UVA vs UF

[gengie]

So I thought I was totally decided on UVA but I went to UF's second look this weekend and now I'm not so sure.

I'm originally from VA and went to undergrad at Florida. Therefore, as much as I love Gainesville, I'm ready for a change of scenery.

The out of state tuition at UVA would put me ~$40k more in debt in the long run, but I was wondering if I could get some opinions on type of students and faculty at UVA. This is what is most important to me because Cville and Gainesville are both college towns and I have family about 2 hours away from both of them.

So, anybody want to tell me about the class characters?

Thanks!

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[flip26]

So I thought I was totally decided on UVA but I went to UF's second look this weekend and now I'm not so sure.

I'm originally from VA and went to undergrad at Florida. Therefore, as much as I love Gainesville, I'm ready for a change of scenery.

The out of state tuition at UVA would put me ~$40k more in debt in the long run, but I was wondering if I could get some opinions on type of students and faculty at UVA. This is what is most important to me because Cville and Gainesville are both college towns and I have family about 2 hours away from both of them.

So, anybody want to tell me about the class characters?

Thanks!

The UVA med faculty is full of awesome folks who love to teach.

The UVA med student vibe, or at least what I found at the revisit, is kind of college rah rah - a big chunk of the incoming class is from UVA itself, and the vast majority of people I have met are straight out of college, FWIW...but one of the best aspects of UVA is that approx half the class comes from OOS - so there is a geog diversity of students not found at most state med schools.

 

[justinbaily]

BrianZeke:
UVA has a great program and is opening awesome new facilities this summer. What sold me, though, were the students I met. It really seemed that they enjoyed themselves more than students at any other medical school (especially comparably ranked ones). UVA seems to really embrace students' outside interests in addition to merely studying. This really stood out to me.

mvenus929:
What sold me from the beginning was the happiness of the students, and you will hear this time and time again. I like how UVA encourages students so that they don't burn out, so that they don't lose focus on what they wanted when they first came to med school. I love that the students and the faculty get along, and that they all work as a team, rather than the students doing a bunch of scut work. And I love that they have a huge network of alumni, and their name is so well known that you'll have no problems in finding someplace when it comes to starting your career, because there will always be someone willing to guide you.


Steeler7588:
However, I found a number of these positive qualities at other schools. The biggest draw I had to Vandy was how happy and chill the student body was, but I found they were equally chill at Emory when I interviewed. I didn't meet students at UVa (didn't stay with a host), but Second Look showed me the same thing with them. UVa's administration and faculty seem just as supportive.

These are some third-party opinions that I found in the UVA thread and a UVA vs Vanderbilt thread. I'm not sure if they're helpful for you because they come from students who appear to be in the same situation as you. I would add that UVA students seemed particularly enthusiastic about their school--the only students I met who were more excited about their program were at Mount Sinai--but I have no way to compare UVA and UF. I have heard that the UVA administration is sensitive to the concerns of their students and that the clinical rotations are pretty scut-free. I have a friend who is an MS1 at UVA right now who thinks that the faculty are friendly and open to helping students. He also seems pretty relaxed by the P/F curriculum.

If any of the quoted posters would like me to take their quotes down, please PM me and I'll remove them ASAP.

 

[dingyibvs]

Maybe compromise and go to Miami instead?

But seriously, the 40k difference isn't that great. It seems like you'll have similar support system at both places and you should get a great education at either place as well. I had to choose between a couple schools that I loved as well recently, and I think what really helped me in the end is realizing that I could not go wrong with either one, so I just went with my gut. Every situation is different, but if it were up to me, I'd just pick the one I feel the most comfortable with and feel safe with the decision because I couldn't have possibly picked the wrong one

 

[20minutes]

I don't think you can make a bad choice here, both schools seem great. 40K is a lot to me but everyone has their own price point. All my concerns of Gville were allayed over the weekend, and I hope to see you in the fall (I'm fairly certain we met). But I definitely agree on changes of scenery. Good luck choosing.

 

[CarlATHF]

I went to the UF second look and I was extremely pleased by the people I met there (both incoming and the med students). Personally, if I wanted a change of scenery but all other things being equal, I'd go to the school that cost less, but that's just me.

 

[FollowTheMoney]

So I thought I was totally decided on UVA but I went to UF's second look this weekend and now I'm not so sure.

I'm originally from VA and went to undergrad at Florida. Therefore, as much as I love Gainesville, I'm ready for a change of scenery.

The out of state tuition at UVA would put me ~$40k more in debt in the long run, but I was wondering if I could get some opinions on type of students and faculty at UVA. This is what is most important to me because Cville and Gainesville are both college towns and I have family about 2 hours away from both of them.

So, anybody want to tell me about the class characters?

Thanks!

