UVA reputation??

[ccCrazie]

I thought about starting this thread since the dartmouth one is getting so many responses...

Anyway, what is the general opinion about Virginia? I'm currently going to be attending there next year but I am on the second tier (out of 3) of Yale's waiting list, which is supposedly a good place to be as 50% of the time the entire second tier gets in. Anyway, I wasn't really that excited about going to Virginia if Yale didn't work out because I dont' think Virginia is that big a name, especially next to Yale. This past weekend I went to charlottesville to check out the housing options in case yale doesn't work out and I really, really liked the housing I'd be able to afford and how much nature there is in the area. In short, I loved charlottesville. However, I really don't know if I would be shooting myself in the foot if I chose it over Yale. Would that be crazy? I love yale's program but the area is terrible, it's much more expensive, and I'm sick of waiting and this year's movement has been slower than normal. What are your thoughts everyone? Yale's matchlist is incredible, would UVa put me behind seriously? Any input would be appreciated.

sorry for the rambling...

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[dem4t]

UVA is a good school with a solid program. You need to ask yourself if you really think that a school's name is really that important to you. UVA isn't ranked as highly as Yale by USNEWS (whatever it's worth) but it is definitely respected by residency program directors come Match time.

 

[deez4life]

check out some uva's match lists... i don't know if it's online, but i'm sure they'll provide you with one if you've been accepted... some derm, ortho, radio, a plastics, and internal out the yin yang... true, yale might have the holier than thou reputation, but the facts don't lie... i'd hardly say attending uva would be shooting yourself in the foot 🙂

 

[Catalyst]

yeah, I'd have to say that UVa is no place to cry over (even if it's in competition with Yale)... check out their 2002 matchlist on their website, most of the people actually match into Virginia residencies... so whether or not you would want to live in charlottesville for more than four years is something you ought to consider

 

[ccCrazie]

sorry if i came off as complaining about this decision. I do realize it is a rather fortunate decision to have to make, but nonetheless I am losing sleep over it. Thanks for the feedback so far. I do realize that I am rankings ***** and the name really is important to me. Maybe I just need to try to get over that. I've looked at their match list a hundred times and while they do place people in highly competitive specialities, they're not in highly competitive places. Every school gets a few derm, a few optho, an a few rads, but it's the top crust schools that place students in these residencies at the top programs. If I decide that I want to do optho, I don't want to know that I won't be able to get into a top program and I may have to go to podunk hospital to do my residency. Am I making it out to be worse than it is, or am I on par here?

 

[secretstang19]

I agree with the general consensus here - you're DEFINITELY not "shooting yourself in the foot" by going to U.Va.

I turned down a U.S. News top 5 school to go to U.Va. this fall, but before I did, I asked everyone I could think of (med students, doctors, my premed advisor) if the academic difference between U.Va. and other "higher ranked" schools made a difference come match time. The opinion I got was that the difference between the #1 U.S. News school and the #25 U.S. News school is marginal at best IF you want to practice. If you're interested in academic medicine, then you should go to the highest ranked school you get into to establish that kind of pedigree, since that's what will ultimately get you hired. But if you aren't interested in academic medicine or research, then it really doesn't matter.

Don't read too much into match lists, either. They can be deceiving. In the case of U.Va., you have to consider that a large portion of the class is made up of Virginia residents. There are a lot of people who have lived in Virginia their whole lives, went to school in Virginia, and want to practice in Virginia, too. So for them it makes sense to do a residency in the state. Seeing so many matches at U.Va. doesn't mean that the ONLY place U.Va. grads could get placed was U.Va. - I think it's more likely that there is some self-selection going on.

You see that same phenomenon at most medical schools, not just U.Va. I'd say the only exceptions are the Ivies and other Ivy-like schools that truly draw a nationwide student body. The Yale match list, for example, probably has placements more widespread than the U.Va. matchlist, but I think that that represents the broader base from which Yale draws their students (that, and the fact that more Yale grads are interested in academic medicine and are willing to go anywhere just for the prestige). Check out the match list for a school like Dartmouth, and you'll see a distinct Northeast flavor. I don't think it's because Dartmouth can only place people in New England. It's because the kind of person who would go to Dartmouth for medical school is probably the kind of person who likes the Northeast and is more likely to live there permanently.

The bottom line is: match lists are deceiving. The unanimous consensus I got from everyone I talked to was that there is only a marginal difference in residency placement among medical schools. Take it for what it's worth...

 

[Catalyst]

In the case of U.Va., you have to consider that a large portion of the class is made up of Virginia residents. There are a lot of people who have lived in Virginia their whole lives, went to school in Virginia, and want to practice in Virginia, too. So for them it makes sense to do a residency in the state. Seeing so many matches at U.Va. doesn't mean that the ONLY place U.Va. grads could get placed was U.Va. - I think it's more likely that there is some self-selection going on.

GREAT point, I'm a dumba$$..

Sachin

 

[Special Kay]

ccCrazie,

Don't worry about sounding like a snob. I'm big on prestige too. From what you've said, I would suggest Yale for you. If you went to UVA, I know you would always wonder "what if I were at Yale . . ."

Coming from a prestigious undergrad (by the way, I'm a 2002 Dukie also), we expect to continue on with top schools with big reputations. Just my two cents.

 

[gwyn779]

I think it's also important to consider where you'll be happy in things other than name. I know name seems like a big deal, but when you're in school, other things take over. If you really liked everything about Charlottesville, then you'd probably be happy at UVA. And like everyone else says, you're not shooting yourself in the foot. I'm at UVA and I don't know anyone who feels limited by their decision to come here. Really, your grades and performance in clinical years are going to be more important.

 

[conquire]

I agree with the poster before who spoke with doctors and advisors about the decision to attend UVa as opposed to a top ranked school. I, too, was in the very fortunate position of holding acceptances at a few top 10 schools as well as UVa. In the end, I decided that the direction of my career would be better served at UVa. I think that UVa celebrates primary care in ways that some top flights schools do not, and while I am certain that I could have found wonderful mentors at the other schools I was considering, I think that I will not have to search for them at UVa. I am also excited to be living somewhere like Charlottesville instead of the old industrial cities of the northeast. I am convinced that attending school where I want to be is much more important than following prestige as deemed by people I often am not impressed by anyway. I guess I find people who want to be looked upon differently because of where they went to school to be a little shallow. That being said, there a good number of reasons to attend many different schools, it just depends what you hope to do with your degree in medicine. You can't go wrong, just make sure your decision is one that you come to on your own terms.

 

[deez4life]

If you are a self-proclaimed rankings *****, then go to Yale. If you loved Charlottesville and felt the UVA vibe, decide for yourself if you're truly making the right decision.

Originally posted by Special Kay


Coming from a prestigious undergrad (by the way, I'm a 2002 Dukie also), we expect to continue on with top schools with big reputations. Just my two cents.

I turned down an undergrad Duke acceptance to come to UVA. If I had to live in the subarban-sprawl hellhole known as Raleigh-Durham, I'd have shot myself in the head by now. Some people like it; whatever floats your boat. If you base pivotal life decisions on a subjective ranking, you may want to reinspect your motivation to pursue medicine. Go where you're happy, not where US News tells you to.