University of Illinois - Chicago (UIC) -- to go or not to go?

[jacksonianmarch]

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I still have UIC scheduled for a neurology interview -- I was wondering if I should go or not? For those that have been there, could you please post your impressions (either positive or negative) so that I can make a quick decision.

I have already interviewed at all the other programs in Chicago.

Thanks, folks.

 

[neuro kid]

The program is undergoing a lot of changes, and is far better off than it was four years back. I went to interview there a couple of weeks earlier, and must say that I wasn't impressed. I also interviewed at other programs in Chicago. My assessment is that Rush and UC are beyond doubt the best. Northwestern has a big academic feel to it, though UC clearly superseeds it in that department. Infact, I loved Loyola. its a small suburban hospital, and has a strong chair (Jose Biller is one of the best stroke guys in the country). UIC is supposed to be a good clinical program, but Rush is definately the best in that regard.

My recomendation: Go if you are close by. Dont waste time flying in from a far off place. You have already seen the best of what Chicago has to offer.

 

[crackerjack]

rush is such a great place. the residents are amazing and i have heard nothing but good feedback from it. chicago is, well, its chicago. its right for some people (academics, mostly) and not for others. uic however is definitely up and coming. they have a lot of new research and dollars going into stroke, and they definitely have a big facility. i would say that uic is better than loyola though... i felt like loyola does have biller but, he is new there, he just got there, he just left indiana (which i have heard several stories about, one that he left because his wife passed away, the other because he made enemies with most of the people there and was essentially forced out). loyola has the benefit of brand new buildings and money, but i found it sketch that i met very few of them, and they were uniformly not very friendly to the interview group (standoffish mostly). and, its not downtown chicago, its outside chicago in maywood.
so, if you have favorites in chicago they are likely to stay your favorites whether you go to uic or not. however, if you want to be in chicago and widen your chances of ending up there for some reason, def go to uic. id put it on an academic level, below uchicago and northwestern, but on par in terms of name, with rush, and above loyola. (yes, i know rush has the handle on it clinically, but overall the uic name still holds pretty well.)
thats my opinion on that and it probably isnt the same as everyone elses.

 

[drgirl]

I agree with most of what crackerjack posted. UIC is definitely a lot better than Loyola. I haven't heard great things about Northwestern or UChicago, to be honest. The only Chicago program which is uniformly accepted as strong is Rush (from what i've heard, so it's JMHO). I went to Loyola and just wasn't impressed at all. Biller does seem to be good, but is very new and it will take time for the program to see the benefits of having him there. By the way, he told me that he left Indiana because his wife is buried in chicago and he wanted to be near her. Doesn't really matter why he left anyway....as for UIC, I did think it is up and coming and the new chair, Gorelick, from Rush has managed to recruit a lot of faculty. Theres apparently some bigwig MS doc who has signed on, although his name couldn't be revealed yet, but they seemed really excited about that. There are some reviews of UIC in the 'post-interview impressions' thread. I would go, but it really depends on how many you've done and whether or not you've liked enough places to be happy at.