usc or ucla???

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SmartyPants

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hey guys, i'm new to this forum! so what do you think is more important... higher ranking and much better location (ucla) or amazing clinical exposure in county hospitals from the very first month at med school (usc)? Btw, i'm out of state so tuition would be about the same anyway. any feedback would help! :D

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SmartyPants said:
hey guys, i'm new to this forum! so what do you think is more important... higher ranking and much better location (ucla) or amazing clinical exposure in county hospitals from the very first month at med school (usc)? Btw, i'm out of state so tuition would be about the same anyway. any feedback would help! :D

U$C!!! I'm biased since I just got back from USC and haven't heard from UCLA. I don't know, I just loved USC and think the clinical exposure at County rocks!
 
he he he.. 'SC because I'm going ;-)

And it doesn't matter what WE think- it matters what YOU think. Come to second look weekend. April 29th. See you there!
 
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DEFINITELY UCLA! I am waiting to hear from USC...so the more spots, the better!
 
I was accepted to both and have chosen UCLA. They are both awesome schools; I really don't think you can go wrong either way. :D Good luck!
 
ucla man. thats an easy choice.

look at the ucsd thread. but seriously consider the curriculum, location and tuition, and then the opportunities to do research and clinical rotations at various hospitals (vs just one), etc.

call and ask the school itself!
 
Its a very easy choice. I am a big fan of USC, but if I had to choose between UCLA and USC, I'd take UCLA anyday. A friend of mine goes to USC, and she's going to graduate with $200k in debt. That's simply not possible at UCLA, considering the cost of attending is $20k less per year. Besides, UCLA is very well known for its outstanding research, while USC is not.
One caveat: If you wish to go into ER med, IM, or other clinically intensive specialties, USC might be the better bet with LA County at your disposal. You'll see anything and everything at County. County is amazing, and offers clinical exposure second to none (ok, maybe second to Bellevue.)


Edit Note: County was the last hospital in the US to see a case of Leprosy. Think you'll see that in Santa Monica? ;)
 
Going through this choice myself at the moment, and would like to resurect the thread, anyone else have an opinion?

So far I gather

UCLA
+Cheaper (for in state)
+Great Research
+Choice of Teaching Hospitals

USC
+LACounty experience
+Early clinical exposure
=Ok Research
-Expensive (for in state)


What about networking/connections and USMLE/residency matching??
 
ucla has a much better reputation and would help lots for residency. but usc is great too.

add location to a + for ucla.

can someone explain usc's curriculum and grading to me? is it pass fail? i dont remember from when i applied. if its pass fail like ucla, then you have a hard choice. cant go wrong either way.
 
i declined an interview to USC :smuggrin:


i will never enter enemy territory :laugh:
 
This one should be easy. While USC county is a great resource, UCLA hospital is just as good only a lot more organized and oriented towards being a teaching institution. UCLA's faculty blows USC's out of the water. UCLA is a much more pleasant place. The downside to this is housing around UCLA is insanely expensive. I think that UCLA looks far beyond numbers when choosing students and brings in a huge variety of extremely interesting people. But if you felt USC was better then it's alls good. I'm extrmely biased.
 
no offense, but no brainer hah
 
ucla all the way....no bias here...
 
pre-med at UCLA sucks. 2.7-2.9 average science GPA when science people graduate. Trust me..pay the $$ for USC..it's worth it. you get the personal attention and the grades while you have a little fun on the side. don't get me wrong, UCLA is a good school.


SanDiegoSOD said:
Its a very easy choice. I am a big fan of USC, but if I had to choose between UCLA and USC, I'd take UCLA anyday. A friend of mine goes to USC, and she's going to graduate with $200k in debt. That's simply not possible at UCLA, considering the cost of attending is $20k less per year. Besides, UCLA is very well known for its outstanding research, while USC is not.
One caveat: If you wish to go into ER med, IM, or other clinically intensive specialties, USC might be the better bet with LA County at your disposal. You'll see anything and everything at County. County is amazing, and offers clinical exposure second to none (ok, maybe second to Bellevue.)


Edit Note: County was the last hospital in the US to see a case of Leprosy. Think you'll see that in Santa Monica? ;)
 
wannabedoc34 said:
pre-med at UCLA sucks. 2.7-2.9 average science GPA when science people graduate. Trust me..pay the $$ for USC..it's worth it. you get the personal attention and the grades while you have a little fun on the side. don't get me wrong, UCLA is a good school.


IM at USC is not by any standard exceptional despite the County exposure (according to ppl in residencies at county)
 
wannabedoc34 said:
pre-med at UCLA sucks. 2.7-2.9 average science GPA when science people graduate. Trust me..pay the $$ for USC..it's worth it. you get the personal attention and the grades while you have a little fun on the side. don't get me wrong, UCLA is a good school.

Mmmm.. Did I miss something? How will UCLA undergrad affect UCLA Med?
 
If the tuition you'll be paying for each is the same (out of state), why would you choose to go to the public school? At USC, I would think you'd get more personal attention, more resources, more nice stuff. I could be wrong, because I haven't seen all of UCLA or USC, but the medical campus at USC seems a lot more appealing (I'm not talking about the surrounding area though). As far as surrounding area goes, Westwood is definately nicer, but can be stifling. I'd much rather live in Pasadena and go to USC, despite the commute.
Also, just my opinion, and I could be wrong, but it seems like every time I read the LATimes there's another scandal about UCLA Med Ctr. -- physician molesting patients, outrageous lawsuits, people selling bodies, the new hospital isn't coming along as scheduled.
 
UCLA does not favor its undergrad premeds, but I heard USC does. The power of influence at USC is stronger compared to UCLA. I may be wrong.


domukin said:
Mmmm.. Did I miss something? How will UCLA undergrad affect UCLA Med?
 
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