USC Keck vs. Wisconsin

[jujumaster]

Keck School of Medicine of the University of Southern California
Pros

• Emphasis on social justice embedded into curriculum
• Academic strength in specialized care
• Early hands-on clinical experience in public and private setting at three USC-owned hospitals
• Opportunity to get involved in cancer work through the USC Norris Cancer Hospital
• Opportunity to develop Spanish-speaking skills and work with diverse populations at the LA County+USC Medical Center
• Strong national reputation in and outside of medicine with supportive alumni network
• A year-round mild-to-hot weather in LA

Cons

• COA: $236,872
• Notorious traffic jams and hours of delay on LA freeways

University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health
Pros

• COA: $138,400
• Integration of public health into curriculum
• Academic strength in primary care
• Opportunities to do research during breaks, or through Path of Distinctions
• Strong national reputation in medicine
• Casual, down-to earth feel in Madison

Cons

• Residency match seems restricted to Midwest (may be due to student preference and self-selection)
• Student rankings and comparative performances are reported to residency programs
• Required clinical away rotations at training sites across the state
• Single-digit temperatures during the winter
• Lack of diversity in Madison

Noteworthy Points: I was born and raised in the Midwest, but would like to live elsewhere. I am interested in specialized cancer care, global medicine, and health equity. I have a long distance partner in Texas, so ideally I would like to be in a location that would ease travel/logistics. All advice is appreciated!

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[Putkernerinthehall]

I think that COA difference is too great to justify going to Keck. Wisconsin is an outstanding school and will set you up well. Keck is good but it's not T20 or anything like that. And it's in an area NE of downtown LA that is kinda meh. If you for sure want to do residency in So Cal and you want to work with underserved / Spanish speaking populations, maybe it makes some sense. But to me $100k difference is too much. You can match to west coast from Wisconsin.

 

[TheDataKing]

Wisconsin is 100k cheaper and will get you to where you want to be. You can do away rotations outside of the midwest and match at great institutions (you won't be held back if you go to Wisconsin). That 100k is just a lot

 

[Banco]

The 230k total COA for USC isn't like crazy high or anything, and you will be able to pay it back, but it really is hard to justify 100k more when Wisconsin is such a great school with huge resources, good name etc.



Ultimately you also decide for your personal reasons (happiness, goals). What I can say is that the midwest rank list is 99% student preference. Ultimately I think you can match wherever you want geographically from both schools.