UVA vs. UPitt vs. PCOM (PA)

[TK1121]

Advertisement - Members don't see this ad

UVA
Pros

• Went to undergrad here, already have a lot of connections and people I would know in the area
• Decent work life balance for a medical school
• Pass/Fail
• Excellent student culture
• Great research opportunities

Cons

• OOS tuition and high cost of living
• Do I want to go somewhere new for medical school

UPitt
Pros

• I have family in Pittsburgh
• UPMC is a strong hospital system
• Great research opportunities
• Pass/Fail
• Reasonable cost of living in Pittsburgh

Cons

• No opportunity for merit scholarships
• Full IS cost of tuition
• Not as familiar with Pittsburgh as I am with the area around UVA

PCOM
Pros

• Half tuition scholarship -> graduate with no debt
• One of the best osteopathic medical schools
• Close to where I grew up
• Relatively strong clinical sites and match pretty strong for DO

Cons

• Not pass/fail
• Internal ranking
• Going DO over MD

Summary: I am so lucky to have some great opportunities, I am just really struggling to weight how much I value the cost of medical school and graduating debt free with going DO and would love some opinions. To add context, I will be getting family help either way but with the MD schools I am not sure if I would need some loans at the end and I am also not sure if it is fair for my parents to support such a significantly higher cost for MD versus my cheaper opportunity with PCOM that is half the price.

 

[Mr.Smile12]

Can you show the COA numbers and differences? How about research stipends, if that information is available?

 

[TK1121]

Can you show the COA numbers and differences? How about research stipends, if that information is available?

Yes I crunched some numbers already

 

[TK1121]

Yes I crunched some numbers already

I do not really have anything for research stipends.

 

[Mr.Smile12]

Medical Student Research Programs at UVA - Office for Research

med.virginia.edu

Deans Summer Research Project | Medical Student Research and International Studies

The UPSOM Dean's Summer Research Project (DSRP) is the major source of student stipend support for summer research activity. Funded primarily by the Dean and various NIH training grants, the DSRP is directed by Drs. Don DeFranco and Peter Veldkamp and coordinated through the Research Deans and...

www.researchprograms.medschool.pitt.edu

Graduate and Medical Student Research Opportunities at PCOM

PCOM offers medical student research opportunities as well as graduate student research options through faculty collaborations and projects.

www.pcom.edu

 

[riv_jordan]

Between UPitt and UVA, your pros for both are pretty similar and they cost essentially the same. The question there is whether you'd prefer to stick with your alma mater or explore a new area. The nice thing is that even though UPitt would technically be a new environment, it's still close to home and family so you will have a support system in either place.

Between those two and PCOM, it looks like this pretty much comes down to finances. Are you willing to pay $135k for an MD over a DO (and not just any MD but an MD from two of the best med schools in the country)? Does this difference have any practical significance for your career goals (e.g. means a lot more if you're deadset on neurosurgery or academic medicine but means much less if you want to do primary care)? Are your financial aid packages for Pitt and UVA finalized and non-negotiable? If not, I'd wait for a final package and/or try to get a better package if possible.

I know some people will say "always MD>DO" but I don't think it's that clear cut, especially with changes to federal loan policies. Graduating debt free would be amazing and PCOM is a great DO school, but even if you did go to UPitt or UVA, your debt would be under the $200K federal cap so you wouldn't have to take private loans. In that case, it wouldn't be unreasonable to choose one of the MD options.

 

[BritainKittenMittens]

I would pick either UVA or Pitt over PCOM. If it were lower tiered MD schools it might be different, but the jump from a DO school to a top 20-30 MD school is worth 130k over 4 years. I'm assuming you'll have pretty good help from family but if not, in most specialties, you can repay that in 1-2 years.

 

[TwoDogMed]

PCOM will close some doors. UVA and Pitt will open doors. UVA and Pitt >>> PCOM. Some things are worth the price. $130K is chump change in the long run.

 

[rob120]

Cant go wrong with either Pitt or UVA!!