I'm a nontraditional premed student (former music teacher) in my late twenties. I've been accepted to the University of Pittsburgh (College of General Studies) for the fall to complete the prerequisite courses I need to apply to medical school. However, I'm currently taking two prerequisites (Gen Chem I & II) over the summer at Slippery Rock University, and I'm starting to wonder if it might not be a better idea financially to do all of my prerequisites there, given that the yearly tuition/fees are about $9,000 more at Pitt ($19,000) than Slippery Rock ($10,000). I will be financing my tuition and living expenses via student loans, although I have no debt currently.
I'm concerned, though, that attending a rural school without as many research & clinical volunteering opportunities will negatively impact my application for medical school, especially as this is a career changing move. (The main reasons I applied to Pitt in the first place were its affiliation with UPMC health network & its emphasis on research.) I'm also concerned about the quality of the education that I will receive at Slippery Rock and the impact of that on my MCAT score. (The instructional quality at SRU so far has been mixed.)
For what it's worth, my GPA is fairly solid (3.9 general, 3.8 science). I plan to attend school full time to take all of my remaining prerequisites (Bio I & II, Organic Chem I & II, Physics I & II, & Biochemistry) over the next year and take the MCAT and apply to allopathic medical schools next summer.
Any and all advice would be greatly appreciated!
I'm concerned, though, that attending a rural school without as many research & clinical volunteering opportunities will negatively impact my application for medical school, especially as this is a career changing move. (The main reasons I applied to Pitt in the first place were its affiliation with UPMC health network & its emphasis on research.) I'm also concerned about the quality of the education that I will receive at Slippery Rock and the impact of that on my MCAT score. (The instructional quality at SRU so far has been mixed.)
For what it's worth, my GPA is fairly solid (3.9 general, 3.8 science). I plan to attend school full time to take all of my remaining prerequisites (Bio I & II, Organic Chem I & II, Physics I & II, & Biochemistry) over the next year and take the MCAT and apply to allopathic medical schools next summer.
Any and all advice would be greatly appreciated!