UMass (in-state) vs. Vanderbilt

[glui]

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Hey there! I've been fortunate enough to gain acceptance at UMass and Vandy, but am VERY torn about the decision. I attended both second looks and really enjoyed both. For context, I have substantial undergraduate debt and will have substantial medical school debt, so ultimately this decision will probably come down to finances. I can't discern whether Vanderbilt's "prestige" will significantly further my career or not. I keep getting different responses about this. I hope to go into surgery - keeping an open mind on which specialty.

UMass
Pros: Close to my family, good reputation among Boston hospitals (where I hope to one day match), in-state tuition, low cost of living, fit in well with the student body
Cons: Did not give me much financial aid, less of a focus on research, have been in Mass my whole life, 2 year pre-clinical

Vanderbilt
Pros: It's vandy..., strong research, 1 year pre-clinical, protected research time, gave me more financial aid than UMass, Nashville
Cons: More expensive overall, higher cost of living, moving to Nashville/flying back and forth will be expensive, big culture change for a Bostonian

Based on my preliminary calculations, it will cost about $50k-60k more to attend Vanderbilt in total, which in the grand scheme of things is not much compared to the total cost I'll be taking out in loans anyway....

Please help, thank you!!!

 

[Dr. Meliodas]

Hey there! I've been fortunate enough to gain acceptance at UMass and Vandy, but am VERY torn about the decision. I attended both second looks and really enjoyed both. For context, I have substantial undergraduate debt and will have substantial medical school debt, so ultimately this decision will probably come down to finances. I can't discern whether Vanderbilt's "prestige" will significantly further my career or not. I keep getting different responses about this. I hope to go into surgery - keeping an open mind on which specialty.

UMass
Pros: Close to my family, good reputation among Boston hospitals (where I hope to one day match), in-state tuition, low cost of living, fit in well with the student body
Cons: Did not give me much financial aid, less of a focus on research, have been in Mass my whole life, 2 year pre-clinical

Vanderbilt
Pros: It's vandy..., strong research, 1 year pre-clinical, protected research time, gave me more financial aid than UMass, Nashville
Cons: More expensive overall, higher cost of living, moving to Nashville/flying back and forth will be expensive, big culture change for a Bostonian

Based on my preliminary calculations, it will cost about $50k-60k more to attend Vanderbilt in total, which in the grand scheme of things is not much compared to the total cost I'll be taking out in loans anyway....

Please help, thank you!!!

50-60K total difference over four years does not sound like much of a difference. The only thing to really think about is whether you want to be close to family or not. That is more of a personal subjective thing you have to answer. Personally, my family would distract me from my studies so I'd go to Vanderbilt. Just my thoughts.

 

[dkitch24]

Vanderbilt 10000%. The cost difference is not substantial enough to pass up attending a top-20 school ESPECIALLY if there's a possibility of you going into a competitive surgical field. You will easily be able to match into all top Boston hospitals from Vandy. As long as you feel like you fit there, Vanderbilt is the clear choice in my opinion. Good luck!

 

[butterbagel]

Long time lurker first time posting. Your situation is super similar to my sister's (debating between state school in northeast that she called home vs prestigious Southern school, albeit the cost difference was closer to 120k for her. She chose the highly ranked school in the South and would make the same choice 100 times out of 100. At first it was an adjustment but she ended up loving it. She matched back home at a great Gen Surg residency in NY. Hope this helps

 

[glui]

This is all super helpful, thanks everyone!!