I go to UF and I can tell you I hear the most terrible things about their medical students. They are usually snooty, stuck up, unfriendly, and are cut throat. I was in an elevator once at the medical complex and overheard two medical students saying "yeah I think we did well on that test, i hope everyone failed, **** them" Everyone is pretty fake and the negative atmosphere will take a toll on you. However, I did hear that they do well in the match program and their professors are solid. Very academically challenging school, be weary! Good luck.

 

[CarlATHF]

I go to UF and I can tell you I hear the most terrible things about their medical students. They are usually snooty, stuck up, unfriendly, and are cut throat. I was in an elevator once at the medical complex and overheard two medical students saying "yeah I think we did well on that test, i hope everyone failed, **** them" Everyone is pretty fake and the negative atmosphere will take a toll on you. However, I did hear that they do well in the match program and their professors are solid. Very academically challenging school, be weary! Good luck.

Personally, I think med school is what you make of it. The people I met at second look were awesome, supportive of each other, and really into making sure everybody succeeded. Plus, anybody who knows anything about the Match knows that 1st and 2nd year grades are marginally (if that) important, especially in comparison to Step 1 scores and 3rd year evals.

Lesson: Don't go somewhere based on hearsay. Go somewhere based on what feels right.

 

[20minutes]

I go to UF and I can tell you I hear the most terrible things about their medical students. They are usually snooty, stuck up, unfriendly, and are cut throat. I was in an elevator once at the medical complex and overheard two medical students saying "yeah I think we did well on that test, i hope everyone failed, **** them" Everyone is pretty fake and the negative atmosphere will take a toll on you. However, I did hear that they do well in the match program and their professors are solid. Very academically challenging school, be weary! Good luck.

It's funny how this attitude only seems to exist on SDN. I had concerns before second look, but I didn't meet a single person with anything other than a great attitude, and I met a lot of students. I know there's a lot of smoke and mirrors and everything's nice and shiny on weekends like that, but I went out of my way to get honest answers (I was a "law student" one night, asking questions of 2nd and third years at a bar). I'm not gonna get in a fight over it, but saying something like "Everyone is pretty fake" seems like a ludicrous assertion.

 

[dr zaius]

I went to the second look weekend and felt nothing but a very positive vibe from incoming students as well as current students. I had heard the rumors of UF being full of "gunners" and "*******s" but I honestly never witnessed anything like this during my interview, second look, and the few times I have visited in between. The faculty seemed to form a true connection with the students, and all of the students seemed motivated in a very healthy way. If the school isn't a "bottom tier" school SDN seems to label the students as gunners, and I would take this with a grain of salt.

Anyway, I greatly enjoyed Friday and Saturday in Gainesville, and I am excited about starting school at UF in the fall. I was leaning heavily towards UF prior to second look, and the weekend made me realize UF was the correct choice for me. I hope to see you in the fall!

 

[fmp33]

It's funny how this attitude only seems to exist on SDN. I had concerns before second look, but I didn't meet a single person with anything other than a great attitude, and I met a lot of students. I know there's a lot of smoke and mirrors and everything's nice and shiny on weekends like that, but I went out of my way to get honest answers (I was a "law student" one night, asking questions of 2nd and third years at a bar). I'm not gonna get in a fight over it, but saying something like "Everyone is pretty fake" seems like a ludicrous assertion.

You are clearly mistaken if you think this attitude only exists on SDN. This attitude comes mostly from people who go to UF and have contacts within the med school, so I'm more likely to believe them than believe the med students and faculty who are on their best behavior. UF teaches a traditional curriculum and they teach it to the boards which is good and bad, that's essentially it. btw, do you honestly think they're going to bring the gunners out to showcase the med school when they're trying to sell you on it?

Congrats on UF acceptances because you will be a good physician coming out of there, but don't try to justify all aspects of UF med based on their strongpoints. There are issues within the classes that are worse at UF than other places, don't be blindly fooled.

 

[RevivedPreMed]

I went to the second look weekend and felt nothing but a very positive vibe from incoming students as well as current students. I had heard the rumors of UF being full of "gunners" and "*******s" but I honestly never witnessed anything like this during my interview, second look, and the few times I have visited in between. The faculty seemed to form a true connection with the students, and all of the students seemed motivated in a very healthy way. If the school isn't a "bottom tier" school SDN seems to label the students as gunners, and I would take this with a grain of salt.

Anyway, I greatly enjoyed Friday and Saturday in Gainesville, and I am excited about starting school at UF in the fall. I was leaning heavily towards UF prior to second look, and the weekend made me realize UF was the correct choice for me. I hope to see you in the fall!

I can't speak about the entire class as a whole but I personally know at two of the incoming students (of the people I know that are going for sure) that I've taken pretty much every science class with and worked with them outside of class and they are the worst gunners I've ever encountered. Honestly, my experience at UF taught me all about gunners because my previous university wasn't like that at all.

Also, keep in mind that EVERYONE is nice in the beginning. Don't be fooled by nice small talk by your future classmates at second look. When the pressure of classes and exams fail on them they might change really quick. I'm sure there are a lot of good students at UF but I would definitely keep your guard up because you don't want to get screwed by a gunner.

