University of Iowa Carver full ride vs. UC San Diego

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amac17

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Hi Everyone!
I am in the extremely fortunate position of having been offered acceptance to UC San Diego, which has been a dream school of mine, as well as Carver with a full ride. I am at a complete loss for what to do as I know Carver is also a fantastic school. I want to pursue a very competitive field, but is there really enough difference between Carver and San Diego to pass up a full ride?

Thank you for your help in advance!

Edit: I am dead set on practicing in California and doing residency there. I don't know if this makes a difference!

EDIT EDIT: WOW! Thank you everyone so much for all your input. I really wish I had seen all this before, but I stopped getting email notification and so assumed my thread had died! Today is the deadline and I am still somewhat at a loss for what to do. I'll add some more detail in here just in case anyone as more advice:

-It turns out it is a full tuition and fees scholarship not full ride, so I would still be responsible for the last 20,000/year.
-I qualified for NO school aid at all from UCSD, so was planning on taking out the full cost of attendance in the unsubsidized federal loan and grad plus loan--both with horrific interest rates, as you all know leaving me with ~240,000 in debt pre interest vs. ~80,000 in debt from Iowa.
-My dream specialty is reconstructive plastic surgery, for many reasons both personal and other, however I am VERY open to other possibilities--although I can't see myself doing anything non-surgical.
-I don't see myself being unhappy in Iowa at all. I really liked it there when I visited. Of course I like California more--its my home and the weather is a bit nicer 🙂, but I am really a person that can make the most of any environment.

Thank you again everyone for all your thoughts!!
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amac17 said:
Hi Everyone!
I am in the extremely fortunate position of having been offered acceptance to UC San Diego, which has been a dream school of mine, as well as Carver with a full ride. I am at a complete loss for what to do as I know Carver is also a fantastic school. I want to pursue a very competitive field, but is there really enough difference between Carver and San Diego to pass up a full ride?

Thank you for your help in advance!
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I would take the full-ride... congrats on earning it!
 
Carver is an excellent school with some strong residency programs in certain fields. I'd go to Carver unless you're either dead set on practicing in California/doing a residency there or you just didn't really think you'd like attending Carver. Either way, it would take A LOT for me to turn down a full ride to med school almost anywhere. Congratulations, this is one of those tough decisions that sounds like a win no matter what you choose.
 
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Even though I graduated from UCSD, I would suggest you take full ride and come out of undergrad without having to worry about paying back loans. Also, if you do decide to go into medicine, your debt will be accumulating while you're in school. In terms of prestige, i think it's all BS for the most part. Just do well and get a high GPA wherever you go.
 
I would take the full ride. I recently made the same decision deciding between full ride at UCLA and a big name east coast school. In the end, I think the lifestyle freedom of the full ride is too much to give up. Just go read about the person in pre allo discussing the amount of debt they are taking out. If you have no debt you can just do whatever. This goes for specialty but also for less obvious things like where you live, what schools you send your kids too or how much time you can spend at home with an eventual family.

Also, Carver is such a good school that I don't think you will be really paying a "prestige" penalty against UCSD.

That being said, the location of UCSD is the best in the country I think.
 
studyfordo said:
Even though I graduated from UCSD, I would suggest you take full ride and come out of undergrad without having to worry about paying back loans. Also, if you do decide to go into medicine, your debt will be accumulating while you're in school. In terms of prestige, i think it's all BS for the most part. Just do well and get a high GPA wherever you go.
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I think he is referring to medical school not undergrad, unless I am quite mistaken.
 
Stagg737 said:
Carver is an excellent school with some strong residency programs in certain fields. I'd go to Carver unless you're either dead set on practicing in California/doing a residency there or you just didn't really think you'd like attending Carver. Either way, it would take A LOT for me to turn down a full ride to med school almost anywhere. Congratulations, this is one of those tough decisions that sounds like a win no matter what you choose.
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Thank you so much for your advice! I actually am pretty dead set on practicing and doing residency in California, but I really did like Carver and Iowa City a lot, and am hopeful I'd still be able to match in California if I chose to attend
 
amac17 said:
Thank you so much for your advice! I actually am pretty dead set on practicing and doing residency in California, but I really did like Carver and Iowa City a lot, and am hopeful I'd still be able to match in California if I chose to attend
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Unless you think that you will be so depressed as to be functionally incapacitated by living in Iowa, going to Carver is the correct choice and will not hinder your return to California.
 
Yeah also chiming in for the full ride. I think they are very similar in terms of reputation and both should leave every door open to you assuming you do well. Assuming you have other ties to California, you should have no trouble getting interviews and doing residency out there if you still want that in 4 years. Even without any other ties, you can still do some aways or make other overtures to programs so they know you're serious about them.

Congrats on the full ride!

PS - I would definitely go back to UCSD and see if they can sweeten the deal. You are clearly a competitive applicant and maybe they will come up with more money. You may not swing a full ride, but maybe you could get close. Just a thought.
 
