UVA vs Mayo MN vs VCU

[helpmechoose2020]

Hello everyone, I am extremely grateful for the way this cycle turned out and feel incredibly lucky to have three great options to choose from. I have lived in VA my whole life and have grown up a huge UVA sports fan. I chose not to go there for undergrad and have not regretted it so far, but I am worried that whatever I choose I will regret not choosing either UVA or Mayo. I am completely unsure of what specialty I want to pursue, but I am interested in more competitive specialties and believe I want to practice at a large academic hospital. I was really counting on second looks to help me decide, but they have all been cancelled. I appreciate any and all opinions!


UVA
~160K total COA

Pros

• 1.5 year P/F preclinical
• A lot of time for away rotations/electives
• Seemed like a good fit at interview/meshed well with students
• Great hospital - People travel from all over VA to come here
• Focus on student wellness
• Close to home
• Good concerts
• Great hiking nearby
• Awesome Facilities
• Free athletic tickets

Neutral

• Larger class size - more people to meet, less individualized attention

Cons

• Lived in a college town for the past 5 years, worried may get bored/frustrated in Charlottesville

Mayo Clinic MN
~160K total COA

Pros

• #1 hospital in the US, Highly ranked in many specialties
• Selectives - explore options early on
• P/F preclinical
• Also seemed like a good fit at interview/meshed well with students
• Faculty seem like they really are interested in mentoring students
• Said at interview day that 75% of students matched to their #1 choice which is unreal
• Opportunities to see complex/rare pathologies from around the world
• Get to really know classmates and world-renowned doctors
• Focus on student wellness
• Worldwide recognition
• Twin cities nearby

Neutral

• Worried with small class size about limited classmates to make friends with
• Far from home - will miss family but think it may be cool to live in a different part of the country

Cons

• 2 year preclinical
• Less time for away rotations
• MN winter ain’t no joke

VCU
No financial aid information until after PTE date - Potential COA of ~ 280K

Pros

• 1.5 Year preclinical
• More time for away rotations
• Non-mandatory lectures
• Nice facilities
• Love the city of RIchmond
• Get to rotate at largest VA in the country

Neutral

• Large class size

Cons

• Potential cost is almost double other options
• Honors/pass/fail preclinical
• Less prestigious than the others
• Students did not necessarily seem as excited to be there

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[Davidfromcali]

I’d cross VCU off the list considering it’s the most expensive option.

UVA and Mayo are great options. It looks like it’ll come down to what you value the most. How important is staying close to family? It’s hard to beat a solid support system like that

 

[Dream of the Endless]

You're going to be bored at Mayo as well. Minnesota isn't exactly New York. I'd say choose UVA if your support system is more important. If it isn't super important to you, and you're looking to gun for the top residencies and clinical exposure, Mayo Clinic hands down.

 

[helpmechoose2020]

Thank you to everyone who has replied so far! I have been going back and forth between UVA and Mayo for a month now and I truly do not know how I am going to make the decision, so if anyone else has thoughts I would love to hear them!

 

[Saturday’s Child]

Thank you to everyone who has replied so far! I have been going back and forth between UVA and Mayo for a month now and I truly do not know how I am going to make the decision, so if anyone else has thoughts I would love to hear them!

At this point, what are you still getting hung up on? Just FOMO one way or another?

 

[helpmechoose2020]

At this point, what are you still getting hung up on? Just FOMO one way or another?

Essentially, yes. Worried if I choose Mayo, I will regret missing out on going to the school I grew up loving. Worried if I choose UVA, I will regret passing up the opportunity to learn from some of the brightest doctors on the planet. Also, never lived that far from family and worried because of how important people always say it is to have a strong support system during med school. I know these aren't issues that more opinions will change, just trying to get as many opinions of what others may do if they were in my shoes.

 

[helpmechoose2020]

In that case...I would still choose Mayo if I were you.