 

[FollowTheMoney]

I went to the second look weekend and felt nothing but a very positive vibe from incoming students as well as current students. I had heard the rumors of UF being full of "gunners" and "*******s" but I honestly never witnessed anything like this during my interview, second look, and the few times I have visited in between. The faculty seemed to form a true connection with the students, and all of the students seemed motivated in a very healthy way. If the school isn't a "bottom tier" school SDN seems to label the students as gunners, and I would take this with a grain of salt.

Anyway, I greatly enjoyed Friday and Saturday in Gainesville, and I am excited about starting school at UF in the fall. I was leaning heavily towards UF prior to second look, and the weekend made me realize UF was the correct choice for me. I hope to see you in the fall!

I've been in Gainesville for 3.5 years and I'm pre-med. Trust me, this school is the epitome of a "gunner" school. I am exposed to their medical students fairly often and their faculty are pretty arrogant. Everyone at UF thinks they are the best and most qualified people, which is ridiculous. I met those SAME people you did and for a about a week they were fairly nice, helpful, and encouraging and within 2 weeks their "true colors" started to show. I can tell there is quite a bit of arrogance and animosity among the students. They are NOT as friendly as they seem, and nearly all of them are overachieving cocky gunners. If you have a soul and you are genuinely a nice and caring person, you will be miserable at UF. I'm sorry to burst your bubble, but it is the TRUTH. That story I gave earlier is COMPLETELY TRUE. These kids are SO FAKE.....just wait.

 

[Rzarecta]

I've been in Gainesville for 3.5 years and I'm pre-med. Trust me, this school is the epitome of a "gunner" school. I am exposed to their medical students fairly often and their faculty are pretty arrogant. Everyone at UF thinks they are the best and most qualified people, which is ridiculous. I met those SAME people you did and for a about a week they were fairly nice, helpful, and encouraging and within 2 weeks their "true colors" started to show. I can tell there is quite a bit of arrogance and animosity among the students. They are NOT as friendly as they seem, and nearly all of them are overachieving cocky gunners. If you have a soul and you are genuinely a nice and caring person, you will be miserable at UF. I'm sorry to burst your bubble, but it is the TRUTH. That story I gave earlier is COMPLETELY TRUE. These kids are SO FAKE.....just wait.

I do understand you feel strongly about that, but you have to remember your interactions with a few students are not representative of the whole school.

 

[fmp33]

I do understand you feel strongly about that, but you have to remember your interactions with a few students are not representative of the whole school.

lol there are nice people there, but it's fewer and farther between.
I can echo these exact same statements, with similar credentials as I was a premed at UF and did regularily come into contact with several of the med studens (1st-4th years) and faculty. People need to stop saying there is no issue because it's coming from the people at UF. Last year, there were more people than ever that released their acceptances at UF and there's a reason for that. I expect the same situation this year.

 

[RSAgator]

They are both great schools, and you will do well at either of them. To put in my two cents, I think one of the things about UF is that it has a massive pre-med population, and the ones that are successful there in undergrad tend to be "the gunners." Add this to the fact that a large majority of UF med students are the successful UF undergrads and you have a sort of self-perpetuating cycle. It's strange because I remember coming away from my interview last year thinking wow these people are all really cool and down to earth only to hear the "negatives" from some other friends who went to school there. The bottom line, and this will be true at any school, is that the people who want to take the time to represent their school are people who have a largely positive feeling about it (this is at both interview days and likely at second look weekends as well) so you have to take that with a grain of salt. Like someone else said, you'll get out of it what you put in and it will be what you make of it. Regardless, at 40k difference I'd probably take UF.

 

[20minutes]

My apologies gengie, I didn't mean to hijack this thread into another UF-basher. I just wanted to say it was nice meeting you and good luck with your decision.

As for all these PSAs. I actually had never thought of any of this and I'm glad the helpful folk of SDN are here to set the record straight. Everyone at second look is singing the same song, but y'all are right, we should totally discount our experiences because someone feels so strongly they'll resort to CAPSLOCK to get their point across. And how does one define "the epitome of a gunner school?" You say you've been in Gville for 3.5 years so I can safely assume you're at least 3.5 years old, correct? Are you basing this on your breadth of experience in said 3.5 years? I've been in 3 different universities (UF included) and from my experience they're all different shades of the same color. There are gunners everywhere, nice people everywhere, in-betweeners everywhere... I'm matriculating at UF in the fall and have no reservations about it. If you happen to be right and are so vain as to say "I told you so," I'll buy you a beer while you sing it. Cause that's what gunners do.

An aside: RSAgators response was the first logical impartial review I've heard.

 

[dr zaius]

Does anyone actually go to UF as a medical student? Input from current medical students would probably be more beneficial to the OP than people about to attend/pre-meds who talked with med students on the elevator/those attending other schools.