I vote Carver as well--I know several people who went there and really loved the sense of community and school atmosphere.
 
Money is money, it gets paid off. Go where you think you will be happiest. Greatest advice could give.
 
I disagree with the majority of these posts. If you are "dead set" on doing residency and practicing in California, go to UCSD. The majority of UCSD students stay in California and attend all the really great programs in this state for every specialty. I'm not saying it's not possible to match well in California from UIowa, but if that is your end point, why not give yourself every advantage? I don't think the full ride is enough incentive to outweigh what you are ultimately looking for, IMHO.
 
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Having no debt will give you the freedom to do what you want. Have you ever lived outside of California? Challenge yourself! Live in the midwest for 4 years and you'll appreciate California that much more. And you'll be thanking yourself 4 years later when you don't have to worry about the interest growing on the debt you don't have.
 
After reading OP's edit, I'm not sure if Iowa is the clear choice. It's my understanding that California residencies (at least in the major cities) are very selective.

Perhaps @gyngyn can help the OP with this dilemma.
 
What did UCSD say about matching the offer or giving more aid due to the scholarship from carver?
 
Congrats @amac17!

Did I miss it, or have you said how much you would have to borrow to go to UCSD?

Edited to add: And is Carver offering you full tuition, or full cost of attendance?

You sound like a California lifer, and it might be worth something to stay there for med school. Not a quarter million dollars, say, but perhaps if the debt load were small.
 
Just because you're dead set on doing residency in California doesn't mean you will get into a residency program there. Going to UCSD will help, but it totally depends on your field of interest. Do whatever you think will make you happiest.... but if you've never had significant debt before then you won't understand how burdensome it can be.


And for clarification, as above, does Iowa scholarship include tuition and cost of living?
 
amac17 said:
Hi Everyone!
I am in the extremely fortunate position of having been offered acceptance to UC San Diego, which has been a dream school of mine, as well as Carver with a full ride. I am at a complete loss for what to do as I know Carver is also a fantastic school. I want to pursue a very competitive field, but is there really enough difference between Carver and San Diego to pass up a full ride?

Thank you for your help in advance!

Edit: I am dead set on practicing in California and doing residency there. I don't know if this makes a difference!
Click to expand...
1. A full-ride will provide you with great financial stability; but in the end, so long as you're not already drowning in debt like some of us, you'll be able to recuperate that loss as a practicing physician once you finish UCSD and residency.

2. Despite your best intentions of pursuing a competitive specialty, our greatest intentions aren't always the intentions we inevitably pursue. Don't let that guide your decision, especially in a case where both schools have equal foundations upon which to cultivate a competitive CV (e.g., availability of competitive residency programs for rotations and letters).

3. Landing a competitive CA residency is inherently difficult. Attending UCSD will not provide you with an advantage over Carver.

4. A full ride scholarship is a distinguishing honor on your CV that would be lost at UCSD.

5. In summary, all things considered, I suggest you go where you feel you'd be the happiest. Satisfaction and contentedness will greatly affect your morale during the challenges of medical school.

Good luck and congrats on your achievements. 🙂
 
We talking full ride or full tuition? Because speaking as a full tuition recipient I'm still taking out mad loans to survive.
 
First time poster, but I felt obliged to respond.

It would be a shame to turn down a $200,000 education. If you are destined to be a great doctor, you will be a great doctor no matter where you attend. Residencies in CA would know that you are great, even if you are from Iowa (which is a wonderful place).

If someone offered me a free $200,000 education, I would feel foolish not to attend.
 
Just wanted to comment on the California aspect. Yes, most UCSD graduates go on to practice in California. Less from Iowa go to residencies in California. You have to interpret this from a different standpoint though. The fact is that most UCSD grads WANT to stay in California (they're predominantly in-state, so most students have lived there their whole life). Most Iowa students are not from California. The fact that less students from Iowa match to California isn't necessarily a function of "not being able to match", but more a function of "wanting to live other places besides California.".

There will certainly be some advantages to going to UCSD in terms of staying in California, particularly if you want to match at UCSD. I don't think those advantages will be significantly different than going to Iowa, doing well, and doing an away rotation or two at whatever Cali programs you're interested in. And, although UCSD is a great school, it's certainly a tier below other top Cali programs (UCSF, Stanford, UCLA) and probably not much different in terms of "prestige" than Iowa. I'd go for the $$$ if you're OK with Iowa City for 4 years. Keep in mind that (1) you're busy during medical school (2) 4 years go by VERRRRY quickly and represent only a small part of your overall training and career.
 
A few extra points in response:

1. A full ride (or full tuition) scholarship is a very distinguishing statement on your CV. If you screw up in med school it won't look that impressive, but being able to say someone was willing to essentially give you 200k is a pretty big deal.