To put that in context, I am very close to my parents and rely on them for support. They are my rock. But, I have not lived closer than 2 flights away from them for around a decade. Has that been easy? No, it hasn't been easy at times. But I turned down an acceptance at a medical school which would have put me in their city for 4 years. Even though I haven't doubted being away from them until then, I was surprised how difficult it was to make that decision. I knew the opportunity I was giving up. My other options are 20+ hour drives away. This is professionally the right decision for me, and I know based on experience that even at a distance I have my family's support and love.

At a school like Mayo, you will be with students who are far from their families as well; in a way that a state school won't be able to replicate (even UVA where I believe ~50% are OOS). This will help you create your own family. You will miss your biological family, that is a given. But 4 years will go fast and we live in a time period where it is so easy to stay in touch. Choosing Mayo doesn't mean giving up the strong support system you have. You would be giving up the choice to see them in-person whenever you'd like. This is a difference, but you are the only one that can determine whether that is enough to sway this decision.

That is an excellent way to think of it, and I really appreciate your input!

 

[helpmechoose2020]

Tagging individuals that always provide insights that I find valuable to try and get more opinions/advice. Thanks in advance!!

@Goro @gonnif @LizzyM @Angus Avagadro @Lucca @WedgeDawg @Fruitjuice @throwaway2020MD @Engrailed @AmaranthMoor @u_raptor

 

[Goro]

You won't have time to be bored as a medical student.

Both Mayo and UVA are great schools. Flip a coin.

The Mayo winter would probably be a deal breaker for me....I hate the cold

 

[CC2020]

Thank you to everyone who has replied so far! I have been going back and forth between UVA and Mayo for a month now and I truly do not know how I am going to make the decision, so if anyone else has thoughts I would love to hear them!

It seems as though we're in the same boat just with different schools. One thing is for sure, you can't make a wrong decision here, so congrats! I've made almost no progress on my decision either (there's a post on here about it), and have just gotten past the "What am I giving up by not going to x or y school" and to the "I'd be absolutely thrilled to attend either" mindset. No idea if that's good or not, but I'll give my best shot at something helpful to think about.

A mentor told me that this decision may be the last time you get to be truly selfish with your decision. Parents/friends/you will adjust accordingly to your decision, and new support systems will be built/expanded upon depending on your location, but come residency you may have to make certain concessions in terms of where you want to end up (maybe there's a SO in the picture or want to be back home to be near parents, can't know the circumstances). So you get to selfishly pick what's best for you for the next four years, whether that's professional potential/opportunity, something new, or being in a certain environment/being around certain people.Four/five years from now it's likely that you'll be in a great situation again, you'll match into what your experiences guide you towards regardless, but your life will be so fundamentally different from having picked one, who would be to say that your medical school decision was ultimately good or bad? Maybe that helps, if not, flip a coin.

Less stoically - winters that are actively trying to kill you would be not great.

 

[Marr97]

Tough decision, but you can't go wrong either way. I'll give you the advice given to me by one of the students I met while touring a school: pick the place where you see yourself being happy. If you think you'll be equally happy at either school, then it's time to consider other factors, but it sounds to me like you're trying to juggle Mayo's prestige with their isolation and weather. On the other hand, you've got UVA, a wonderful school with great opportunities, with the warmth of home, family, and friends backing it up. Your only con is that you're worried you'll get sick of the environment, but come residency, you can always try out a brand-new location. I wouldn't underestimate the utility of a strong support system during such a stressful time in your life as med school. Good luck with your decision!

 

[mcasomMN2021]

Seeing this after your post in the Mayo threat. I vote Mayo (very biased of course haha) you can go home and do selectives at UVA if you'd like! Lots of time to travel in all 4 years. A couple Mayo students going to UVA next year for residency, and you'd have good ties there which would make it easier to match there later if you'd like! It will likely feel a bit isolated sometimes but the students get pretty close and get together to do fun things even when the weather is terrible. The clinical training is truly amazing!!