Hello! This thread is for incoming MS-1s at the University of Maryland, Baltimore! I am looking forward to meeting you all in a few months!
UMD School of Medicine Class of 2016!
- Thread starter DrTerp
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Accepted OOS! I'm seriously considering withdrawing from my other applications and committing to Maryland because I loved it when I interviewed...so I guess I'm just seeking reassurance!
I'm from Washington State, so the east coast is a big change for me. Thoughts?
I'm from Washington State, so the east coast is a big change for me. Thoughts?
Congratulations!
I withdrew all mine and accepted UMD for the same reason (not to mention IS). MD resident my whole life, feel free to ask any questions..
See you all soon!
I also have accepted the offer and I am like 99% sure that I will be attending Maryland. Also from the West Coast (CA), but my undergrad institution is in Bmore.
to danceonskis: it's definitely gonna be a big adjustment but you will get adjusted soon. 🙂 Plus, Baltimore winter isn't too cold compared to other East Coast states.
to danceonskis: it's definitely gonna be a big adjustment but you will get adjusted soon. 🙂 Plus, Baltimore winter isn't too cold compared to other East Coast states.
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What is Baltimore like? One of my only reservations about Maryland is the fact that it is in Baltimore...so close to DC!...but so far.
being IS and definitely going to UMD next year, I can tell you that Baltimore is an okay city.. I go to undergrad in College Park (near DC) and in my opinion, DC is nicer.. But certain parts of Baltimore are very nice (Fells Point and Canton) and they are about 10-15 minute drive from the med school. Much colder in the winter than the West Coast though!
It really depends on neighborhoods...Baltimore has some really bad neighborhoods... anything in West and East Baltimore ( like any other city..ex. Compton in LA) and it also has nice ones. Neighborhoods right around Hopkins (Charles Village and Hampden) are nice as well as neighborhoods near Maryland med (Inner Harbor, Fed Hill) and Fells Point (nice bars)
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Can any of you speak to UMD vs. George Washington? Thoughts?
Yes. Buddies at both, interviewed at both. To what were you referring: education, rankings, cost, living, class structure, overall environment, match, etc?
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Okay, normally I wouldn't do this. But I feel like I am one of the 3 people in the UMD med class who is uniquely qualified to speak to this. I am a current UMD M1 and I did my undergrad at GWU. Here is my side by side breakdown of UMD med and GWU med
Hospital:
Maryland's hospital complex makes GWU's look like a local community hospital. Yes, I know you can do rotations at Washington Area Hospital Center but that is not only a pain to get to but is also in a not-so-great area of DC. In addition, GWU med's entire hospital system is owned and operated by Universal Health Services - an omnicorp which owns GU's hospital, WAHC, and like 10 other hospitals in the area. Here at Maryland this is *our* hospital and we own many other ones all over the city of Baltimore. As someone who has taken classes in both hospitals, I can say that Maryland has the advantage hands down. It is a beautiful hospital that sees incredible cases you just wouldn't be exposed to at GWU Med. Don't get me wrong, GWU hospital is pretty, and gets the occasional cases, but it is limited by steric constraints of DC building codes. Therefore, while GWU med might have a few rooms on an ICU floor devoted to traum, we have an entire hospital devoted just to trauma (The R. Adams Cowley Shock Trauma Center). Advantage: Maryland
City:
I will be honest, I am a DC person at heart. Neighborhoods like Adams Morgan, Duponte, Georgetown, U Street, Capitol Hill are also tremendous and the fact that they are only a quick 15minute walk away is a feature of DC I very much miss. Yet that was something you can really only take advantage of as an undergrad. You don't really get a tremendous amount of time in med school to explore the city. Don't really fool yourself, wherever you go you will be studying - a lot. That isn't to say you won't have any free time, but it won't be like senior year of college where you can have fun in your city every night. DC is really fun, and foggy bottom is exactly one hour and seven minutes away from UMD Med. Trust me, I do this drive a lot. It is very easy to get down to DC if you have a few hours of free time. But my philosophy is you don't **** where you eat - it is good to have separation. Sometimes being in DC makes you feel guilty about *not* exploring the city/ "taking advantage" of "all the opportunities DC has to offer". As an M1, you really don't need those kinds of constant distractions and constant pressure. Baltimore is a really cool city in its own regard, and there is plenty exploring to do. And as I said, DC is just a car ride away. Still, in terms of city: Advantage DC
People:
A lot of my buddies from undergrad went to GWU Med, and they are awesome people. But that said they already know each other. GWU med accepts at the minimum 20 -30 kids in its med school class directly from GWU undergrad, many of whom who have been closely tracked with each other through early acceptance programs and 7-year MD programs. They know each other and are already really good friends. If you go to GWU med, I would encourage getting to know them because they are really awesome people. Still, these friendships are already there. At UMD, there doesn't seem like there are established friendships already. Everyone is new. Yea, some kids went to UMD or other schools and know each other, but it didn't seem like there were a whole bunch of cliques entering the class. I have gotten to know a ton of people of different ages, backgrounds, and perspective and I like them.
Classes:
UMD does 8-12 classes (normally with 2hrs of lecture and two hrs of lab/small group/ problem sessions). The schedule is really manageable. We only do one subject at a time - you learn anatomy for 8 weeks, then biochem for a few weeks, then physio, then neuro. Then you are done with the year. Your aren't robbing peter to pay paul - you devote your time to focusing and doing well on one subject and don't have to worry about not studying for immuno so you can study for biochem. I personally like that. GWU med does the "take multiple classes at once" thing. You are also in class longer. I know right now they are taking neuro, immuno, biochem, and psych. Which means if you have a test in one you aren't studying for the other. So it is more like undergrad in that respect.
Well, there are tons of other categories I could go through (libraries, facilities, cost of living, research opportunities, transportation, etc) but I figured that I would just cover the big ones. If you are interested, please PM me and I will be happy to answer any other question you might have
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can anyone speak to the importance of ranking in terms of residency applications? does going to maryland (verus a school ranked in the ~20s) make it harder to get into the program you want? i know grades/class rank are very important too, but assuming you're in a similar position with grades and board scores regardless of the institution, is it worth paying out of state tuition for a bit of a higher ranking?
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1) I assume you are referring to the US News and World Report rankings? Because they are kind of worthless (namely because USNWR's job is to sell magazines, not rank schools and therefore have horrible metrics). Would you trust them for actual news and world reporting? If so, why are you trusting their opinions on graduate education?
2) UMD is still ranked higher then GWU by that standard (which, again is a crappy metric). By a more reasonable standard, GWU Med has been flirting heavily with being put on probation over the last few years, so I would venture to say that UMD is still a better school overall.
3) Don't base one of the biggest decisions of your life on what some third rate magazine has to say. Base it on how you felt when you were touring the school. Which one could you see yourself at? Whatever one it is - go there!
4) Residency program directors really don't care about what school you went to or grades in your first two years- anyone who tells you otherwise is a dirty liar. So again, go to the school that feels "right" to you.
2) UMD is still ranked higher then GWU by that standard (which, again is a crappy metric). By a more reasonable standard, GWU Med has been flirting heavily with being put on probation over the last few years, so I would venture to say that UMD is still a better school overall.
3) Don't base one of the biggest decisions of your life on what some third rate magazine has to say. Base it on how you felt when you were touring the school. Which one could you see yourself at? Whatever one it is - go there!
4) Residency program directors really don't care about what school you went to or grades in your first two years- anyone who tells you otherwise is a dirty liar. So again, go to the school that feels "right" to you.
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