2. @operaman brings up an excellent point. If you're worth enough for Carver to give you that much money, I would imagine that UCSD would be willing to drop some serious cash to get you. It may not be a full ride, but if SD is really your dream school, I'd explain your situation to them and see what they say. Worst case scenario is they don't offer you anything and you find out they don't value you that much. It would just make your decision that much easier.

3. Despite what people here are saying, being in a state will make it easier for you to match there for one simple reason, connections. If you go to school in Cali, you'll have a much better chance at making connections than if you go to school somewhere else. Yes, you can do audition rotations in California. However, you'll be able to make much stronger connections by being in that state for 3-4 years than you will by doing a couple 6-8 week rotations there. This is true pretty much everywhere. Do well in school, rock your tests, but do NOT underestimate the power of connections.


Here's what I would do if I were in your shoes: I would first contact UCSD and see if they would offer me any money. I'd tell them that I want to stay in California for residency and practice there and that they are my top choice (that is all true in your situation). If they didn't offer me a substantial amount (for me it would have to be at least 3/4 tuition) I'd say thank you for the offer, but I'll be attending Carver in the fall. Keep in mind that if you're living in SD, you'll probably rack up around 100k just in living expenses for 4 years, so anything short of a full ride is still going to be expensive. Good luck with whatever decision you make, and hopefully it all works out for the best!
 
Wow! Thank you everyone so much for all your input. I really wish I had seen all this before, but I stopped getting email notification and so assumed my thread had died! Today is the deadline and I am still somewhat at a loss for what to do. I'll add some more detail in here just in case anyone as more advice:

-It turns out it is a full tuition and fees scholarship not full ride, so I would still be responsible for the last 20,000/year.
-I qualified for NO school aid at all from UCSD, so was planning on taking out the full cost of attendance in the unsubsidized federal loan and grad plus loan--both with horrific interest rates, as you all know leaving me with ~240,000 in debt pre interest vs. ~80,000 in debt from Iowa.
-My dream specialty is reconstructive plastic surgery, for many reasons both personal and other, however I am VERY open to other possibilities--although I can't see myself doing anything non-surgical.
-I don't see myself being unhappy in Iowa at all. I really liked it there when I visited. Of course I like California more--its my home and the weather is a bit nicer 🙂, but I am really a person that can make the most of any environment.

Thank you again everyone for all your thoughts!!
 
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I think it would be very unwise to turn down full tuition at a school like iowa.
 
amac17 said:
Wow! Thank you everyone so much for all your input. I really wish I had seen all this before, but I stopped getting email notification and so assumed my thread had died! Today is the deadline and I am still somewhat at a loss for what to do. I'll add some more detail in here just in case anyone as more advice:

-It turns out it is a full tuition and fees scholarship not full ride, so I would still be responsible for the last 20,000/year.
-I qualified for NO school aid at all from UCSD, so was planning on taking out the full cost of attendance in the unsubsidized federal loan and grad plus loan--both with horrific interest rates, as you all know leaving me with ~240,000 in debt pre interest vs. ~80,000 in debt from Iowa.
-My dream specialty is reconstructive plastic surgery, for many reasons both personal and other, however I am VERY open to other possibilities--although I can't see myself doing anything non-surgical.
-I don't see myself being unhappy in Iowa at all. I really liked it there when I visited. Of course I like California more--its my home and the weather is a bit nicer 🙂, but I am really a person that can make the most of any environment.

Thank you again everyone for all your thoughts!!
Click to expand...
I'm dying to know, where are you going to medical school??
 
I had a similar choice to make...full tuition and fees at Iowa or half tuition and fees at Yale. Still not an easy choice. I ended up choosing Yale but If I would have had to pay full tuition and fees I would have definitely chosen Iowa. Though I also had to think about my SO and his career which the North East was a more viable option for him. Even after taking that into consideration I would have still chosen Iowa if I had to pay full tuition at Yale. Even after making my choice I still woke up this morning asking myself if I was an idiot for turning down Iowa's offer given they are a great school as well.
 
I was in a similar situation last year, 160K financial aid at Iowa vs 60K at a slightly higher ranked private school close to home. A lot of things factored into the decision, but I ended up choosing the school close to home. The two things which concerned me the most about Iowas was 1. nobody matched back in my home state in a few years and 2. non P/F pre-clinical grading. A year later and almost done with my first year, I can say that I I would've been royally ****ed this year had I not gone to a P/F school lol.
 
GoPelicans said:
A year later and almost done with my first year, I can say that I I would've been royally ****ed this year had I not gone to a P/F school lol.
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Why's that?
There's an AMA thread with a student who matched ortho this year around here somewhere. He says he was bottom quartile for preclinical grades and wasn't asked about it on a single interview. Nobody cared.
 
Hey yall, I am happy to announce that I will headin' to Iowa for next year! Thank you guys soo much for all your extremely thoughtful and very helpful advice. I decided I wasn't as married to the idea of residency in California as I thought I was--and as such, how could I pass up that amazing scholarship, and at such a good school? Congrats everyone on choosing med schools! 🙂
 
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