolated events. Multiple riots?? I can think of only one and that was last April. Cincinnati has dealt with that situation in the right way and yeah i do listen to 700 and I know what the hell is going on in my city. Yes, hotel occupancy was down, but Hamilton County was voted today as the 4th Best County in the US. How many times are you going to keep getting knock to the mat and try to stagger up and throw some weak punches. I think you should stop worrying about Cincinnati and focus on the extreme poverty that exists in Kentucky, talk about some problems.•••

Like I said, this conversation is quickly heading towards the childish end of the spectrum. I find it to be very petty.

This is not a place to come and argue. Almost everyone who regularly posts here has a very good attitude and generally is very pleasant. Go along with the crowd and don't pick silly fights like the one above.

 

[WSUreds]

First of all, I have a great attitude, and the comments I originally made were in Jest about Kentucky. But you took the comments out of context and had to bring Cincinnati into it. So, I mean what are you talking about? But I don't know how you can compare the state of Kentucky to Cincinnati or Ohio, that is just unrealistic. By the way I do love the state of Ky. Both of my parents were born and raised there and my mother is a graduate of UK. So please, next time, maybe you shouldn't jump the gun!! I think child was the one who stepped into something that was none of his business!

 

[WSUreds]

Originally posted by Firebird:
•

Like I said, this conversation is quickly heading towards the childish end of the spectrum. I find it to be very petty.

This is not a place to come and argue. Almost everyone who regularly posts here has a very good attitude and generally is very pleasant. Go along with the crowd and don't pick silly fights like the one above.•••

Lighten up dude. I was only joking. I believe you are the one who picked the fight by challenging me. I don't think you were paying much attention. Anyways, I'm done and I hope you are too.

 

[Astrid]

Droliver, are you a resident or an attending at U of L? thanks for the insight! I had no idea that UK was in financial trouble, nor did I know that it is historically overshadowed by U of L. The trouble is that, in general, i think the preclinical years suit me better at UK, but, like you mention, the clinical experience promises to be more varied at U of L. I dont know if I'm headed towards primary care or not, so I dont want to close any doors for myself down the road. So, it seems that I might be doomed to suffer through a traditional preclinical curriculum (NOT what I want) in order to reap the rewards later.

 

[Ranger Bob]

DrOliver's claims that the Louisville and Kentucky are very different, and that Louisville is more prestigious, are dubious at best. A side-by-side comparison using data from US News suggests that the two schools are quite similar, and if anything, Kentucky has a slight edge in terms of student selectivity and MCAT/GPA statistics. Specifically:

- Kentucky is slightly more selective, with an acceptance rate of 12.8% vs. 15.9% for Louisville.

- Kentucky students have a slightly higher average composite MCAT score (9.7, vs. 9.1 for Louisville).

- Kentucky students have a slightly higher average undergraduate GPA (3.63, vs. 3.57 for Louisville).

- Kentucky has a higher faculty to student ratio (1.6 vs. 0.9 for Louisville).

And contrary to statements in DrOliver's post, Kentucky is NOT more primary-care oriented than Louisville. In fact, a slightly higher percentage of Louisville graduates go into primary care fields.

The data suggest that the two schools are quite similar, but that Kentucky has the slight edge in terms of selectivity and MCAT/GPA statistics.

 

[KyGrlDr2B]

I read in a book somewhere that roughly about 50% of Kentucky's students go on to practice primary care. I didn't think that was a high percentage at all. People make it sound like 70% are headed that way, but in fact aren't.

 

[Jamier2]

I chose UK mainly based on the area, and the way the preclinical years fit me. From talking to friends who are students at both schools, they really aren't that much different. UofL does have more scheduled class time than UK, but every UofL student I talked to said they don't actually spend that much time there.

As for the towns, yeah Lexington doesn't offer as much culture, but I don't really want culture anyway. Also, my wife has several good employment prospects in Lexington and we both like the environment there.

The only thing I wish I could do would be switch schools at the 3rd year. I like UK's first 2 years better, but I also keep hearing good things about Louisville's clinical years.

As for the snide remarks, I heard plenty at both schools. Neither is immune.

 

[droliver]

Ranger Bob- those differences in MCAT/GPA (assuming your data is correct) are statistically the same. Also you're comparing 2 schools, one of which (UofL) has ~50% more students per class, which will usually drive a mean score down when you compare these things. In point of fact, the mission of UK's medical school WAS to turn out more primary care(PC) physicians. When you look at the %'s of students entering into PC fields, you've really got to look at the students ultimate career after training. A student going into Int. Medicine or pediatrics are counted as PC when they graduate, but may ultimately specialize in any # of subspecialties which are not considered primary care. Over the years the defination of PC has also been fluid with OBGYN recently added to the lists for federal purposes, and general surgery currently being discussed to be added. Just because you go to UK doesn't mean you're "doomed" to be a PC physician, just as I ended up doing surgery & ultimately will do Plastic Surgery after gradtuating from a similar type school.

Despite similar #'s of matriculating students, it is pretty much the feeling that UofL is the somewhat more prestigious of the two schools. In the clinical divisions I think its no contest. There are certain features which will make Lexington more attractive to certain students for a # of reasons: class size, location, smaller town, etc... If you could pick & choose in an ideal world, the best combo might be the preclinical years @ Lexington with the 3rd/4th years in Louisville (this the general consensus among some of the residents here in various fields who went to UK for med school).

 

[rthurt]

I am a 1st year at U of L and can tell you I made the right choice. The clinical years are better here and that is what it is all about. The pre-clinical years punch your admission ticket for the 3rd and 4th year. If you choose a school that may have a more favorable pre-clinical vs a less favorable 3rd and 4th year then basic science research may be your calling. Both schools are pretty good and you can't go wrong either way. But U of L is putting hearts and hands on people.

 

[neilc]

i went to UofL as an undergrad and loved it.and i am from california, the best state around! i would live there again in a heartbeat. i am hoping that it is possible for a lowly FMG to grab a surgical residency there...yeah, right. i know i am dreaming....

 

[tomthebomb]

I think UK may play with their MCAT numbers. If you go to the US News World Report Medical School Section and get UKs stats they have a higher overall mean reported (9.7) than any of the individual subsections. Maybe they just report the highest of scores for applicants who retake the MCAT multiple times creating the illusion of having higher MCATs.

 

[droliver]

interesting